Should you have FUN at Church?

[Ed Raby]

So here is a question for all of us to ponder. I have been thinking about it for a while now.

Should Chruch be fun and enjoyable?

The base behind this question is this. Many people or friends of mine have said they don't go to Church because it isn't fun and enjoyable, or they say they feel miserable everytime they go to Church.

This is a tough question to answer. Of course it should be enjoyable to those of us who have a personal relationship with God since it is a day where we can fellowship with other believers and be with God at the same time. You then must ask yourself what is the difference between a fun Church and a not so fun Church. I personally would say a fun Church is one where there is solid Biblical teaching with upbeat and worshipful music. And a boring Church to me would be one where the pastor can't stop talking about money and the music is performed with no enthusiasm.

Although what is fun and not fun varies from person to person. So how can I explain this? Well to me it boils down to one thing and that is the attitude of people at the Church. I have been to Churches where the congergation looks depressed and tired, and it turns out that those Churches tend to be very boring to me. The Churches I have had fun at are the ones where the people are upbeat, smiling, and walk and talk so that you can see they have a purpose in their lives. So in conclusion I think the amount of enjoyment and FUN you get out of Church reflects on the attitude of yourself and the people around you at Church.

What do you guys/gals think?

 

[2ndRateMind]

Should Church be fun and enjoyable?

The quest for 'fun' is liable to be the downfall of our civilisation. It is a superficial, popular, distracting idea. The meaning of life is not about 'fun'. Jesus wasn't telling gags on the cross. No stand-up comedian commented as the apostles were variously put to death. If you want 'fun', watch the inanities that cross our TV screens. If you want reality, try church. But don't attempt to mix the two; they are different forms of happiness, the one transient, the other, permanent.

Best wishes, 2ndRateMind.

 

[Zebra1552]

I have tons of fun at church. What makes it fun is the people- being able to connect and relate to people, hanging out, possibly going to lunch afterwards with people. Not the worship. Not the preaching. We should be worshiping and learning ALL the time, not just on Sundays. And we should be able to feed ourselves rather than just relying on our Sunday dose of spiritual medicine.

 

[Zebra1552]

The quest for 'fun' is liable to be the downfall of our civilisation. It is a superficial, popular, distracting idea. The meaning of life is not about 'fun'. Jesus wasn't telling gags on the cross. No stand-up comedian commented as the apostles were variously put to death. If you want 'fun', watch the inanities that cross our TV screens. If you want reality, try church. But don't attempt to mix the two; they are different forms of happiness, the one transient, the other, permanent.

Best wishes, 2ndRateMind.

You're confusing 'fun' with 'happiness'. You might want to define how you're using fun. When I think of fun I certainly DO NOT think of happiness. I think of joy.

 

[Ed Raby]

The quest for 'fun' is liable to be the downfall of our civilisation. It is a superficial, popular, distracting idea. The meaning of life is not about 'fun'. Jesus wasn't telling gags on the cross. No stand-up comedian commented as the apostles were variously put to death. If you want 'fun', watch the inanities that cross our TV screens. If you want reality, try church. But don't attempt to mix the two; they are different forms of happiness, the one transient, the other, permanent.

This is very negative view of what Church is suppose to be in my opinion. I too believe your idea of fun is very skewed. When I say fun I am talking about enjoying something, that is fun. I have fun playing football cause I enjoy playing it.

The Bible I believe backs up my view of Church. I think Church should be a place of great joy and fun.

Psalm 21:6 Surely you have granted him eternal blessings and made him glad with the joy of your presence.

The words glad and joy are both feelings you recieve when you have fun. I think it is fun to fellowship with believers and be in God's presence at Chruch the problem I have is that so many people come to Church with, as I said earlier, a depressed/tired attitude. When these attitudes are present in the Church it is hard to enjoy that presence and fellowship thus making Chruch les FUN. And if I am not mistaken in Galatians Chapter 5 I believe Paul refers to joy as one of the fruits of the spirit.

 

[bliz]

"The Cheif end of man is to glorify God and enjoy Him forever."

If we are to enjoy God, does it not make sense that we should enjoy worshiping God?

 

[daydreamergurl15]

I think we should worship God in the way that He have asked for us to worship Him. It's' hard now-a-days because everyone wants to be entertained, but there is a difference between entertaining yourselves and doing what you feel to make it fun for you but neglecting the worship of God, and the most important thing is to worship God in the way He have asked. I enjoy coming together with the body of Christ to read and study the word of God, singing hymns, praying together (while I admit, praying in a congregational setting is my biggest struggle because my mind wonder, so I usually have to pray after the prayer have been said because I can't seem to concentrate so much. In our congregation we have one person whom is saying a prayer (while I believe it is everyone's duty to pray individually, in our church we do not all pray at one time out-loud).

