I haven been pondering about the reasons why I still go to church, and this gave me an idea. I would like to write a blog post about church, what it is for, what it means to us, and what our perception of it is.
So today, I have an open question to my readers:
What does "church" mean to you? It can be positive or negative; it can include your own experience. You don't necessarily have to be a church-goer to give me your thoughts. You can either share them in the comments section below or message me. Just be aware that will probably use your input to write a blog post - so if you're not happy for me to do so, please let me know.
Musings is a pretty word. So here are the musings of an Aspergirl with a love of life, a passion for stories, and an ongoing faith journey.
Our old church in Birmingham had a great tagline: "Ordinary people who know someone extraordinary". Church is a community of regular people who know Jesus. Because we know him, we meet up to encourage each other to keep following him, and to share that knowledge with others, primarily by having someone teach from the Bible. "Church" is much more than a Sunday meeting, though it's certainly not less than that.
ReplyDeleteI love that! Thank you, Mike.
DeleteKit, I am pretty sure that I have shared my view of Church with you before. You may have read a blog I wrote on that other site regarding it. I used to be a regular church goer. Was confirmed as a youngster, participated in church activities and was one of the first to volunteer to help when there was a need. I became disillusioned with the organized church when I realized that most (in my particular case) of the people I knew figured that an hour and a half a week was a get out of hell free card. I have since decided that the real Church is all of God's creation 7 days a week 24 hours a day. I believe. I do my best to live in an appropriate fashion and sometimes fail miserably, however, I think it is our responsibility and God's expectation that we do our best...all the time...not just on Sunday Morning and recognize our shortcomings. Most of the folks that I saw in church each Sunday were beyond reproach...in their own minds. While it is not our place to judge, we all do, even if we intend not to. I figure it is better for my own soul (and piece of mind) if I don't put myself in a position (such as Sunday morning service) to judge those there.. I haven't posted anything on my own blog for quite a while. Maybe I will post that old story from the other site.
ReplyDeleteI certainly agree that church isn't an hour and a half a week to get a get out of hell free card. A church I used to attend finished their Sunday service with the phrase: "The worship has ended, let the service begin!" Faith should infuse everything we do everyday, or it's nothing more than lip service, and not worth anything.
DeletePlease do repost that blog you're talking about - I remember reading it, but I'd gladly read it again and I no longer go to "that other site".