church causing me to loose faith

[polkaman]

Hello all. Well to start with i'm not a cradle Christian.........I've been attending church
for approaching a year now, actually 2 churchs (making up for lost time !)....for many
years I prayed, tried to be good to people and accept all people.....I tried to approach
things very simple, and had one thing central.....good loves us.
I go to services, I hear readings about things of long time ago, and then hear preaching
of how things were, and how this group did this wrong, how this person did that,
etc, ad nausium.........then I think many services in on church has become a
sunday morning musical and show.......3 song, then choir, then bell choir, then
more signing....then the kids time with the preacher, then a song, preacher
has 15 minutes or so to give a message.......then more singing.

I hear how people were bad in the past, and at times stories that cause me
to doubt the way the lord works.........

I was so much happier before, I would pray, and know that the lord loves us, and
wants us to be happy........

it just seems its nothing but political.....even the preachers talk about that.
I thought the church would be where you found even more acceptace, welcome
and etc....i'm finding no........

so many things that I feel the church should be doing, but nope, nobody
wants to hear it, or you mention something, it just dies...nobody does
anything, and the preacher is supposed to do it all, and they tell you
they will not.

it's just like nobody gives a darn

 

[Johnny4ChristJesus]

Hello all. Well to start with i'm not a cradle Christian.........I've been attending church
for approaching a year now, actually 2 churchs (making up for lost time !)....for many
years I prayed, tried to be good to people and accept all people.....I tried to approach
things very simple, and had one thing central.....good loves us.
I go to services, I hear readings about things of long time ago, and then hear preaching
of how things were, and how this group did this wrong, how this person did that,
etc, ad nausium.........then I think many services in on church has become a
sunday morning musical and show.......3 song, then choir, then bell choir, then
more signing....then the kids time with the preacher, then a song, preacher
has 15 minutes or so to give a message.......then more singing.

I hear how people were bad in the past, and at times stories that cause me
to doubt the way the lord works.........

I was so much happier before, I would pray, and know that the lord loves us, and
wants us to be happy........

it just seems its nothing but political.....even the preachers talk about that.
I thought the church would be where you found even more acceptace, welcome
and etc....i'm finding no........

so many things that I feel the church should be doing, but nope, nobody
wants to hear it, or you mention something, it just dies...nobody does
anything, and the preacher is supposed to do it all, and they tell you
they will not.

it's just like nobody gives a darn

If you faith is in the visible church, It will disappoint you. If you lose your faith, because of the church, your faith was never in the right place to start with.

Why did you come to "the faith"?

 

[now faith]

Religion will fail , it is the man made ceremony of what a man thinks should be God's will.
God's Word never fails, take in in your heart, seek a group of people who answer your needs ,and show a true love of Christ.
Pray for God's wisdom in your life, and Pray God moves you to higher ground.

 

[W2L]

You dont need a church to have a relationship with God. All you need is the Word. Jesus didn't say you come to the father through a church, no he said through Him. If you dont feel the Lord in church then look in your own heart, and in the Word.

 

[faroukfarouk]

Prayer and the Scriptures must keep you 'looking unto Jesus' (Hebrews 12.2), not to the institutional church.

 

[Rescued One]

Our hearts are worth nothing unless we give them to the Lord. We can go to church to find fault with it, or we can go to bless others.
I used to call people up to get encouragement; then I realized I was a whiner! I don't want to be a whiner. God blesses me more than I deserve!



God is good to me.

 

[Soyeong]

Hello all. Well to start with i'm not a cradle Christian.........I've been attending church
for approaching a year now, actually 2 churchs (making up for lost time !)....for many
years I prayed, tried to be good to people and accept all people.....I tried to approach
things very simple, and had one thing central.....good loves us.
I go to services, I hear readings about things of long time ago, and then hear preaching
of how things were, and how this group did this wrong, how this person did that,
etc, ad nausium.........then I think many services in on church has become a
sunday morning musical and show.......3 song, then choir, then bell choir, then
more signing....then the kids time with the preacher, then a song, preacher
has 15 minutes or so to give a message.......then more singing.

