Categories
Visiting Churches

A Quintessential Country Church (Visiting Church #6)

It’s a quintessential country church and our third Baptist congregation in six weeks. With no online presence, what we know is from their sign out front: its name and service time.

The sanctuary is smaller than I expected. One lady greets us warmly and another scurries to fetch us a bulletin. We fill out the visitor card and drop it in the offering plate.

This information must be important; at least two more people will offer us one before the day is over.

52 Churches: A Yearlong Journey Encountering God, His Church, and Our Common Faith

With thirty in attendance, it’s surprising that four members have birthdays this week. We sing “Happy Birthday.” Also are four anniversaries.

A few songs into the service is an extended greeting time, followed by prayer requests. There are many mentions of health concerns, some for travels, and a few for jobs.

Sometimes when a group shares prayer requests, the focus is more on the news than on prayer, which I fear is one small step removed from gossip. Not so with this group. They share, confident that prayer will follow.

Afterwards they invite us to stay for refreshments. This is not a quick event but an extended one. More people greet us; we must have met just about everyone.

With broad smiles, each one thanks us for visiting and invites us back to their small country church.

They’re hopeful for our return but not pushy. I really like them but don’t want to give false expectations, so I simply respond, “It was good to be here today.” And it was.

[Read about Church #5 and Church #7, start at the beginning of our journey, or learn more about Church #6.]

My wife and I visited a different Christian Church every Sunday for a year. This is our story. Get your copy of 52 Churches today, available in ebook, paperback, hardcover, and audiobook.

Peter DeHaan writes about biblical Christianity to confront status quo religion and live a life that matters. He seeks a fresh approach to following Jesus through the lens of Scripture, without the baggage of made-up traditions and meaningless practices.

Read more in his books, blog, and weekly email updates.

Categories
Christian Living

Three Places Where I Find More

Last week I posted that while the Sunday morning church service can be good, I desire more. And I do occasionally experience more. Sometimes it’s in those solitary moments with just me and the Almighty.

But the sweeter times are when I experience more in community. There are three situations when more can occur.

1. Intentional Activity

Twice a month I have the opportunity to meet with like-minded spiritual seekers.

We share, we pray, we listen, and we practice, putting our faith into action in ways that stretch us and grow us: often uncomfortable but usually encouraging.

This is my prime community of more, one that has formed me into who I am today.

2. Around Food

There are a handful of close friends who I meet with periodically at coffee shops and in our homes.

We share our lives together, not in a superficial, gossipy way, but with deep connection, encouraging and being encouraged, challenging and being challenged, serving and being served.

Life is better in their company. Together we experience more.

3. Affinity Group

Once a month, I meet with a group of Christian writers. Our intent is to share our writing. By design we don’t offer a requisite prayer to start or end our meetings. We don’t schedule time to read the Bible or share a devotional.

We focus on writing—though God is always the subtext. We are artists, sharing our creations with each other and offering them to our Creator. This is a highly spiritual experience for me, a valuable time that can provide more.

All three of these situations offer me more. They provide the more I seek, surpassing the Sunday morning church service as my key times for spiritual formation and connection with the divine.

The traditional church service pales in comparison when I encounter more.

May we all seek and find more.

Peter DeHaan writes about biblical Christianity to confront status quo religion and live a life that matters. He seeks a fresh approach to following Jesus through the lens of Scripture, without the baggage of made-up traditions and meaningless practices.

Read more in his books, blog, and weekly email updates.

Bogged Down Reading the Bible?

10 Essential Bible Reading Tips, from Peter DeHaan

Get the Bible Reading Tip Sheet: “10 Tips to Turn Bible Reading from Drudgery to Delight.”

​Enter your info and receive the free Bible Reading Tip Sheet and be added to Peter’s email list.

Categories
Bible Insights

What Does it Mean to Give False Testimony?

One of the 10 commandments is “Thou shalt not bear false witness.”

Other translations of the Bible state this passage as “do not give false testimony” or more simply, ”do not tell lies about others.”

We typically think of this as a command to not perjure ourselves, that is to not give false or misleading information in a courtroom while under oath.

We would certainly never do that, so we can check this command off our list—right?

What about gossip, of spreading intimate or private rumors or facts about another person, or talking behind their back? Could that be another type of “false witness?”

Perhaps we need to more carefully consider God’s instruction to not bear false witness, by understanding it to mean “don’t gossip.”

[Read through the Bible with us this year. Today’s reading is Exodus 14-16, and today’s post is on Exodus 20:16]

Peter DeHaan writes about biblical Christianity to confront status quo religion and live a life that matters. He seeks a fresh approach to following Jesus through the lens of Scripture, without the baggage of made-up traditions and meaningless practices.

Read more in his books, blog, and weekly email updates.

Bogged Down Reading the Bible?

10 Essential Bible Reading Tips, from Peter DeHaan

Get the Bible Reading Tip Sheet: “10 Tips to Turn Bible Reading from Drudgery to Delight.”

​Enter your info and receive the free Bible Reading Tip Sheet and be added to Peter’s email list.