Why Church?

I love my church and look forward to attending weekly. When we miss for some reason, we REALLY miss it. In fact, we normally join the live stream or watch later if we are out. But especially if we have been out for more than a week, I cannot wait to get back.

Recently I read a blog post by Carey Nieuwhof, whom I read regularly, whose title, 10 Reasons Even Committed Church Attenders Are Attending Church Less Often. I understand the responsibility on both the church and the attender to this dilemma. But it also made me think, “why do I love attending so much?” So, I made a list of why I see the value of being engaged in a local church

1. I love worshiping alone, at home or outdoors, but worshiping in my church with lots of other Christ followers brings me into a beautiful place of deep worship as well. Often I am exposed to worship music I wouldn’t know otherwise…which leads me to download lots of music I sing even when I am not at church. Music that encourages me and grows me.
2. I love the Word and I attend a church where the Word is taught in various ways: devotional thoughts, preaching, discussion, Bible study groups and life groups. As I am exposed to God’s Truth, I am challenged to understand scripture and walk it out daily. After so many years of studying the Word, I am growing now as much as ever as God reveals new truths to me.
3. I love fellowshipping with other like minded believers who hold each other accountable to live in obedience to God’s Word. As we expose our issues to others, they join in praying for God’s guidance. I know I have many I can text in a heartbeat to pray over an immediate need.
4. I love serving in and through my church. I have been given many different opportunities to use my gifts, experiences, and interests to help carry out the work of my church: teaching, planning, mentoring, outreach and missions. No one should say, “I can’t find a way to serve in my church.“
5. I love watching others come to know Christ and then grow in Christ. I love watching a long time Christ follower begin to really grow as a disciple and become a disciple-maker.
6. I love having others to walk with, who, like me, are concerned for our culture today and the continued drift from God’s guidelines for life, love, ethics and morality. I must be continually reminded to go back to the Bible as the standard for life. I need to know I’m not alone in this!
7. I love how, when crisis occurs, my church is the first place I turn for help and prayer. We aren’t a perfect church (by the way, there is NOT a perfect church), but my church is faithful to pray for and walk with me in the crisis.
8. I understand more and more, as my church holds Jesus’ name high, that everything we do as a church, and everything I do personally, is for the purpose of honoring God and sharing Him. As I grow to love Him more and more, most often through the study of His Word to believers, my desire to honor Him grows as well.

I love my church, imperfect a it is (well, because we are imperfect people trying to follow Christ), and I believe in God’s command in Hebrews 10:24-25, And let us watch out for one another to provoke love and good works, not neglecting to gather together, as some are in the habit of doing, but encouraging each other, and all the more as you see the day approaching.

We need the church in this age…to BE the church Christ died for. To reach a world desperate for hope, hope only Christ can give. I found hope through the church and it’s people, and yes, I’ve experienced disappointment as well. But I cannot forsake the church when people fail.

So when we read an article like Carey’s, we can be discouraged, or we can evaluate why we attend, or maybe for some, why we should attend. Christ left His work to be carried out by His followers and He gave us the “church” to help us do that. Together we can walk in this world, where increasingly the Bible is becoming an issue of “intolerance,” and we can show Christ’s love anyway.

In fact, one of my discipleship girls pointed out this passage in Acts 2:46-47 after I drafted this post:

Every day they devoted themselves to meeting together in the temple, and broke bread from house to house. They ate their food with joyful and sincere hearts, praising God and enjoying the favor of all the people. Every day the Lord added to their number those who were being saved.

She said, look at what drew the lost to Christ and to the local church in Jerusalem as it was just birthed. It was their joy, sincere hearts, praise, favor among all people. It doesn’t even say the believers were evangelizing. Imagine that. People outside the church, recognize and are drawn to what they see within the body!

I don’t know about you, but I don’t want to do this Christian life alone…I can’t. I need my church to walk with me and teach me and give me opportunities to share Christ in our world. I bet you do too.

Banner photo by John Cafazza on Unsplash