I hear how people were bad in the past, and at times stories that cause me
to doubt the way the lord works.........

I was so much happier before, I would pray, and know that the lord loves us, and
wants us to be happy........

it just seems its nothing but political.....even the preachers talk about that.
I thought the church would be where you found even more acceptace, welcome
and etc....i'm finding no........

so many things that I feel the church should be doing, but nope, nobody
wants to hear it, or you mention something, it just dies...nobody does
anything, and the preacher is supposed to do it all, and they tell you
they will not.

it's just like nobody gives a darn

Hello,

I would rather hear a sermon with a lot of meat on it that to sing songs, and yet the most important thing that we are there to do is worship God. Our service usually lasts about 2 1/2 hours with sermon and the Bible commentary usually lasting a total of 45-60 minutes, with singing and liturgy filling the remainder, so each place is a little different. It's good to be able to learn to get along with people and learn to love brothers and sisters in Christ who are difficult to love, but some places are just not good fits for some people.

Christianity is not about loving people, which is not the same as accepting people. We are made new creations in Christ, so God does not accept us as we are, but rather He is changing us to be more like Christ. While Jesus certainly ate with sinners, he never accepted them as they were, but taught them how to rightly live by word and by example, and he certainly never accepted anyone's sin.

 

[Blood Bought 1953]

Hello all. Well to start with i'm not a cradle Christian.........I've been attending church
for approaching a year now, actually 2 churchs (making up for lost time !)....for many
years I prayed, tried to be good to people and accept all people.....I tried to approach
things very simple, and had one thing central.....good loves us.
I go to services, I hear readings about things of long time ago, and then hear preaching
of how things were, and how this group did this wrong, how this person did that,
etc, ad nausium.........then I think many services in on church has become a
sunday morning musical and show.......3 song, then choir, then bell choir, then
more signing....then the kids time with the preacher, then a song, preacher
has 15 minutes or so to give a message.......then more singing.

I hear how people were bad in the past, and at times stories that cause me
to doubt the way the lord works.........

I was so much happier before, I would pray, and know that the lord loves us, and
wants us to be happy........

it just seems its nothing but political.....even the preachers talk about that.
I thought the church would be where you found even more acceptace, welcome
and etc....i'm finding no........

so many things that I feel the church should be doing, but nope, nobody
wants to hear it, or you mention something, it just dies...nobody does
anything, and the preacher is supposed to do it all, and they tell you
they will not.

it's just like nobody gives a darn

Polka.....perhaps you are in a bad church....there are many out there....please pay a visit to this site.....get gods gift.org.....half-way down the first page it gives ten reasons to RUN.... Not WALK away from a church....hope it helps you.....God bless

 

[Johnny4ChristJesus]

Hello all. Well to start with i'm not a cradle Christian.........I've been attending church
for approaching a year now, actually 2 churchs (making up for lost time !)....for many
years I prayed, tried to be good to people and accept all people.....I tried to approach
things very simple, and had one thing central.....good loves us.
I go to services, I hear readings about things of long time ago, and then hear preaching
of how things were, and how this group did this wrong, how this person did that,
etc, ad nausium.........then I think many services in on church has become a
sunday morning musical and show.......3 song, then choir, then bell choir, then
more signing....then the kids time with the preacher, then a song, preacher
has 15 minutes or so to give a message.......then more singing.

I hear how people were bad in the past, and at times stories that cause me
to doubt the way the lord works.........

