From Men and Home, by Elliot Peters, with some curated comments.
Here is a discussion about church attendance, with some good reasons to leave a traditional church and attend Unity of Charlotte where many of these reasons have been addressed and overcome.
Have you noticed that attendance may be thinning out at many churches? What’s causing this exodus? Let’s pull back the curtain and examine why some people are swapping boring rituals and repetitive sermons for a Sunday sleep-in with a day off from the regular routine.
These days, you’re more likely to find some parents cheering from the sidelines of a kids’ soccer match than sitting in a pew. Let’s be real; the energy and excitement of a game trumps a droning sermon. Who can also resist their little one’s joy when scoring?
The war between the Sunday morning alarm clock and the cozy comfort of a warm bed was hard. But alas, the allure of a long, leisurely lie-in proved too strong for some. No more Sunday morning scramble to make it to the service on time! Beginning the service at 12 o’clock noon should provide relief from this issue?
Getting spiritually fed without leaving the comfort of your couch? Count some folks in! Trading the hard church pew for the plush living room couch was a no-brainer for them. Their new Sunday ritual was attending service on Zoom in pajamas with a cup of coffee.
When Sunday service resembled a neighborhood gossip meeting more than a spiritual gathering, some folks got fed up. The spiritual purpose seemed lost in the chatter, prompting them to seek more meaningful interactions elsewhere.
Committing to weekly church attendance is hard when faith in an “outside” God starts to waver. If the core belief that used to drive them to the church in the first place is gone, why keep up the routine? It’s like showing up at a party when you no longer know the host.
For some, God wasn’t confined to a pew or behind an altar. They found their spirituality thriving in the solitude of nature, the silence of their rooms, or in service to others. They realized their connection with the divine extended beyond the church’s stained-glass windows.
When your spiritual leader suddenly hits the scandalous headlines, it’s more than a little disconcerting. It’s like finding out your favorite superhero has gone rogue. This was the final straw for some, and they decided to find spiritual guidance elsewhere.
Perhaps not all good ideas come only from the Bible. When the church began to pick and choose verses from the Bible like it was an all-you-can-eat buffet, some church-goers felt short-changed. They yearned for a comprehensive understanding, not just the ‘flavor of the month’ verses.
Instead of uplifting messages of grace and love, some sermons began to feel more like a guilt-ridden grilling session. That’s not the kind of wake-up call folks wanted on a Sunday morning, leading them to seek spiritual nourishment elsewhere.
In a place where learning and understanding should be encouraged, questioning became a sin. That didn’t sit well with some folks. They believed that to grow spiritually, they should be allowed to ask, learn, and understand. They want to be with like-minded people. “Amen.”
12/03/2023