On Pronouns

​  Pronouns seem to be a popular topic nowadays.  You may have gone to conferences or events where you are asked what your "preferred pronouns" are.  Some social media sites even let you select pronouns for your profile.  I had no idea when I was in 9th grade English class diagramming sentences what a hot topic pronouns would one day become! 
  Anyway, I want us to consider pronouns for a moment, not the ones we use to describe other people but the ones we use to describe the congregation where we are members.  Most of you are members at Victory in Christ, but the same ideas apply no matter which congregation you are a member of.  The way you talk about your church, the pronouns you use, says a lot about how you view yourself as part of that congregation.  Here's an example.  Maybe you're telling someone about Easter breakfast at your church.  Do you say, "They're having an Easter breakfast" or "We're having an Easter Breakfast"?  Do you see the difference?  In the first case you are talking about your congregation in the third person, they, as if you're not really part of it.  In the second case you are associating yourself with your congregation by speaking in the first person, we.  Isn’t that better? "We have communion every Sunday.  We have Sunday School and Bible Study at 11:00.  We will be worshipping at 7:00pm on Wednesdays during Advent."  And if there is something you see that needs doing around the church you can say to yourself, "How can I help?" versus, "What are they doing about that?"
  Language is important; it shapes the way we think.  That's why there is so much wrangling over pronouns in our culture.  Language is often changed in an attempt to alter our sense of reality.  It is the same with how we talk about our congregation.  The way we speak reflects what we think and influences how we perceive ourselves as a member of the body of Christ at our church.