Yesterday I started a blog about criteria for finding the right church -what it should be like. This is for us how it worked out in practice.
When I left you yesterday, my husband and I had just walked into a church in an area where we thought we might possibly move to. It wasn’t the only area we were considering but one of several that we could afford.
I found it daunting walking into a new church, where we knew no-one. But God provided. We were warmly welcomed by several people. We sat down. One of the first songs was one of my favorites. I felt myself relax a bit. It didn’t matter that I didn’t know the other song as it was easy enough to pick up.
The church has a break where children go out to their program. Again several people came along, introduced themselves and chatted to us during this time. The nerves settled a little more. Then it was time for the sermon.
The minister started off by saying, ‘Suppose you died tonight and God asked why He should let you into heaven?’ It’s a point I’ve heard made before. But then the minister turned it on its head. ‘Suppose you don’t die tonight? Are you prepared to trust Jesus with your future, with each day of your life?’ My husband and I looked at each other and knew God was speaking directly to us. Fears about the move disappeared.
The minister continued to preach. Everything he said was grounded in Biblical truth, backed up by everyday real life examples of how to apply God’s Word. And every word convinced us further that this was the church God was leading us to become part of.
After church we stayed for a cup of tea with those who’d been chatting to us earlier. When people found out we were thinking of moving down to the area, they were excited. They provided information about the area and offered help if we needed to know anything.
The second week of our holiday instead of going to another church and area as originally planned, we returned to the same church. Already it felt like home.
Rather than finding our house to buy and then looking for the church to suit us, we found the church God wanted us to belong to first and then looked for a house we could afford in proximity to it. For us it was a practical example of ‘seek first His kingdom,’ Matthew 6:33.
The sign out the front proclaims ‘Jesus gives life.’
The vision statement is to, ‘Build Christ’s church by proclaiming God’s Word.’
Our monthly church news bulletin gives the reason this church exists
‘We exist to honor God in all our life
Belong to the church community
Grow in Christian maturity
Serve others in love
Proclaim Christ to all the world’
Our new church is not perfect, thankfully, since we are not perfect either. No church on this earth is perfect. But it does meet all our 4 requirements and my husband and I are happy to be serving God here in this church He has called us too. Can you say the same about the church you currently attend?
Please visit these related blogs
Finding the right church – Part 1
setting goals for your christian journey