But we should be aware that "fun" is an emotional state and that we should be able to worship God regardless of our emotions (unless it's something that will take your focus away from God, then you should deal with that first).

 

[wayseer]

So here is a question for all of us to ponder. I have been thinking about it for a while now.

Should Chruch be fun and enjoyable?

The base behind this question is this. Many people or friends of mine have said they don't go to Church because it isn't fun and enjoyable, or they say they feel miserable everytime they go to Church.

This is a tough question to answer. Of course it should be enjoyable to those of us who have a personal relationship with God since it is a day where we can fellowship with other believers and be with God at the same time. You then must ask yourself what is the difference between a fun Church and a not so fun Church. I personally would say a fun Church is one where there is solid Biblical teaching with upbeat and worshipful music. And a boring Church to me would be one where the pastor can't stop talking about money and the music is performed with no enthusiasm.

Although what is fun and not fun varies from person to person. So how can I explain this? Well to me it boils down to one thing and that is the attitude of people at the Church. I have been to Churches where the congergation looks depressed and tired, and it turns out that those Churches tend to be very boring to me. The Churches I have had fun at are the ones where the people are upbeat, smiling, and walk and talk so that you can see they have a purpose in their lives. So in conclusion I think the amount of enjoyment and FUN you get out of Church reflects on the attitude of yourself and the people around you at Church.

What do you guys/gals think?

Church can be fun - Jesus had time for some fun. The problem is if the concept of 'fun' becomes the sole goal - the important objective - that's when fun becomes problematic - 'fun' then becomes grasping and our mind is diverted from our true objective..

 

[synger]

It's a very good question, and one we're running into more and more with our 8 year old, especially since she sits with us through the service, and she's getting too old for coloring books and dolls in the pew.

I think it really has to do with how one looks at why we go to church, and how we speak about it. When it's a hurry-up, run around, frustrating thing to get out the door on Sunday morning, and we speak of a missed Sunday as a "day off" from church, then it has the same feeling as work or school.

But if we emphasize the reasons for church... to go as starving people to be fed on God's word and sacrament, and to respond to his gifts of grace with thanksgiving and worship... and the community of faith that we are part of in worship and service... then it frames "going to church" in a completely different light.

Thank you for your question. It's really made me think about how we look at going to church in my family.

 

[2ndRateMind]

This is very negative view of what Church is suppose to be in my opinion. I too believe your idea of fun is very skewed. When I say fun I am talking about enjoying something, that is fun. I have fun playing football cause I enjoy playing it.

The Bible I believe backs up my view of Church. I think Church should be a place of great joy and fun.

Believe me, I am no stranger to joy. Or happiness. Or even just contentment. But the pursuit of 'fun' is not the purpose of a church.

Sometimes a sense of humour is useful to make a point, in just the same way as a spoonful of sugar helps the medicine go down. But to mistake the tactic for the point, as you seem intent on doing, is to make a category error, an error of principle. Joy is a serious business. It is not derived by distraction from the world, but by the understanding of it. I do not see that turning a church into an entertainment, as if it should compete with video games, or variety shows, as if it were just as trivial, is condusive to that end.

Best wishes, 2ndRateMind.

 

[Yardstick]

If I wanted to have fun I'd stay home and watch a movie or play a video game. When I go to church I expect it to be a deep, quiet time for serious meditation on the Divine. I deal with secular things for the majority of the week, the last thing I want during worship is to have the sacred dressed up as secular.

With that said, I certainly feel a great deal of joy when I leave for having been rejuvenated at mass.

 

[LightSeaker]

The quest for 'fun' is liable to be the downfall of our civilisation. It is a superficial, popular, distracting idea. The meaning of life is not about 'fun'. Jesus wasn't telling gags on the cross. No stand-up comedian commented as the apostles were variously put to death. If you want 'fun', watch the inanities that cross our TV screens. If you want reality, try church. But don't attempt to mix the two; they are different forms of happiness, the one transient, the other, permanent.

Best wishes, 2ndRateMind.

I completely disagree. God is Love. How can Love not be fun?


.

 

[2ndRateMind]

I completely disagree. God is Love. How can Love not be fun?

Because Love is a deep thing, and doesn't shy from hard decisions, and 'fun' is mere effervescence. Love gives you a reason to sacrifice, even up to the extent of your life, while seeking 'fun' is to commit to a self-centred desire to be entertained. You can be in love, and have fun; to be sure. But you can't seek fun, and expect it to meet the same disciplines and needs that love does. It just doesn't have the same dimensionality.

Best wishes, 2ndRateMind.

 

[Zebra1552]

If I wanted to have fun I'd stay home and watch a movie or play a video game. When I go to church I expect it to be a deep, quiet time for serious meditation on the Divine. I deal with secular things for the majority of the week, the last thing I want during worship is to have the sacred dressed up as secular.

