comfort the afflicted, afflict the comfortable...

I heard it said years ago.

The purpose of ministry is to comfort the afflicted and to afflict the comfortable. If this is true then who are the afflicted and who are the comfortable?

Examples of the afflicted who need comfort:
homeless, abused, lonely, ignored, hungry, thirsty, grieving, sick...

Examples of the comfortable who need afflicting:
1. Those who do not acknowledge the afflicted.
2. Those who talk more about the temperature of the church or the spotlessness of the church restroom.
3. Those who talk about their wealth but do not share it.
4. Those who resist the hard truth of faith....that to live we must die to ourself.
5. Those who want worship to be entertaining.
6. Those who care more about the quality of the bread used for communion than they do for those who have no bread to eat.
7. Those who do not allow other perspectives of faith to be shared.
8. Those who insist on always being right.
9. Those who are unwilling to say, "I'm sorry."

Seems too much time is spent in the church keeping the comfortable comfortable!