How do you practice church.
Re: How do you practice church.
I am again part of a congregation I fully support - a church that cares about servant love and has strong biblical teaching, a church that engages people in service and helps them grow. It's a very small Mennonite church, currently without a pastor, but a very healthy one.
This has been refreshing. For 10 years I was part of a church I mostly supported, but I love being in this one.
This has been refreshing. For 10 years I was part of a church I mostly supported, but I love being in this one.
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Is it biblical? Is it Christlike? Is it loving? Is it true? How can I find out?
Re: How do you practice church.
What is meant by fully support?
If it means I agree fully with with every brotherhood agreement and theological position, then no, I don't fully support my church.
If it means I love my church, I am rooting for spiritual success as well as success in every other good regard for my fellow members, believe God wants me there and I am willing to put my shoulder to the wheel in the context of my local congregation, then yes, I do fully support it.
I can't imagine ever finding a church I fully agree with. Can you be a thinking person and do so? That is part of where submitting yourselves one to another comes in. But I do support it.
If it means I agree fully with with every brotherhood agreement and theological position, then no, I don't fully support my church.
If it means I love my church, I am rooting for spiritual success as well as success in every other good regard for my fellow members, believe God wants me there and I am willing to put my shoulder to the wheel in the context of my local congregation, then yes, I do fully support it.
I can't imagine ever finding a church I fully agree with. Can you be a thinking person and do so? That is part of where submitting yourselves one to another comes in. But I do support it.
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Ken
- Posts: 16244
- Joined: Thu Jun 13, 2019 12:02 am
- Location: Washington State
- Affiliation: former MCUSA
Re: How do you practice church.
I put "attend a group I tolerate and admire"
We usually attend the local Episcopal church because that is what my ex-Catholic wife is most comfortable with. Except when my mother-in-law is visiting from Chile in which case we take her to the local Catholic mass to keep the peace in the family. Never the Spanish mass, even though that is her first language, because there are too many Mexicans there and she is an upper-class Chilean. We always have to go to the English mass. She's in her 80s so I just go with the flow and don't argue. She's not going to change.
On rare occasions we sometimes visit my parent's Mennonite Church but that is an hour away and just not very convenient. And my wife isn't particularly thrilled to go there because it's too much of my extended family in one place which can be exhausting. She married me, not my endless clan of aunts and uncles and cousins.
I've actually come to appreciate attending an Episcopal church that I'm not very involved with because it is a nice pleasant time for personal contemplation and I don't have to engage in church politics and gossip. And they do often have lovely services and good music. I realize a lot of you guys are completely wrapped up in church membership and leadership. That's not me.
We usually attend the local Episcopal church because that is what my ex-Catholic wife is most comfortable with. Except when my mother-in-law is visiting from Chile in which case we take her to the local Catholic mass to keep the peace in the family. Never the Spanish mass, even though that is her first language, because there are too many Mexicans there and she is an upper-class Chilean. We always have to go to the English mass. She's in her 80s so I just go with the flow and don't argue. She's not going to change.
On rare occasions we sometimes visit my parent's Mennonite Church but that is an hour away and just not very convenient. And my wife isn't particularly thrilled to go there because it's too much of my extended family in one place which can be exhausting. She married me, not my endless clan of aunts and uncles and cousins.
I've actually come to appreciate attending an Episcopal church that I'm not very involved with because it is a nice pleasant time for personal contemplation and I don't have to engage in church politics and gossip. And they do often have lovely services and good music. I realize a lot of you guys are completely wrapped up in church membership and leadership. That's not me.
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A fool can throw out more questions than a wise man can answer. -RZehr