Churches seem to be places people go when they feel assured of what they believe. I don’t think that every person, or any person, sitting in a church is assured of everything, or anything. Show me someone who thinks they know God, and that may very well be a person who has created comfortable imagery in their mind, regardless of whether it is correct.
Many people who think of themselves as having a solid faith actually have some pretty kooky ideas. Then again, what isn’t kooky when thinking about the afterlife? Several years ago, a person who lives their life and raised their children strictly biblically and wholesomely pulled me aside and told me that if a certain candidate did not get elected as president, it would be the beginning of the end times and everything would quickly crater into chaos. (Chaos did not ensue after the election.) This is someone who teaches Bible studies to others. If this person feels solid in their faith, there’s absolutely no reason you should feel any less welcome in church.
Some people are concrete-sure of God, yet harbor really harsh judgments of others. I did not grow up feeling any kind of disdain or hate toward other people, yet I’ve seen some churchgoers have hurtful opinions of others because they believe scripture tells them to. It makes no sense to me to be a loving person, and then to decide to harbor harsh judgments of others upon following Christianity because you think God wants you to.
There are people out there raising their kids in the most dysfunctional atmospheres, causing their children to need therapy for the rest of their lives, all because they were raised in rigid, restrictive biblical “truths” that were actually totally misconstrued.
It’s a misguided assumption that people who go to church have God figured out more than others do. No one has it all together or even, in my mind, partly together. Everyone on earth is just trying to figure things out.
In other words, you belong in church just as much as any staunch Christian does.
Photo by Karl Fredrickson (free stock photo)
