Church Changed

[GodWorshipper]

I'm not sure if I am posting this in the right section. If I'm not I hope i can be directed to the right place.

I wanted to pose a question. Has anyone ever joined a church based on what they say on the outside only to find out, once you joined, that things weren't what they seemed to be? Or maybe while you joined the attitude of the leaders began to change? At what point does a church stop being a church and becomes a cult?

I say this because I find myself in a position where what I saw when I joined the church was one thing only to find something different. I see things happening that I don't like but don't know how to get out. I see things like services 4-5 days during the week and if I cannot attend I am made to feel guilty that I am not supporting the church or the pastors. It feels almost like loyalty to pastor and church first even above family. I was actually told that I could not attend another church that my father was preaching at because I had to be in church and could not go and if any problems arose I must just deal with it.

Its a guilty feeling that is placed on you when you cannot do everything that is asked of you.

Just wondering if anyone else has ever experienced this and how did you deal with it.

 

[revrobor]

Good grief GodWorshipper! Don't let them have that kind of control over you. Just head for the nearest door. Your salvation is not tied to a particular religious organization and, in many cases, neither is your spiritual growth.

You are part of the "church universal" (the world-wide Body of Believers) and, as such, are free to worship any place you choose. Church membership is not critical to your spiritual well-being. And it is certainly not essential for you to be in the church building every time the doors are opened. To me it sound like those running the church you have been attending have made attendance a control issue.

 

[BarbB]

Yes, I have. I was saved in a wonderful spirit-filled Bible-believing Episcopal church. When I transferred membership to my local Episcopal church, I was bored so I left after a couple of years. I went to a Methodist church where the pastor was great but the congregation was dead. Now I'm at a pentacostal church which has everything - an on-fire pastor and an on-fire congregation!

Don't be afraid to leave. A little embarrassment won't kill you but a bad church can stifle your spirit!