The other day, I spent some time contemplating the beliefs and programs of a number of churches and, in the process began to wonder just why people go to one church or another. I also began to raise the question about how a person goes about finding a good church when he or she moves into a community. Let me tell you a true story.
A couple of years ago, I made a trip down south to visit a number of Baptist retirees for our retirement board. I had some great visits, but I made a critical mistake. I ended up in an unknown town on a Sunday when it was obvious none of the retired religious people I had been sent to visit would be at home. Therefore, it also became equally obvious that I needed to find a church in which to worship on the Lord's Day. That's when things got interesting.
I asked the motel clerk to recommend a church for me, but he did not know of any. So, since the town only had a few thousand inhabitants, I decided to get in my car and go looking for a church. There was none of any consequence. There was a huge Roman Catholic Church with a school, but for some reason, it was closed on Sunday. I also found two very small churches, but they only had two cars in their parking lots. Finally, I saw a huge cross all lit up and thought I had finally found my church. You may appreciate my disappointment when I discovered the cross was on the door of an automobile parts store--and it, too, was closed.
Giving up, I went to the neighborhood McDonald's and proceeded to ask leaving customers if they knew about any churches. I finally gave up and did the obvious thing: I Googled it. Sure enough, up popped a beautiful Baptist church with directions on how to get there. After driving about three miles out of the town, I found it. It was a church with around 150 people worshiping on a Sunday morning. This was right up my alley until I suddenly noticed that everyone except two small kids were white. Segregation was still practiced, something which really turned me off. Since the town must have been at least 80% African American, it was obvious these white people didn't want them in their church, and instead complained about declining membership. None of the churches except the Catholic Church had any signs.
Finding a church isn't always easy. I remember how in Kansas I attempted to locate a church in a small community with around 300 people. No one at the local gas station had ever heard of it and there were no signs. The moral of these stories is simple: If you want people to join you for worship on Sunday, make sure they are able to find your church. Also, it doesn't hurt to be doing the things in your community that shows people they are welcome.
The other side of this picture involves learning how to discover if the church you visit is the one for you. If I were moving into a new community and wanted to find a church in which to serve God, here are some things I would look for, although, admittedly, I am biased.
First and foremost, I would want a church that truly believes in and worships the triune God -- God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit. Along with this, I would want some kind of affirmation that they also believe in the Bible.
Secondly, I would attempt to ascertain what it is about the church that attracts people. Is it the worship service and dynamic preaching? Is it the music? Do people attend for a "good show" or to experience the presence of God?
Third, does the church have a sense of mission? Is that mission "self-preservation" focused inward, or is there a genuine concern for people outside the church who may be lost, hungry, hurting or simply needing some friends?
Fourth, is there a sense of fellowship among the members that is both contagious and inviting? Belonging to a church that only has private fellowship groups probably means that I am not going to actually belong.
Notice that none of the four things I have identified say anything about doctrine, theology, denominations or music. All of these are important, but God has always allowed His people to worship him according to their own practices and beliefs. A careful study of the Bible will reveal any number of ways people worshiped God. Therefore, it is important to focus upon the major things and not "major upon the minor" things.
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Robert Box is the former chaplain for the Bella Vista Police Department and is currently the Fire Department chaplain. Opinions expressed are those of the author.
Religion on 12/04/2019