HOW CONNECTED ARE YOU?

My family became Christians through the ministry of a local church when I was 10 years old. Up to that point our church experience was pretty limited. What that meant was that my Mom and Dad sent us kids to Sunday School while they relaxed at home on Sunday morning. Then, rather suddenly, everything changed and we became part of a church family. For us, and for virtually everyone who was part of that little congregation in those days, it meant we were all in. The church became our extended family and our life was wrapped up in being a part of it. If something was happening at the church, we were there. If the church was doing something special, we were involved. 

It wasn't just us. As I think back to that church of 100 people or so, I remember the Bodalys, the Pearces, the Peckhams, the Scotts, the Smiths, the Clifts,and many more who were just like us. The church was our home and the people in it were our family. We worshipped together, prayed together, worked together, fellowshipped together, and played together. We were committed to the church and to one another. 

As I think about this a particular episode comes to my mind, an example of what it was like to be part of the church family. My Dad got a call late one evening that the church basement had flooded. It was early spring and there was lots of melting snow and ice on the ground. I don't remember what the cause of the flooding was, since I was probably only about 13 at the time, but I remember slogging around with a small army of people in freezing cold water. Together we worked to move furniture and equipment and rugs made so heavy by the water it took a whole crew to carry them up the stairs. There was no question of whether or not people would show up to help. We just did.

Our church wasn't unique. Perhaps as you reflect on your home church in your early days you would have similar memories of a community that loved and supported one another. For Louise and I that kind of life continued into our adult years. Though we moved around some, wherever we lived we were totally plugged into a local church, and in many ways it became the centre of our lives. (no, I'm not taking God out of the centre - I think you know what I mean) 

This kind of spirit continues to exist for many families today. Lots of churches have a core of families that are just as immersed as we were. They support one another, volunteer, give sacrificially, and show up when the church basement floods.  There are lots of people who are just as committed to their church family as we were to my little London church in the 60's. But not as many as there used to be.

There was a time when it was simply assumed (and rightly so in my opinion) that if you were a Christian you would be a committed part of a local church. Even though the secular culture in those days wasn't nearly so separated from its Christian roots as it is today, Christians still understood that if you wanted to be strong and healthy in your Christian walk you really needed to be connected to a group of like minded people. And you needed a place where you could serve God by putting your gifts and talents to good use. Among people who were serious about serving God very few would question the need to have the strong supportive relationships, good Bible teaching, corporate prayer times, etc. that can only come by being part of a church family. 

Unfortunately, today there is a growing number of people who seem to think they can be Christians without having those solid church connections. They claim a personal faith that doesn't need the support of others, or instruction from the Word of God, or any of the other benefits that come from being strongly established in a local church. "I can be a Christian without going to church", they say. In theory, yes. In practice, not very likely. What happens so often is the disconnect from church is just one step in a life that becomes farther and farther removed from what God wants and intends for His people. Too often the path is toward a life that is indistinguishable from that of their non-Christian neighbours and friends. The end result? In far too many cases it's an almost total abandonment of faith.

Another change I see is this. Even among those who attend church, the level of commitment is often seriously diluted. "I'll go to church when I feel like it. I'm too busy to be involved. I can't give because I have my own priorities. I'll show up as regularly as I can and absorb what you have to offer, but don't ask any more of me than that." 

Sadly, in these cases everyone loses. The church loses because the potential contribution of all those capable and gifted people is lost. The individual loses because they fail to experience the wonderful blessings that come from serving and giving of themselves, and truly being part of the church family. The children of those parents who have adopted a consumer mentality lose big time, because they will never learn by example the blessings and benefits of being truly committed and connected to a body of believers. Parents beware. If you are casual about your church connection chances are high that your children will become even more tenuous in their relationship to church.

Am I just old fashioned? Are my comments simply a "good ole days" kind of nostalgia? I can be as nostalgic as anyone, but I truly think it's far more than that. I truly believe that this diminishing commitment to the local church body, and the tendency toward what I've referred to as a "consumer mentality" in church, is hurting us all. 

Would you at least reflect on this a bit? Has your commitment to church eroded from where it once was? Are you less connected to the people in the local church body? Do you find yourself coming to church to receive instead of to serve and to give of yourself? Do you have gifts that could be used for the benefit of others, but they are lying dormant? Are your children growing up without an example of parents who are thoroughly involved in the work of God?

Think about it. It's important.