I was so much happier before, I would pray, and know that the lord loves us, and
wants us to be happy........

it just seems its nothing but political.....even the preachers talk about that.
I thought the church would be where you found even more acceptace, welcome
and etc....i'm finding no........

so many things that I feel the church should be doing, but nope, nobody
wants to hear it, or you mention something, it just dies...nobody does
anything, and the preacher is supposed to do it all, and they tell you
they will not.

it's just like nobody gives a darn

The reason I came to the faith is because I came to realize God is real. I believe He woke me up and He did it outside of a church, and actually despite a mainline church that I had been going to that taught against "being born again." God did it while I was on a business trip after 2-3 months of progressively listening to and genuinely trying to understand Scripture almost non-stop. When He came into my life, I realized I hadn't been a Christian before. I now had a peace and a joy that turned my priorities upside down and 15 years later, I still have an unquenchable hunger for His Word and thirst for His Spirit. I have had to endure some very difficult things since becoming a Christian. If my focus was on the visible church, I would have lost my faith a long time ago. But, my focus has always been and will always be on the God who woke me up. It is because of Him that I live. While I don't subscribe to all of Ray Comfort's theology, he does some great analogies. One is of Jesus being a parachute. I have adapted this for use with the boys I work with. I tell them: "it is like we are all born into a plane. At some point, we are going to get kicked out of the plane. God gives us a way to land safely when we are kicked out of that plane. Jesus is the parachute. The parachute doesn't necessarily make our flight any easier and at some times, because of trials, tribulation, and persecution promised believers, that parachute might actually make our in-flight experience more difficult at times. But, the parachute was designed to give us hope and a sense of peace in knowing that when it is our time to get kicked out of the plane, we have it on and we will live." Sadly, because, as Ray Comfort points out, much of the visible church has taught that the parachute will make our life, in this world, better. When we don't see the improvement, we want to rip off the parachute. The parachute didn't change, though. We were just told the wrong reason to put the parachute on. Our faith needs to be in Jesus Christ, not in the visible church. It is the relationship with Him that grows us and blesses us for all eternity!

My question before was why did you come to the faith? I told you why I did. And the outcome of that is that no matter what happens to me here, my faith in God isn't shaken.

God promises that if we diligently seek Him, with all our heart, He will be found. (Jer 29:13) God promises to be a rewarder of those who diligently seek Him. (Heb 11:6). God says His Word will never return void, but will accomplish that which He set it out to do. (Isa 55:8). God says His Word is living and powerful, sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing even to the dividing asunder of soul and spirit, and of joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart (Heb 4:12) God says He watches over His Word to perform it. (Jer ) God says "faith comes by hearing and hearing by the Word of God" (Rom 10:17)

Do either of the churches you attend believe in the gifts of the Holy Spirit, as still in existence today? Do they have a healing service where people who don't come to that church can come and be healed? If not, maybe the problem is you have chosen churches that have no real life. But, again, even in churches that practice those things, people dive into their flesh and you are bound to be disappointed, if you want them to value you, too. I know I am.

 

[Blood Bought 1953]

Great testimony Johnny...I used to be a drunken,skirt-chasing Atheistic fool. We listened to the radio at work and I stumbled upon Vernon McGee.He was only one of the many great Gospel preachers I started to listen to. For some unknown and unjustified reason ,God gave me “ears to hear “.I’ve said it here before,but once I started ACTING on the promises of God I started changing—in spite of myself. I “found”myself doing the things that pleased God.I did nothing.NOTHING......except practice faith...God took care of the rest.....tried being a legalist(Jesus sAves—BUT you gotta do this or give up that) I tried to “help God do the changing” but found out He did not need my help.He used a combination of heart-softening and chastizement to slowly transform me into the person he wanted me to be.Trust me He still has a long way to go.I trust that He will “finish the work that HE started” Stay with the simple Gospel in 2Cor:15 and trust God to do the saving—by All means ignore those who pervert the Gospel —you’ll know them when they add to the simple Gospel of the cross alone,that “fallen from grace” crowd that says “Jesus saves, ,BUT! “Lord Jesus, have mercy on me a sinner.”That’s all you have to say or do. He will do the rest—-I know this—-I have lived it

 

[Johnny4ChristJesus]

