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Spiritual Thoughts - April 1, 2016

Why the hell should I go to church?
nick yoner

If you have yet to catch the irony of the title, Hell has been the longstanding reason that folks have been attending church since its establishment. However, church attendance is probably less related to intently trying to avoid Hell and more commonly related a variety of other factors. Therefore I would like to suggest a few other viable reasons to prove that church isn’t such a bad place to be. Despite the 2016 trend of it being generally “uncool” to attend a Sunday morning service, I firmly believe that there are some things that the church offers that ought to distinguish itself from our lifestyle commonalities such as meeting friends for coffee, attending hockey games, drinking on weekends, or playing our PS4 into the ungodly hours of the night.

Placing theology and church doctrine aside, one of the most fundamental elements of a healthy church is relationship. By this I do not mean having a relationship with God, but the need for relationship with each other. These buildings with crosses splashed upon them are meant to blatantly offer newcomers with a sense of belonging through authentic relationships. Church is by no means intended to facilitate surface-level relationships where after the service you discuss local sports teams, the weather and the unfortunate luck you had fishing the other day. In contrast, church is meant for creating relationships of trust, sharing in each other’s pain and struggles, and co-ordinating time to get together for something such as a meal to celebrate friendship. The spark of relationship ought to be ignited as soon as anyone enters through the church doors –whether they are a stranger or a longtime attendee.

As relationships focus on how you interact with those around you, church also offers a sense of internal meaning and purpose that supersedes the insignificant aspects that give us slight meaning in our day-to-day lives. These minute aspects I speak of range from our desperation for our favourite hockey team to reach the next round in the playoffs to simply saving up for the newest iPhone for the gratification of finally having it. These things are meant to pale in comparison to the meaning, hope and purpose that a living God would provide our daily lives. Through coming to know God on a personal level, we become challenged to find our identity and calling. We are provoked with questions such as, “Am I really living the life that God intended?” “Am I selfishly serving myself or should I be humbly serving God?” Or perhaps, “How does my life have meaning?” These are certainly not easy questions, nor are they intended to be. These are places that one’s mind ought to be aggressively pushed and shoved toward as they come to know church from an internal approach.

Binding the elements of relationship and meaning, church is to provide a place of safety and normality. Ideally, church should really be a second home and a second family for all whom attend. It is a place where you should not feel judged, but welcomed instead. It is a place where you can hang on to a weekly consistent routine that helps you centre on what is truly important in your life. It may not necessarily do that every single time you walk through those main doors, but church ought to consistently provide the opportunity to do so.

As we bind all of these things together – relationships, meaning-seeking, and safety – I definitely understand that these can be achieved through other outlets like having the guys over to watch the Blue Bombers, going to Trappers on the weekend or simply going to the gym. Church shares commonalities with all of these things, however they just take a different form and approach to address relationship, meaning and safety. However I would argue that church is set up to have deeper relationships, harder thoughts about one’s significance in life, and a setting of safeguarded physical and emotional wellbeing. That, I assure you, is why the hell I go to church.

Nick Yoner’s day job is as a program manager with Macdonald Youth Services, however he also serves as a member of Thompson Christian Centre.

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