I grew up a member of the Lutheran church. This story is not meant to bash Lutherans or their church. Each church has good and bad aspects to them, primarily because its filled with people. My mother would take us to church each Sunday for years. It helped to form the beginnings of my faith, it started my walk with the Lord. We would go to church each week, listen to the readings, sing a few hymns, go through the liturgy, and listen to the sermon. It was somewhat fulfilling. I was getting fed the word of God, but even as a youngster I always felt there was more.
There are a lot of Christians whose only spiritual interaction is for an hour or so each Sunday. They come to church, get fed, and are sent off into the world for the upcoming week. Then, the next week they are "re-filled" and the process starts over. Kind of like a spiritual gas station.
Let me say, going to church is a great thing. If you are going to church each week, I recommend that you continue. If it is the only time your spiritual needs are getting met, I would not tell you to discontinue. But, I feel God has so much more for us than just a weekly meeting. God wants to meet with each and every one of us daily. We are not meant to be like automobiles to get re-filled weekly. We need to be re-filled, but its more like an hourly and daily event.
I used to feel bitter towards the Lutheran church for years until God told me to let go and forgive them. The church wasn't totally bad, and it did lay out a framework for my life. As a matter of fact, until I left for college I didn't realize on how much I was missing out on. I had a sense, but didn't grasp the magnitude. It made me excited to realize God was interested in me 24/7 rather than just when I stepped into a church each Sunday for an hour.
Jesus says in Matthew 22:37," Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind" That's more than a one hour a week commitment.
Growing up I wasn't taught that I could pray on my own. There was no encouragement to read our bibles and worship in our homes. I didn't know we could lay hands on others or pray for their healing. There was so much that I was missing. My knowledge of God was limited to what the pastor taught weekly. I would encourage all churches to encourage your members to read their bibles and worship. Encourage an intimate relationship with God. A church's job is to equip its members to go forth in the world. Showing them all the tools at their disposal is a good starting point.
The Lord wants us to be a people of prayer, a people of worship, a people strengthened by His word, a people after His own heart. That's a full time position and not one to be blown off. After learning more about God, our response should be to want to spend more time with Him.
When I went to college, I learned more of what it meant to be a follower. I saw the importance of personal bible study, prayer, and small group bible studies in my life.
Church is still vitally important and we should still be going each week. There is real power to worship together with a community of believers. We are called to be a community, not to be on our own. A group of believers is good to support us in times of need, share in our joys, and keep us accountable.
We need to worship and follow each day, each hour, each minute. How do we do this? We do this with our families, our work, our hobbies and pastimes, and wherever we go. Worshiping God doesn't mean just singing hymns or following a set liturgy. We worship God in how we bless those around us each and every day. We can bless and worship by being good and honest workers at our job. Jesus tells us to "love our neighbors as ourselves" and to serve others. What better way to worship God than by serving others and loving them.
There's nothing wrong with being replenished on a weekly basis. We definitely need it. But, church once a week can't be the only way. It has to be a 24/7 proposition, anything less than that doesn't work.
There are a lot of Christians whose only spiritual interaction is for an hour or so each Sunday. They come to church, get fed, and are sent off into the world for the upcoming week. Then, the next week they are "re-filled" and the process starts over. Kind of like a spiritual gas station.
Let me say, going to church is a great thing. If you are going to church each week, I recommend that you continue. If it is the only time your spiritual needs are getting met, I would not tell you to discontinue. But, I feel God has so much more for us than just a weekly meeting. God wants to meet with each and every one of us daily. We are not meant to be like automobiles to get re-filled weekly. We need to be re-filled, but its more like an hourly and daily event.
I used to feel bitter towards the Lutheran church for years until God told me to let go and forgive them. The church wasn't totally bad, and it did lay out a framework for my life. As a matter of fact, until I left for college I didn't realize on how much I was missing out on. I had a sense, but didn't grasp the magnitude. It made me excited to realize God was interested in me 24/7 rather than just when I stepped into a church each Sunday for an hour.
Jesus says in Matthew 22:37," Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind" That's more than a one hour a week commitment.
Growing up I wasn't taught that I could pray on my own. There was no encouragement to read our bibles and worship in our homes. I didn't know we could lay hands on others or pray for their healing. There was so much that I was missing. My knowledge of God was limited to what the pastor taught weekly. I would encourage all churches to encourage your members to read their bibles and worship. Encourage an intimate relationship with God. A church's job is to equip its members to go forth in the world. Showing them all the tools at their disposal is a good starting point.
The Lord wants us to be a people of prayer, a people of worship, a people strengthened by His word, a people after His own heart. That's a full time position and not one to be blown off. After learning more about God, our response should be to want to spend more time with Him.
When I went to college, I learned more of what it meant to be a follower. I saw the importance of personal bible study, prayer, and small group bible studies in my life.
Church is still vitally important and we should still be going each week. There is real power to worship together with a community of believers. We are called to be a community, not to be on our own. A group of believers is good to support us in times of need, share in our joys, and keep us accountable.
We need to worship and follow each day, each hour, each minute. How do we do this? We do this with our families, our work, our hobbies and pastimes, and wherever we go. Worshiping God doesn't mean just singing hymns or following a set liturgy. We worship God in how we bless those around us each and every day. We can bless and worship by being good and honest workers at our job. Jesus tells us to "love our neighbors as ourselves" and to serve others. What better way to worship God than by serving others and loving them.
There's nothing wrong with being replenished on a weekly basis. We definitely need it. But, church once a week can't be the only way. It has to be a 24/7 proposition, anything less than that doesn't work.
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