I know I might step on some toes – Just hear me out-
I love god with everything in me. My faith in Jesus Christ is so important- the most important thing in my life. But to box in my faith and tie my belief in Jesus to my church attendance or simply the word Christianity , doesn’t seem fitting to me. I find truth in the bible and in God himself, but too often I find myself &others around me, so quick to listen to someone just because of labels. Pastors & Leaders are meant to point you to truth, not create truth. I find myself a lot of times conforming ;Simply because someone holds a high title. This mindset has lead me (many times) to the feeling of guilt or shame. Too many times thinking “what if ___ thinks I fell off if I dont go to church today?”.
Church is not a tally mark or declaration of your faith. Living is. The way you love others is. The way you walk throughout every day is a outward expression of what you believe. Not if you go to church every Sunday. I absolutely love my home church, my pastors, youth lead pastors & the people I go to church with; but “church” is not defined as walls or a building. A gathering, a fellowship, and community of people define the word church to me. I’ve gone back and forth with this idea a million and one times the past 6 months. But I really think theres something to be said about modern-day religion. Within the “term” christianity there are a ton of variations of christians. What if instead of labeling and separation and barriers- we just called ourselves Believers. Believers of the truth and of light. Lovers of the king.
Ive been in Southeast Asia for about 6 weeks now. I have not been to English church or heard a sermon where I understood all the words once. But , I have sat on the floor of our kitchen floor in a garage and opened up about Insecurity, Identity, Purpose, and so much more, to my 6 other teammates. We’ve prayed and cried and prayed some more and spoke life and truth and love. The place or the lighting didn’t determine the value of conversation or things I learned- the holy spirit was there. Fellowship + Love + God = church.
I hope one day labels of religion don’t create misunderstandings about a persons integrity or character , and church can be a safe place for people to be vulnerable without the fear of not being “in a clique” or ” dressed trendy enough to serve”. Our call as children is to love first. No matter whose before us. Wether thats a fellow believer or an atheist- straight or gay- democrat or republican- homeless or the rich- just love. equally. The bible says all sin is equal so why not treat people like that? I pray that all churches one day can be a place only for love. No judgment, no conformity, no hypocrisy.
