Or…Why should church be important to me?

So you should not be like cowering, fearful slaves. You should behave instead like God’s very own children, adopted into his family–calling him “Father, dear Father.” Romans 8:15 (NLT)

So now you Gentiles are no longer strangers and foreigners. You are citizens along with all of God’s holy people. You are members of God’s family. Ephesians 2:19 (NLT)

BEING A CHRISTIAN IS MORE THAN BELIEVING… IT INCLUDES BELONGING!

HOW WILL A CHURCH and/or SPIRITUAL FAMILY HELP ME?

1. A church family will help me FOCUS ON GOD

Jesus replied, “`You must love the Lord your God with all your heart, all your soul, and all your mind.’ This is the first and greatest commandment. Matthew 22:37-38 (NLT)

Come, let us tell of the LORD’s greatness; let us exalt his name together. Psalm 34:3 (NLT)

2. A church family will help me FACE MY PROBLEMS so I’m not alone

He died for us so that we can live with him forever, whether we are dead or alive at the time of his return. So encourage each other and build each other up, just as you are already doing. 1 Thessalonians 5:10-11 (NLT)

Finally, all of you should be of one mind, full of sympathy toward each other, loving one another with tender hearts and humble minds. 1 Peter 3:8 (NLT)

so it is with Christ’s body. We are all parts of his one body, and each of us has different work to do. And since we are all one body in Christ, we belong to each other, and each of us needs all the others. Romans 12:5 (NLT)

3. A church family will help me GROW IN MY FAITH

So let us stop going over the basics of Christianity again and again. Let us go on instead and become mature in our understanding. Surely we don’t need to start all over again with the importance of turning away from evil deeds and placing our faith in God. Hebrews 6:1 (NLT)

4. A church family will help me DISCOVER MEANING through helping others

For we are God’s masterpiece. He has created us anew in Christ Jesus, so that we can do the good things he planned for us long ago. Ephesians 2:10 (NLT)

There are different kinds of service in the church, but it is the same Lord we are serving… Now all of you together are Christ’s body, and each one of you is a separate and necessary part of it. 1 Corinthians 12:5, 27 (NLT)

5. A church family will help me TELL MY FRIENDS about God’s way

But my life is worth nothing unless I use it for doing the work assigned me by the Lord Jesus–the work of telling others the Good News about God’s wonderful kindness and love. Acts 20:24 (NLT)

“Anyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.” But how can they call on him to save them unless they believe in him? And how can they believe in him if they have never heard about him? And how can they hear about him unless someone tells them? Romans 10:13-14 (NLT)

One last thought: REMAIN CONNECTED