Questions Effecting Our Culture III

You Can Find Part II Here!

Hearing the question: "Should I force my child to go to church or allow them to make their own choice" sent my heart into a whirlwind. I knew it was wrong, the Holy Spirit in my heart testified of it, and it broke my heart! Actually it wasn't stated as a question, it was stated as an understood belief. "I don't want to force my child to go to church, I think they should be able to make their own choice."

It made my heart scream, No! Not out of anger, heaven forbid, but out of brokenness over their acceptance to this logic. How this lie had been accepted as truth. 

I cannot disregard the fact that it is hard being in a constant battle with your children, but you have to understand the implications and the long term consequences if the problem is not addressed.

In my home growing up. God wasn't just something we did on Sunday. God was apart of our every decision. God was the topic of many conversations, even when it made me roll my eyes.

We listened to Christian music. I was not encouraged to, but I was allowed to listen to other music.  Even though I fought my parents about having to go to church some days, sometimes it was out of a Laziness Sin, but the rest of the time it was out of Deep Personal sin, and even though I fought them over it, I knew I didn't have a leg to stand on in the fight. We're going to church. We went last Sunday, we'll go next Sunday, we will go every Sunday.

I didn't have areas of hypocrisy to catch my parents in. They didn't send me and not go themselves. They never stayed home "just because" and then expected me to go the next Sunday because they felt like it. My parents had a relationship with Christ that was evident. They didn't feel forced to go to church out of Duty, it's an opportunity to Hebrews 10:23-25 where we meet together to encourage one another, to build each other up and to Worship God with other believers!  Don't get me wrong. There were many times it wasn't encouraging and far from building each other up, but that's a blog for another day. :) 

You see a lot of times I think we get our worship confused. We're so accustomed to the tradition of church that we neglect to seek the one on whom the church is built and often Christians find themselves worshipping "Church".  Here's a list of the symptoms of Church Worship.

• You see it as something that you're "supposed to do" on Sunday.
• You get excited about going because you have some great friends there.
• Your friendships aren't stronger because you challenge each other in your walks with Christ.
• You talk about anything and everything but to have an in-depth conversation about God would be awkward.
• If they aren't there or some people from your friend group are missing, church isn't as fun or you wish they would have let you know because you may as well have not come.
• It's easy to become annoyed when the service goes over.
• You can get easily annoyed by the music not being your style or well anything.

Here's the thing, I can easily list these things because I have once been a "Church Worshipper",  I was also a "Good, Morality" Worshipper. Thinking that I was witnessing by having my southern hospitality. When God didn't call us to be polite He called us to be Holy, Fishers of Men, Conformed into His image. 

At the time it was easy for me to Worship Church because I didn't know God!  I could tell you that we're supposed to have a relationship with Him, (I could recite that as a truth) but, I had never experienced it. 

So back to the question : Who or What are you worshipping? This is important.  If you see church as an obligation not an opportunity to recharge, encourage and be encouraged, I can see how you could see the main question: "Should I force my child to go to church or allow them to make their own choice " as optional. 

Church isn't "good" for our children. Seeing their parents seeking God, seeing the church functioning the way God created it to function. That is good for our children. 

Deut. 6:4-9 (NAS)

“Hear, O Israel! The LORD is our God, the LORD is one!  You shall love the LORD your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your might. These words, which I am commanding you today, shall be on your heart. You shall teach them diligently to your sons and shall talk of them when you sit in your house and when you walk by the way and when you lie down and when you rise up. You shall bind them as a sign on your hand and they shall be as frontals on your forehead. You shall write them on the doorposts of your house and on your gates.

Hebrews 10:23-25 

Let us hold fast the confession of our hope without wavering, for He who promised is faithful; and let us consider how to stimulate one another to love and good deeds, not forsaking our own assembling together, as is the habit of some, but encouraging one another; and all the more as you see the day drawing near.

His Clay~