church for the podcast generation

While I drove across the very beautiful and very wide state of Pennsylvania today, I listened to part of a sermon series at The Village Church that Pastor Matt Chandler did during the weeks leading up to Easter called The Cross. I downloaded this sermon series off of iTunes for free a couple months ago and as I enjoyed the cool breeze and allowed my cruise control to take me through the rolling hills, I connected with a church body without ever have stepped foot into their church building. And as wonderful as this experience was, I have begun to wonder if this is healthy..... Don't get me wrong - I was SUPER excited when my friend, Allison, informed me that even though I missed church last weekend, I could download Rocky Mountain Calvary's message off iTunes. I'm just wondering if getting wrapped up in another church's sermon series causes us to stray from what God intended for His body.

Is it good that we receive teaching more frequently than Sundays? Yes.
Is it an equal substitute for the main worship service? No.
Do I really need fellowship with a body? Yes.

But other than music and fellowship, what am I really missing out on? Participating with the body of Christ. Giving of ones time and resources to the church. So, we may not feel like we're missing out on anything but is it only about us anyway?

Lord, please remind me that the reason why I go to church is only partially to hear that sermon. Most importantly, I want to go longing to worship you with my voice in song, with my heart in surrender and with my mind in seeking deeper knowledge of you. Keep me from getting spiritual ADD and allowing my mind to be consumed with so many teachings that I can't see how You are working through them. May You be praised above all things during our times together as a body.

Where my soul connects: Home

There have been many churches I have called home in my life. Some have aquired that reference due to time spent in the pews and others because of the community I benefited from. But none the less, each has made its mark on my life in both encouraging and challenging ways. There have been worship leaders that have stirred in me a healthy reverence of God through use of sound and since I lean more toward the artistic side of life, I'm initially compelled to seek this first. There have been teachers that have caused me to pause, try to rub feeling back into my tired writing hand and be humbled by the knowledge of the Bible I lack. These are the ones that keep me wake in church, hungry for His Word and yet unsatisfied by my own times studying. There have also been buildings in which I have joined many friends on Sunday mornings to recap events of the week, cry tears over current struggles, and retreat back to my daily life knowing that I am loved and cared for. But what I haven't found much of is the blending of all three.

Over a cup of Starbucks, I discussed this idea with a friend of mine. She talked a little bit about what she has learned about deciding on a church to attend and I've begun to understand why some churches have their places in my life and some do not. Outside of doctrinal stances, a church can move you intellectually, emotional, and even physically at certain seasons in life. And just as seasons come and go, so do my home churches. Not that the past churches didn't have good enough worship or the pastor wasn't a world renown speaker but that they had their place in my journey and now that is somewhere else. So why is it that I find myself looking at other churches as "not as good as mine" when it's really based on finding a home? Shame on me.

But after much searching over the past year, I have found the one I currently call home. It's not whether or not I will be at church on Sunday but which service I will go to. God has used each service to touch me in a special way - worship, teaching, and community combined. I've found the Lord to be more real to me than ever before because of the time I've spent there. My heart is overflowing! I've been able to meet with God in the presence of many other believers today. What a blessing God has given us when He gave us church!