The "Net" of protection

   

   

   Since giving my life to Christ, I've heard an array of opinions on the importance of being rooted into a local church. Maybe you've heard some of these quotes from people in your life, or maybe you've said some of them?

"I don't have to go to church to be a Christian"

"We have church at home"

"I don't have to sit in a sanctuary to hear from God"

"My schedule doesn't allow me to get planted anywhere"

     Now, I realize I can only speak from what I've learned in my own recent experiences. Though since having a schedule change I in these last few months (that has prevented me from regular Sunday attendance) it’s been heavy on my heart to bring to light the common question of:

Why is Church so important?

Ecclesiastes 3:1-8 there is a time for everything, and a season for every activity under heaven:

A time to be born and a time to die, A time to plant and a time to uproot, A time to kill and a time to heal, A time to tear down and a time to build, A time to weep and a time to laugh, A time to mourn and a time to dance, A time to scatter stones and a time to gather them, A time to embrace and a time to refrain, A time to search and a time to give up, A time to keep and a time to throw away, A time to tear and a time to mend, A time to be silent and a time to speak, A time to love and a time to hate, A time for war and a time for peace.

     After eight years of working the day shift Monday through Friday and taking for granted the weekend and evening freedoms, I had the opportunity to be stirred and grow at the expense of that cozy schedule and working an almost opposite shift. It has been a welcomed and difficult change for a couple of reasons. First, the welcomed changes have been the "newness" of different co-workers, a different work location, a pay increase, three days off, and not having to share my days off with the busyness of the "weekenders". However, once all that wore off I was left to re-evaluate at what costs? I now arrive to work two hours earlier, work twice as hard, don't have the luxury of calling out sick or taking a vacation without the surety of coverage, and most sadly don't get to accompany my family to church.

     "Sunday fun-day" as we call it, is such a sacred routine. It involves everyone enjoying some type of sweet, delicious pastry and loud worship music as everyone gets dressed to go the the House of the Lord. Occasionally also accompanied by some type of mishap that keeps the morning interesting...and then everyone heads to their classes with bible and journal in hand, hungry to be fed and encouraged by the Holy Spirit.

     Those feelings of righteousness, peace, and joy that are evident on everyone's face as we hug and say our good byes and plan the rest of the day after church can't be attained through church at home. The Body of Christ is what brings that. Worshiping in one accord as His Bride brings that. Receiving from someone who has given their life to being the hands and feet of Jesus and then applying the spoken Word and message is what brings that.

     When we are separated, isolated, and distant from those people God has placed in our lives as ambassadors, prayer warriors, and fellow brothers and sisters; we (unbeknownst to us) allow doubt, complacency, offense, apathy, and usually offense to creep in. Romans 8:35 tells us that nothing can separate us from God, though we can walk away...Scary!

     The important thing is not to become so independent on your own comfort that you actually rely on yourself and your own strength to carry the load that Jesus is meant to carry and become your own identity as opposed to God's design for you, where you were created to be in His identity.

     So, how I'm surviving this season before I can rejoin my family in Sunday attendance at our local church is by staying connected in every other way possible! Basically, if the church doors are open, I need to be in attendance. I've joined a small group, a bible study, early morning prayer, being held accountable to several leaders, listening online to the same message my family hears, and taking every opportunity to worship as the Holy Spirit leads with a song on the radio or when I wake up with a song in my heart.  It's not ideal, but for now my "net of protection" is staying connected to the Body of Christ in any way that I can until this season passes.

~Jennifer