Christ First Forum

My shameful answer is:
I do not attend church in my area. When I lived in WV, the church I attended and still hold membership is a small country church. I would say membership when I attended was about 75 - 100 people.

AHeartofJoye wrote:My shameful answer is:
I do not attend church in my area. When I lived in WV, the church I attended and still hold membership is a small country church. I would say membership when I attended was about 75 - 100 people.

Joye, There is nothing to be ashamed of! I am finding this to be true among believers in these current times of apostasy. Two of my dearest friends who use to be associate pastors no longer attend a church on a regular bases.

When the time comes and if the time comes, God will direct you where you need to be.

I will at some point post a discussion on this topic!

I prefer small cell groups because it's so much more personal. Even in a small church of 300. . . that's alot of people. In a small group everyone is truly like family and share in each others bad times and good times. That's just the way I prefer it. Now, an awesome worship service in a large church (that's on fire for the Lord) is really a blessing!!

I feel the same way Carmela... 'personal', 'family' seems you can get 'lost in the numbers' at other churches, but that is JMHO.

On a more personal note,.. what Church I like best, is one where the Pastor Preaches and I am convicted .....@ least from one passage of Scripture, if my toes hurt, then He is Preaching...

Pastor "Chip " did this really well huh Joye?

When he preached you heard a good sermon..

I think today so many Churches are more in competition with each other, trying to fill up the building instead of the body

I am a member of the SB Church Joye spoke of, we were baptise the same time, and with two other ladies and a husband of one of the ladies..

I was going to Church untill a year or so a go,,, the place of my employement started working so many Saturdays, and when I didn't work on Satuday I still did not get ready for Church, I had got in the habit of watching Day of Discovery, Charles Stanley, Dr. D. James Kennedy, and a few others on Sunday morning...

I recently retired , well I just counted up , its been 6 months, it doesn't seen that long, I could go now, but have no way to go,,

The day of the NDP a couple of sisters ask me about coming to Church, and I said I could now, I'm retired, I also told them I havn't transportation, after the singing praying etc, they said to me as they were leaving the Court House Lawn, " see you Sunday" ,
I said okay, I got up Sunday morning, got ready, and no one came , so I get up and watch Preaching on tv like I had been doing..
I have been trying to get my children back in Church.... so pray they will , and they can take me, I miss Church

I miss church too, and wish I could attend a church much like that of OFB... and have the same preachin as Pastor Chip.

Janet, You said:

The day of the NDP a couple of sisters ask me about coming to Church, and I said I could now, I'm retired, I also told them I havn't transportation, after the singing praying etc, they said to me as they were leaving the Court House Lawn, " see you Sunday" ,
I said okay, I got up Sunday morning, got ready, and no one came , so I get up and watch Preaching on tv like I had been doing..
I have been trying to get my children back in Church.... so pray they will , and they can take me, I miss Church

I am sorry that they did not remember to come by and get you. I will pray for your children to be drawn by to God and were ever the Lord has for them to get rooted into the word. I also will pray that you find some way of transportation, in Jesus name, Amen!

I'm afraid I don't attend like I used to when I was younger, either, but the church I do attend when I do go has above 200 who attend. It is a small community, too. We are not associated with the Southern Baptist Convention, rather the GARBC, though not officially. We just fall into that category more than any other, calling ourselves Independent Baptists.

We always have pastors who are Bob Jones grads. This last pastor was a young man with a growing family when he arrived and he is a wonderful Christian man, fully representative of God's Word…so loving and kind. A good preacher, too! Glad he has been here for a number of years. We've witnessed his family grow and two graduate from home schooling high school! I do still manage to tithe, though I don't attend. At least I can do that one thing for the Lord!

I'm very much looking forward to your posting about this non-church attendance of believers, Frank!

Wow! I'm surprised to see that so many of you don't attend a church on a regular basis. I'm just glad to have found one I like in my small town of 10,000. Everyone there is so friendly and kind hearted. There is a lot that goes on I don't understand, but I know they are sincere and I haven't seen any hypocracy. They all seem to be like one big happy family and always try to include me. The name of the church is pretty unusual called the Church of the Open Bible. Not really unusual, I guess just that I'd not heard of it. I was just looking for a church far away from the one I attended before. Not the Mormon church, but a non-denominational one where I was totally lost in of about 800 people.

This new church has Adult Sunday School Sun. mornings, a class on prophets and their lives, which is led by a sweet, sweet woman of God, and even a Wed. night class where I am learning how to pray. I hope you all can find a good church or at least desire to find one. I'd be lost without Christian friends whom I can hang with. Besides, I don't think satan likes it when we go to church We might learn something!

Small!!! Im scared of money.....the more money one makes, it seems that the less God they have. Think Osteen.....

I prefer attending a 'small to medium Bible teaching' church.

Churches always has allot of members, but most of them don't attend.

If attendance is 300 per Sunday, that's nice.

My husband and I serve in our church each week.

We used to 'co-teach' allot, but because of the demand of my husband's job, he's not able to.

I 'sub' in my women's class teaching, and work the church nursery sometimes.

My husband and I used to be involved in 'lay renewals' where we attended Baptist Churches to share testimonies, sing, work in the nursery, do a weekend visitation in the community, and lead prayer groups.

We travel at our own expense, stayed in church member's homes, and worked the whole weekend for the Lord.

We took our two boys during those times, and I'm sure the experience left an impression on them today.

They have very few 'lay renewals' today,and I really do miss them.

I like a Church where God , not the goverment is Lord over it..

Sure would like to go... but untill then will be happy to watch Dr. Charles Stanley and Dr. D. James Kennedy , though Pastor Kennedy has passed on, I still watch his sermons.
I watch also Day of Discovery, and a few others, but the first two are my choices to watch..
I miss Dr. Charles Taylor and Zola Levitt..
Got to hear and see Dr. Francis Schaeffer also, but he has passed on also, and Dr. Jerry Falwell..

Our church is a non-denominational church called the "Berean Church". I think there are 150-200 church attenders between the 2 Sunday morning services. The first church I went to after being saved was a little Baptist church in the country when we lived 55 miles south of our present location.

I looked at other churches but found out quickly that the Truth of the Word was not being taught in some mainline protestant churches. For instance, a pastor said from the pulpit, "We know we are Christians because we follow the teachings of Christ". I recoiled at his words and thought, "If that is true, then Christ died for nothing". By the time my husband became a Christian (a year after I did), we settled on the small Baptist church because it was a place we felt we could best serve the Lord and His people.

We do not attend church on a regular basis. There's a story behind that too.