Why Going To Church Today Was Like Going To The Movies

I did not attend my church today. I am visiting my Daughter and Son-in-law on the East Coast. We went to church with them this morning. On the way out of the parking lot, I remarked that going to their church was like going to the movies. Here’s why:

1. The building was steel fabricated with no steeple.
   
2. The worship venue was darkened.
   
3. There were a lot of couples sitting together and a very large number of young people.
   
4. The music was awesome and the sound was loud!
   
5. There were three screens.
   
6. We paid. (well, kind of)
   
7. As soon as the service was over, we all filed out.
   
8. When we came outside we all squinted from the bright light.
   

During the singing, I mean music time, I mean worship time, I mean concert… I imagined how the people I worshipped with 30 years ago would have reacted to being in this room, this day. They would have said, “Satanic! Men love darkness rather than light because their deeds are evil! Rock ‘n Roll music! No pulpit, the Word is not honored! Look at their shabby, disrespectful dress! No one carries bibles anymore, the Word is not honored! How far we have fallen!” And, they would be wrong.

In the last one hundred years, styles and forms and methods of worshiping the true God have changed dramatically. Yet every Sunday, God is worshiped in as many ways as there are gatherings, as many forms as there are people who believe. This morning’s worship service was not exactly the same as I am used to. In some ways I missed my church, but in greater ways, I was thrilled to be worshiping with a body of believers just as much in love with Jesus as mine is!

I learned again this morning that God does not want my church to be more like my daughter’s church, or more like Bill Hybel’s church, or your church – He wants us to be us, to worship him, to be ourselves, and to celebrate the gifts and distinctions he has put in our church family.  Whenever we compare, we lose. We lose sight of what God has made us to be and wants us to do as a church.

Yeah, it was a little like going to the movies, except that it wasn’t. It was meaningful, worth going to, inspirational, and encouraging. I’m not sure what I was expecting, but I loved what I found.

In this week’s 200churches Podcast, we talk about our fantasy church service. The service we all want – the perfect service – the “10”! We talk about those fantasy expectations we have, that we sometimes mistakenly line up against what really happens. Then, we talk about expectations for our worship services that we can all actually reach and realize.

My daughter’s church is a 200church, if you only count one service, and if you only count one of the locations. Which I am, because I could not be in more than one service or one location at a time! No matter the size of your church, you can experience tremendous times of worship together, and that is what we are going to talk about the rest of this week.

Have you visited a church recently for the first time? What was your experience?