With that said, I certainly feel a great deal of joy when I leave for having been rejuvenated at mass.

Who says fun is only manifested in secular activities? Goodness, God DOES have a sense of humor and DOES like to play, you know. Jesus Himself went to parties to reach people. Why can't church be fun?

 

[2ndRateMind]

Who says fun is only manifested in secular activities? Goodness, God DOES have a sense of humor and DOES like to play, you know. Jesus Himself went to parties to reach people. Why can't church be fun?

Indeed, and there are plenty of festivals that allow for fun. But to seek it as an end, and expect 'fun' to be dished up every Sunday, is an expectation that speaks volumes about the corruptive damage done by the consumer culture. Seek fun, and ultimately the only result is a jaded individual. Seek any of the ideals - truth, beauty, righteousness, justice, kindness, goodness, it doesn't matter much which - and you will eventually be led to God, who is at their joint apex. It won't be a laugh a minute, but it will, ultimately, turn out to be deeply fulfilling. And on the way, you will be deeply happy, in a sense 'fun' can't provide.

Best wishes, 2ndRateMind

 

[LightSeaker]

Because Love is a deep thing, and doesn't shy from hard decisions, and 'fun' is mere effervescence. Love gives you a reason to sacrifice, even up to the extent of your life, while seeking 'fun' is to commit to a self-centred desire to be entertained.

There is "seeking" fun and "having" fun. Being in love in God is Fun. While loving God, even sacrifice is fun.

You can be in love, and have fun; to be sure. But you can't seek fun, and expect it to meet the same disciplines and needs that love does. It just doesn't have the same dimensionality.

Agreed.

The kind of Love your talking about that commits to sacrifice is the same love that IS fun. That sort of love of the heart also finds itself enjoying life, it laughs, cries, engages, is aware, is curious and explores life, it creates, it sings, it dances, it jokes around and plays with life around it. It’s also aware of others and desires to help others in need. Love IS fun. And because these things are from God, they feed the soul. As such, I'd love to see a lot more of all of this in church services.

.

 

[2ndRateMind]

You win. I've run out of adjectives.

Best, 2ndRateMind.

 

[MrPolo]

So here is a question for all of us to ponder. I have been thinking about it for a while now.

Should Chruch be fun and enjoyable?

The base behind this question is this. Many people or friends of mine have said they don't go to Church because it isn't fun and enjoyable, or they say they feel miserable everytime they go to Church.

I have come across this often. The rule should be as follows: one should worship in accord with the kind of worship Christ ordained. If a person happens to have fun worshipping as Christ called, then that is a coincidental byproduct of proper worship. Point being, no one should make fun a "requirement" at the expense of unauthentic worship.

 

[Ed Raby]

This post is directed towards 2ndRateMind,

You remind me of the people I am debating with in the Chruch today. They go on and on about how serious we need to be and when people laugh they get offended.

First I do agree with you on some points. Your right fun should not be the goal in a Christians mind. In fact I would make that a huge point of emphesis that fun is not the main goal. The main goal is to draw closer to God. However I do struggle with people such as yourself who seem to shun the idea of entertainment away and act as if you are Christian you must be up tight and all about seriousness. I beg to differ on this view. Entertainment is not a bad thing in Church in my opionion. One time I went to a service where the performers were actually musical comedians and you know what. Just through their story and the way they ministered you could feel the presence of God and I learned a ton about the Lord that day. And believe it or not I felt like I drew closer to God that day. I also sensed the seriousness from the family that was doing this, but at the same time they were entertaining. This family had found a way to use the gift and talent God gave them to not only make Church about God and put the focus on our Lord, but to also entertain. I see so many people who talk like you, who live lives in caves and are very quiet and stay to themselves. And most of those people are the ones who come to Church and think that they know it all, they dress as if it were a funeral, and they look miserable during their time of "seriousness." Now I'm not saying you are like that I just think that your negative view on fun and entertainment is not only very depressing but also very un-biblical.

 

[2ndRateMind]

This post is directed towards 2ndRateMind,

You remind me of the people I am debating with in the Chruch today. They go on and on about how serious we need to be and when people laugh they get offended.

... And most of those people are the ones who come to Church and think that they know it all, they dress as if it were a funeral, and they look miserable during their time of "seriousness." Now I'm not saying you are like that I just think that your negative view on fun and entertainment is not only very depressing but also very un-biblical.

You stereotype me as mealy-mouthed puritan. I resent that. Address yourself to the point (it is, after all, your point) and not the person. That way, we may deal with the substance of the topic (such as it is) without being distracted by personalities.

Best wishes, 2ndRateMind.