About Church
In 2002 my wife started attending various Churches in the area trying to find a place that we would all feel good about. One day she told me that the White River Christian Church that she and the kids had been attending was getting ready to have the grand opening of their new Worship Center. She asked if I wanted to go with them and give it a try. Well I was skeptical, but I decided to go with an open mind. I was totally WOWED. The place just clicked. Everybody shined. The music was great. The sermon was awesome. I figured that after the newness wore off, things would settle down. A few months later we went to the Church one evening to attend Vacation Bible School. While we were walking from the parking lot to the Church, our kids took off running to the door of the Church. I told my wife that when I was their age, my parents had to drag me to the Church, our kids were RUNNING! I knew then that we were in the right place. And I can honestly say that after all these years attending the Church, the WOW has NOT worn off, not even a little bit. Shortly after we started attending the new Church, a 20 year old coworker named Nathan showed up on one of the constructions sites where I was working with a very large Jesus sticker in his back window. A construction site is typically a lot of burly, rugged, ruff necks that would tend to make fun of such a display. Nathan was fairly new to the team, a very nice young man and I was impressed that he had the courage to display his faith so openly. I thought to myself that I wouldn't mind if my then very young Son and Daughter grew up with that kind of courage and faith. My Wife had recently located White River Christain Church, the Church we currently attend. Because of Nathan and his Jesus sticker I made the decision way back then to get plugged in to the Church. Today on his own initiative, my 17 year old Son just put a symbol of his faith on the back window of his truck. I am very proud of the way my Daughter and my Son have grown up and how willing they are to show and live their faith. I thank Nathan for getting me started in a good direction. I thank ALL of the Youth Ministries of WRCC for helping us along the way to raise our kids to be Spiritually healthy. And I praise the Lord for guiding my family and I to a Church that constantly makes me so proud and thankful.
Prior to attending our current Church I had never read a complete page of the Bible. Shortly after I started attending our Church I read the book PURPOSE DRIVEN LIFE by Rick Warren, shortly after that I started reading and studying the Bible. I highly recommend both books. Thanks to our Church our kids won’t be 40 years old before they read and understand the Bible.
Attending Church does not automatically work miracles in a person’s life. Being in a Church does not make a person Christian any more than standing in a garage makes a person a car. Many studies have shown that the divorce rate within the Church is typically the same for those who do not attend Church. Professor Bradley Wright, a sociologist at the University of Connecticut, explains from his analysis of people who identify as Christians but rarely attend church, that 60 percent of these have been divorced. Of those who attend church regularly, only 38 percent have been divorced. Glenn T. Stanton writes in an online article “The factor making the most difference is religious commitment and practice. Couples who regularly practice any combination of serious religious behaviors and attitudes -- attend church nearly every week, read their Bibles and spiritual materials regularly; pray privately and together; generally take their faith seriously, living not as perfect disciples, but serious disciples -- enjoy significantly lower divorce rates than mere church members, the general public and unbelievers.” A good friend of mind commented on this saying, “Actually, that makes more sense than the general statistics you hear. Since God is the designer of marriage. It makes sense that if both people are determined to obey the designers instructions, the marriage He designed would work better.”
I was and still am attracted to my Church partly because of the awesome live music. The music is commonly called Contemporary Christian. The entire Praise Team has awesome voices and they all just shine as they lead worship and I love the music. Some consider it a little too loud or not traditional enough. I occasionally need to remind myself that the music is not for me. We are not the audience. God is the audience. Rick Warren says in his book, “Worship has nothing to do with the style or volume or speed of a song. God loves all kinds of music because he invented it all- fast and slow, loud and soft, old and new. You probably don’t like it all, but God does. If it is offered to God in spirit and truth it is an act of worship.” I believe it is okay for us to feel entertained, benefited or inspired by the music from our mouths, but is more important for God to feel worshiped from our hearts. The Bible tells us in Psalm 98:4(King James Version) Make a joyful noise unto the LORD, all the earth: make a loud noise, and rejoice, and sing praise.
I encourage you try to find a K-LOVE Radio Station in your area or one that plays similar music and then try to find a Church in your area that performs similar music. While I listen to various radio stations and various kinds of music, I believe that having a steady diet of Contemporary Christian music has definitely made the quality of my life better. For more info about K-LOVE Radio, you might check out the below link:
http://www.klove.com/
I am not saying that by attending Church that I am holier than thou, a saint or any better person than anybody else. As the Bible says in Romans 3, we all sin, we all fall short. The Bible also tells us in First John 1, if we claim we have not sinned, we make God out to be a liar. Though I occasionally slip and fail to do what I know is right, I try to be very persistent about always doing good and becoming a better Christian.
Much of my Web Site is about physical health. Whether you are interested in a physically healthy lifestyle or not, I encourage you to get you and your family, especially your kids plugged in to a good Church that preaches and teaches from the Bible and has thriving Youth Ministries for the sake of Spiritual fitness. The Bible tells us in 1TIMOTHY 4 that physical exercise has some value, but Spiritual exercise is much more important, for it promises a reward in both this life and the next.
Just attending a Church on a weekly basis is basically religion and may not provide much fulfillment without a Spiritually healthy relationship. Before we complain or criticize our Church, we should remember, WE are The Church. To learn my beliefs about the difference between Religion and a Relationship, I invite you to visit my Web Site Page RELIGION vs RELATIONSHIP at this link:
http://timsweightlossandchristianbelief.weebly.com/religion-vs-relationship.html
Thanks for visiting my Web Site and may God bless you and your family.
Want to be a stronger spouse and parent, follow Jesus better! Your kids know you go to Church, but your kids also know if you don't take Jesus seriously, and if you don't, will they?!-Excerpts from a Keith Comp sermon:)