(Zecryphon, I'm sorry your experience was bad but to apply one experience to all ND churches seems unfair.)
Our church doesn't care how many people come to our church and it's been that way for years. If and when the Lord brings them in, He brings them in. Not that we don't invite people to our church. The Word is preached at our church and a lot of people don't want to hear The Word. We don't have programs, etc. We come together to praise and worship the Lord and to be lead by the Holy Spirit. So sometimes just praising the Lord may last an hour and some people want the sermon to be almost finished by that time.
Plus when we look at humans, we're going to be disappointed every time. We just have to keep our focus on the Lord.
Also, I believe we should pray and ask the Lord where He wants us to go to church and if we're to leave. Also, once at the church where He wants you, we need to pray about what we're to do. Most people seem to go by how they feel but as you know feelings often can get us into trouble.
"(Zecryphon, I'm sorry your experience was bad but to apply one experience to all ND churches seems unfair.)"
It would be unfair if it were confined to that one church. Since I am still in the process of selecting a new church home, I am visiting other churches. In my search I have visited other non-denominational churches and I've had the same experience. It's to the point now where I won't go into one. The last one I was in had do-it-yourself Communion stations. No prayer, no confession of sin, no explanation of what Communion is or why it's important. Just go up and help yourself. It looked too much like the church at Corinth for me.
"Our church doesn't care how many people come to our church and it's been that way for years."
That's a good sign. Church growth is important, but it shouldn't be your sole purpose, which in alot of churches not just the ND's, it has become the sole purpose or soul purpose if you will.
"If and when the Lord brings them in, He brings them in."
True.
"Not that we don't invite people to our church. The Word is preached at our church and a lot of people don't want to hear The Word."
Oh that is so true. The gospel offends them because they are laid bare as sinners when exposed to the law and to the gospel.
"We don't have programs, etc. We come together to praise and worship the Lord and to be lead by the Holy Spirit. So sometimes just praising the Lord may last an hour and some people want the sermon to be almost finished by that time."
Yeah, alot of churches shy away from preaching the gospel because they think people don't want to hear it. But we're Christians! This is the message about the one who saved us from hell. What's better and more refreshing than listening to that preached? That's food for our souls!
"Plus when we look at humans, we're going to be disappointed every time. We just have to keep our focus on the Lord."
Amen! We must decrease so that He may increase.
"Also, I believe we should pray and ask the Lord where He wants us to go to church and if we're to leave."
With me it was funny. I didn't pray about it or ask the Lord. I was filled with this feeling of "this isn't right". I felt I should walk out all together, but it's church, I couldn't bring myself to do it. Instead of a sermon I was listening to some young guest pastor tell me about how he saved his father and brough him into the fold and praise Jesus for giving him the right words to say, etc. etc. etc. Same old conversion story I've heard a hundred times before. I know church isn't supposed to be about us, it's supposed to be about God. But all I was hearing was how great this guy was, how HE saved his father, how HE said the right words. It seemed to be all about Him. I didn't hear him say how God used him as a tool to bring his father into the fold. When I told others how I felt and what was happening, I was told by a couple of people that I had received a promotion from the Holy Spirit and that it may be time for me to go deeper into my walk with Christ. It unfortunately came to me leaving that church in the end. There were other reasons too.
"Also, once at the church where He wants you, we need to pray about what we're to do. Most people seem to go by how they feel but as you know feelings often can get us into trouble."
Ah, don't I know it. I don't know what new role I will take at the church I'm feeling out right now, an LCMS church, but right now I'm taking a break from all the work I've done in the past few years. I was a small table leader for the membership class, a few years ago, I was a volunteer in the youth program and I was also at the same time a co-moderator over at
www.about.com in Christianity General. I'm taking a break from all that and just resting and recuperating. The mod job was the roughest one of all. Because I HAD to read all the atttacks, objections and criticisms to Christianity from agnostics and atheists, it was my job. I had to make sure they weren't breaking the rules while slamming Christ and Christianity on a daily basis. They put some doubts and lies into my head I know that. So now, I need to heal and I am. Slowly, but surely the wounds are healing and doubts are fading. Like a good martini I had my faith shaken, but not destroyed.