Great testimony Johnny...I used to be a drunken,skirt-chasing Atheistic fool. We listened to the radio at work and I stumbled upon Vernon McGee.He was only one of the many great Gospel preachers I started to listen to. For some unknown and unjustified reason ,God gave me “ears to hear “.I’ve said it here before,but once I started ACTING on the promises of God I started changing—in spite of myself. I “found”myself doing the things that pleased God.I did nothing.NOTHING......except practice faith...God took care of the rest.....tried being a legalist(Jesus sAves—BUT you gotta do this or give up that) I tried to “help God do the changing” but found out He did not need my help.He used a combination of heart-softening and chastizement to slowly transform me into the person he wanted me to be.Trust me He still has a long way to go.I trust that He will “finish the work that HE started” Stay with the simple Gospel in 2Cor:15 and trust God to do the saving—by All means ignore those who pervert the Gospel —you’ll know them when they add to the simple Gospel of the cross alone,that “fallen from grace” crowd that says “Jesus saves, ,BUT! “Lord Jesus, have mercy on me a sinner.”That’s all you have to say or do. He will do the rest—-I know this—-I have lived it

Glad to hear of your testimony, but I must say I'm a big confused. I'm not sure if I'm one of those who concerns you or not, based on reading all you wrote. I don't believe that God's grace is on some kind of auto-pilot that is going to do what it is going to do, despite what we do. I believe we continually have the choice set before us. Our responses to life betray our true heart. I believe since God woke me up that He isn't looking to drop me; but, my grateful response to Him compels me toward Him. And, at every turn--even if I am disappointed with how it turns out--there has never been a time where I wished I never knew God nor where I even considered turning away. That thought just doesn't compute to me. I don't understand people who would say the opposite; but, I strongly question if they had a real experience with God.

I firmly agree that we couldn't be saved if God didn't preveniently love us first (at least twice--corporately and individually); but, I see plenty that says God is expecting a response that shows that belief. John 15, John 14, Matt 7:21-27 where both types of builders call Him "Lord", the ten virgins who all call Him "Lord", Rev 2 & 3 where Jesus is talking to the churches, but only promising anything to those who overcome. And, the list goes on. I don't think it is a legalistic response, corporately directed. I believe it is an individual response. We won't be surprised. We will know in our heart, because we will have and continue to have "The Spirit testifying with our spirit that we are children of God". I don't believe God wants to force people who don't want to be with Him to be with Him anyway. That is why I also don't believe in "once saved always saved", because if someone demonstrates time and time again that they love this world more than they love God, they won't be required to be with God in heaven.

 

[Blood Bought 1953]

Sorry... I type and then this thing erases almost everything I put down. Will try to post again later...bed time here anyway....God bless!

 

[polkaman]

I might as well say more. The other church is less formal...no "Sunday morning musical"
But they do sing 3 songs. They have several on staff....active youth program. The preacher talks most of the service, and tries
To relate things in the Bible to today, or
Similar things in our lives....I enjoy it, BUT,
They don't do anything !!
They have some Bible study, but community
Things, no.
The other church (the Sunday morning sing along), has a community meal each week,
Has a coffee time, craft time, and several
Other things.....as I said, the other, a few Bible study, that's it.....no "fellowship".

 

[Blood Bought 1953]

Polka..I always seem to find more “fellowship.. in these Christian discussion groups than I ever found in church..I learn more too! God bless

 

[Tolworth John]

, nobody
wants to hear it, or you mention something, it just dies...nobody does
anything, and the preacher is supposed to do it all, and they tell you
they will not.
it's just like nobody gives a darn

Chrches are like people, tey are all different. Some are cold and inwould looking others are exciting with lights and loud music, others are thoughtfull and intence etc etc etc

All I can suggest is try different churches, as a rough rule of thumb those where people come up to you and speak to you and where there ae posters about a wide range of activities in the church, the neigbourhood and abroad are more likely to meet your need of fellowship.