I felt like this series was directed at me when it began, yet I'm still only watching the services now. And I still don't know that I'm able (ready) to hear (with an open heart) because of my resentment and hurt with people of church more so than the institution of church. Church will always be good. Worship, practice and community are always necessary, but the "encouraging" part of church for me was not and is not the (people) church, but the content for the church, the worship in the church, the music, the word, His spirit when 2 or more of us are gathered. I thoroughly enjoyed the stats. Part of the reason I love church is I grew up going to a minimum of 3 services every Sunday for 11 years, and then 1 for the next 6 years, and now I rarely go. Not something I particularly like nor am I proud of. My lack of attendance has nothing to do with me not believing church is a necessity. My lack of attendance does not lessen my faith. Yet I do not disagree that lack of community and participation in church does make drawing near to God difficult, difficult in the sense I have to work harder to remain focused on Truth. I can't and don't trust the church community because there is a difference (for me) between a believer and non-believer. I can't be mad at hypocrisy that comes from ignorance (a non-believer), but I can mad at all hypocrisy rooted in missing the message (radical love) and framed through accountability. Untold story. .. This is a great message! And I look forward to the rest. Church is a necessity, yet God has blessed me with so much in this life in and out of my church experience that I will not reduce my relationship and faith to dependence on my church attendance. Church is necessary, but God is my safe place, and if the church is the people, the community, God provides that community in more ways than a physical space with people who may appear to be community. In my 30 years of life I have made friends in church like family, but the church has not been my family. But a clique I can't breach. And don't want to anymore, I think, yet I know that church is a necessity, so I pray: God heal my heart and open my heart for community. I value God, but you're right I don't value the church in the way I should, I see the value, but I don't have faith in being valued in or by church. In the place, with the people. I love the message(s) of and in church, I love the spirit that is present when 2 or more of us gather. However I love that in my 30 years of life I have never been separate from God. And in the times I doubted, the church never provided answers. It was prayer and singing and crying in a room by myself. Fasting and praying all day the way I saw my grandma do as I was young. My grandma was the one to take me to 3 churches a week those first 11 years of my life, she's is the reason I will never discount the importance of church, but she is also the reason I believe that my faith is dependent on me going to God, not people. For a decade I have prayed to heal my heart and mind of resentment (since getting baptized) and God has worked in me, but it's not complete yet. And I consider often that my glacial progress may be my human heart resisting out of fear. And I pray: God help me change what I do not what to do, and help me do what I want to do, what You want me to do. But seeing "Christians" demand out of love better modeling of a Christian-Life in their peers, I demand better modeling of the message of love. For I am a sinner only saved by the grace and mercy of God. I pray he work in me til my dying breath. I am no one to throw stones and call it love. But I do love mirrors, and I do believe no sin is greater than another in the eyes of the lord. I do not hate the church for its discipline, but I do not trust the church because I've seen and felt it fail to be a hospital. Again I enjoyed the message and look forward to the rest.
Praise God definitely stirred me up. We all need to be periodically awakened so we aren't found sleeping
I felt like this series was directed at me when it began, yet I'm still only watching the services now.
And I still don't know that I'm able (ready) to hear (with an open heart) because of my resentment and hurt with people of church more so than the institution of church.
Church will always be good.
Worship, practice and community are always necessary, but the "encouraging" part of church for me was not and is not the (people) church, but the content for the church, the worship in the church, the music, the word, His spirit when 2 or more of us are gathered.
I thoroughly enjoyed the stats. Part of the reason I love church is I grew up going to a minimum of 3 services every Sunday for 11 years, and then 1 for the next 6 years, and now I rarely go. Not something I particularly like nor am I proud of.
My lack of attendance has nothing to do with me not believing church is a necessity. My lack of attendance does not lessen my faith.
Yet I do not disagree that lack of community and participation in church does make drawing near to God difficult, difficult in the sense I have to work harder to remain focused on Truth.
I can't and don't trust the church community because there is a difference (for me) between a believer and non-believer. I can't be mad at hypocrisy that comes from ignorance (a non-believer), but I can mad at all hypocrisy rooted in missing the message (radical love) and framed through accountability.
Untold story. ..
This is a great message! And I look forward to the rest.
Church is a necessity, yet God has blessed me with so much in this life in and out of my church experience that I will not reduce my relationship and faith to dependence on my church attendance.
Church is necessary, but God is my safe place, and if the church is the people, the community, God provides that community in more ways than a physical space with people who may appear to be community.
In my 30 years of life I have made friends in church like family, but the church has not been my family. But a clique I can't breach. And don't want to anymore, I think, yet I know that church is a necessity, so I pray: God heal my heart and open my heart for community.
I value God, but you're right I don't value the church in the way I should, I see the value, but I don't have faith in being valued in or by church. In the place, with the people.
I love the message(s) of and in church, I love the spirit that is present when 2 or more of us gather. However I love that in my 30 years of life I have never been separate from God. And in the times I doubted, the church never provided answers. It was prayer and singing and crying in a room by myself. Fasting and praying all day the way I saw my grandma do as I was young. My grandma was the one to take me to 3 churches a week those first 11 years of my life, she's is the reason I will never discount the importance of church, but she is also the reason I believe that my faith is dependent on me going to God, not people.
For a decade I have prayed to heal my heart and mind of resentment (since getting baptized) and God has worked in me, but it's not complete yet. And I consider often that my glacial progress may be my human heart resisting out of fear. And I pray: God help me change what I do not what to do, and help me do what I want to do, what You want me to do.
But seeing "Christians" demand out of love better modeling of a Christian-Life in their peers, I demand better modeling of the message of love.
For I am a sinner only saved by the grace and mercy of God. I pray he work in me til my dying breath. I am no one to throw stones and call it love. But I do love mirrors, and I do believe no sin is greater than another in the eyes of the lord.
I do not hate the church for its discipline, but I do not trust the church because I've seen and felt it fail to be a hospital.
Again I enjoyed the message and look forward to the rest.