I need church.
Granted, I’m a preacher’s kid and have been in church three times a week most of my life. It’s a rhythm that I know and anything else feels strange. In childhood, I lived next door in the parsonage and rode my bike to see the church secretary (aka Momma). I know how to mimeograph the church bulletin and fold it perfectly. Church is my second skin but I don’t go just because I’m used to going there.
I need church.
Sure, as a stay-at-home mom, church gives me somewhere to go, to tell one day from another. It gives me a reason to get dressed up and leave the house periodically. It’s nice to go somewhere and wear something other than the Mom hat, but I don’t just love it for a change of pace.
I need church.
Where else could you go where most of the people there, church employees and congregants, are purposely and cheerfully reaching out to you without trying to sell you something? I have found no other place where good will is more evident. This has been true of our former churches, our present church, and all the churches we have visited in other states and countries. Blest be the tie that binds our hearts in Christian love. It is miraculous to experience that kinship with Christians I have never met before and, in some cases, who do not even speak the same language I do. This human connection lifts my spirits like nothing I have found in any other place. There is no substitute for the sense of belonging that comes from uniting with like-minded people to worship and learn more of God.
I need church.
Personally, church brings together some of my favorite things: worship, music, flowers, family. These have been life themes for me. All of these gifts come from God and He is highly exalted when we experience their combined impact. It is almost too wonderful! I can honestly say that the few hours I spend at church are my favorite moments of the week.
I need church.
You know, tradition gets a bad rap but tradition is the stuff that connects generations. Any tradition that brings pain or trouble should be reconsidered and would most likely fade out over time with good reason, but the tradition of going to church would be a good one to keep around. I could do a lot worse for my children than to take them to a place that cares for them and provides learning and support for every phase of life. If I am choosing worthwhile traditions, I know one that I’m going to keep.
I need church.
When it’s my turn to face life’s hardships and life’s happy milestones, it’s my church that’s at the door, on the phone, and in my mailbox and messages. The church cries the happy and the sad tears along with me whether it’s my engagement, wedding, pregnancy, illness, loss, or anything in between. You couldn’t hire a team to provide this kind of support.
I need church.
But it’s not just what I get from church; it is a great place to give. There are always worthwhile projects to give to financially and plenty of places that even the most meager ability can be used. The church is a living thing that can use my gifts and in turn gives back to me continuously. Contributing what I have makes it mine and gives me a deeper connection with what is being accomplished there. My Daddy always said, “You can’t outgive God.”
I need church.
Major life events tend to happen at church. I was saved and married in church—my two most life-changing experiences. Every time I attend a wedding, I remember taking those vows myself and am inspired to live them out more fully. Funerals remind me of the imminence of death, which somehow keeps shocking me. We are brought back to reality in church and reminded of what is truly important.
I need church.
Church is a great place to celebrate the seasons and holidays (holy days). What is it about those special days that remind us of church? Our lives change constantly and we invite new things into them, but going to church brings us back to what stays constant: the truth.
Any of the reasons listed above is a good enough reason to go to church, but ultimately we need church because we need God. No, He doesn’t live in a building, but there’s something about setting aside a regular time to recognize Him as our hope and the source of everything we need in this life and the next, and to do it in a place dedicated to that purpose with others who are there for the same purpose (the true church).
I have all of the reasons above to go to church every Sunday if I possibly can. My week takes me on a roller coaster ride of doubts and lies and discouragement. I know myself well enough to know what I truly need: I need calibrating; I need to be reminded of who I am and who God is.
I need church.