I never realized how difficult moving to a new town could be. I am finding it very difficult right now to choose a church to attend on a regular basis. Maybe this is because choosing a church is an unnatural task. It means I am choosing one group of believers over another, one style over another, when maybe they should be blended rather than seperated.
One church that interests me is more spirit led. They love prayer. It is very multicultural. Services are very free flowing with laughter, a coffee break between singing and preaching, people standing up to tell what is on their hearts. Today the service was 2.5 hours long. A little out of my comfort zone by appreciate their enthusiasm and love for the community and for each other. It has many things going for it.
Yet it is a little out of my element. The preaching isn't as solid as I would like it to be. There are no small groups. Another church in the community offers that possibility.
How great it would be if these churches were combined? It would definitely cause some discomfort on both sides but also great love. THe Baptist church could use a little bit more spirit infusion. The Community church could use a little bit more solidity in the teaching.
Choosing between the two feels like an act against the body of Christ.
2 comments:
It is an un-natural (or unspiritual?) act, if the body is really one. A dilemna....
It is an act against the Body. Follow what the Spirit is saying to you. You're spot on.
We left the church system we were a part of five years ago, but it has taken all that time to get the system out of us. We've had to go through detox and it was incredibly painful at times.
We were hungry for depth of teaching, spirituality, and we came up against legalism, religious control and shallow relationships.
The Lord led us out into the desert and for a long time we were asking Him which way we should go. He kept saying, 'I am the Way', which wasn't entirely helpful at first - (!) but we gradually began to understand what He meant. As we kept our eyes on Him on a daily basis, in the wilderness, in the humdrum activities of family and working life, He automatically began to link us with people. We had been desperate for fellowship and reality and now, for the last few months, we have the joy of meeting together at home with a bunch of very different people who want to meet up around the Lord and have Jesus as their head. It just happened without our initiating anything.
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