Worshipful Ways Wednesdays - How to Find a Church
Finding a church in today's world can be rather hard. It's like there's too many, yet not enough... which doesn't really make sense... but yet it does.
Anyways!
Finding a church can be hard for multiple reasons. You might be considering:
- location
- denomination
- beliefs
- music style
- average age of the congregation
- ways you could plug in
- does it "feel right"
- etc.
There's so many things to check out when you attend a church for the first time. It can be quite overwhelming!
. . .
My husband and I recently went through the process of finding a "home" church (a church in which we felt comfortable in as well as needed). Both my husband and I have served a lot in churches, and that is often where we find our community (aka - friends).
We had trouble figuring out a church to call home because we recently moved about 30 minutes aways from a church we had just started attending and had liked. We had to figure out whether to make the effort to stay there and just commute each Sunday, or to find a church closer to us (there are 2 just down the street from us) which would make Sunday mornings way more convenient.
We checked out a few churches near us, and came to the conclusion that we just felt more comfortable and needed at the church 30-minutes away.
Now, this church 30 minutes away is NOT perfect. We're struggling finding a small group, we're still getting to know people and are volunteering with the tech team and children's ministry without really knowing anyone there... but it still feels like home.
Churches can be... well... difficult. They can have lots of pros and lots of cons all at the same time. It's HARD to find a church that you love and want to call your home church because things aren't always perfect at every church (shocker!). Churches go through phases of not doing so well, but instead of trying out every church there is and then decided to just not go to church at all, help the churches out!
There seem to be many people who think the church staff should have everything figured out, and if they don't, something's wrong with them.
The church staff is a group of imperfect people trying to do their jobs absolutely perfectly (and in the spotlight, too).
It's HARD being on staff at a church... I would know... I've been one! And I have told my husband that I don't think I ever want to work for a church, because it's HARD! Now, I will do whatever the Lord leads me to do, but working at a church would not be my preference.
So, as you go around looking at churches, here's a way to find one that could become your home church:
1 - How do you feel when you first walk in? Welcomed? Loved? Not wanted? Take a second to recognize that feeling.
2 - Do you connect with the musical worship time? Whether it be contemporary, traditional, somewhere in-between, or nothing at all. Does the musical worship time allow you to worship God easily?
3 - How do you feel about the preacher's message? Did he/she say things that you agree with or disagree with? Can you trust this preacher to lead you spiritually? Can you relax while he/she preaches because you trust that what he/she says is TRUTH?
These are the first steps in deciding whether or not a church fits YOU.
Next, I would begin asking myself, how can I get involved here? I personally gravitate towards the children, music, and outreach ministries. My husband gravitates towards the youth and the technology teams. Everyone is different, and that is a good thing! We need each individual who has a passion for their own thing to make the body of believers we call church.
Once you have these questions answered, I would finally attend the a "membership class" to learn what it is the church ACTUALLY believes. It's hard to tell that sometimes by just attending on Sunday mornings.
After I learned what the church believes, I would then make a decision to join the church based on whether or not we believe the same thing. I also always have the option to agree to disagree on certain things if I feel like that is possible with whatever it is that is disagreed upon.
At this point, I would hopefully have a home church! It takes a bit of figuring out as well as seeking God's will throughout the process, but if you've made it to the members class, it's a pretty good sign that this is the church to be at!
I hope this helped you if you are currently trying to figure out how to find a home church. No church is perfect because it is led by imperfect people. The church that you visit might be needing you to help in some of the areas that are falling apart. It might be YOU who is supposed to come and serve in that way. You never know!
Seek God. Seek righteousness. Seek a church home. Having a home church is more important than you realize.
I hope you find your home church soon! If you live in Denver, CO and are looking for a home church, let me know and I'll do my best to help you find your home.
Cheers!
TGBTG
Now, this church 30 minutes away is NOT perfect. We're struggling finding a small group, we're still getting to know people and are volunteering with the tech team and children's ministry without really knowing anyone there... but it still feels like home.
. . .
Churches can be... well... difficult. They can have lots of pros and lots of cons all at the same time. It's HARD to find a church that you love and want to call your home church because things aren't always perfect at every church (shocker!). Churches go through phases of not doing so well, but instead of trying out every church there is and then decided to just not go to church at all, help the churches out!
There seem to be many people who think the church staff should have everything figured out, and if they don't, something's wrong with them.
The church staff is a group of imperfect people trying to do their jobs absolutely perfectly (and in the spotlight, too).
It's HARD being on staff at a church... I would know... I've been one! And I have told my husband that I don't think I ever want to work for a church, because it's HARD! Now, I will do whatever the Lord leads me to do, but working at a church would not be my preference.
. . .
So, as you go around looking at churches, here's a way to find one that could become your home church:
1 - How do you feel when you first walk in? Welcomed? Loved? Not wanted? Take a second to recognize that feeling.
2 - Do you connect with the musical worship time? Whether it be contemporary, traditional, somewhere in-between, or nothing at all. Does the musical worship time allow you to worship God easily?
3 - How do you feel about the preacher's message? Did he/she say things that you agree with or disagree with? Can you trust this preacher to lead you spiritually? Can you relax while he/she preaches because you trust that what he/she says is TRUTH?
These are the first steps in deciding whether or not a church fits YOU.
Next, I would begin asking myself, how can I get involved here? I personally gravitate towards the children, music, and outreach ministries. My husband gravitates towards the youth and the technology teams. Everyone is different, and that is a good thing! We need each individual who has a passion for their own thing to make the body of believers we call church.
. . .
Once you have these questions answered, I would finally attend the a "membership class" to learn what it is the church ACTUALLY believes. It's hard to tell that sometimes by just attending on Sunday mornings.
After I learned what the church believes, I would then make a decision to join the church based on whether or not we believe the same thing. I also always have the option to agree to disagree on certain things if I feel like that is possible with whatever it is that is disagreed upon.
At this point, I would hopefully have a home church! It takes a bit of figuring out as well as seeking God's will throughout the process, but if you've made it to the members class, it's a pretty good sign that this is the church to be at!
. . .
I hope this helped you if you are currently trying to figure out how to find a home church. No church is perfect because it is led by imperfect people. The church that you visit might be needing you to help in some of the areas that are falling apart. It might be YOU who is supposed to come and serve in that way. You never know!
Seek God. Seek righteousness. Seek a church home. Having a home church is more important than you realize.
. . .
I hope you find your home church soon! If you live in Denver, CO and are looking for a home church, let me know and I'll do my best to help you find your home.
Cheers!
TGBTG
Wonderful advice for anyone looking for a new church! And especially your comment that there are no "perfect churches". We all just have to find the one that's right for us and where we can grow, learn and bloom. Thanks Maria!
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