I recently read an article from Church Answers written by Chuck Lawless that lays out 8 Reasons Why Gathering with the People of God Matters.
Within it he outlines the following:
- That worshiping together is part of God’s intent in making us relational.
- It reminds us that we’re not alone in our Christian walk.
- Our engagement in worship is encouraging to others.
- Non-believers who see us worship might sense our love and awe of the Lord as we worship and praise Him.
- There’s just something special about the people of God singing His praises together.
- It is in our gathering together that we provoke one another to love and good works (Heb 10:24-25).
- The gathering together of the body of Christ to hear from their under-shepherd is a privilege, indeed.
- It is what the early church did.
For more information about what Chuck Lawless has to say about each of these reasons click on the links above or here.
Over the past year or so, as this pandemic has continued to cause disruption to the way in which we meet regularly for worship, we have seen the ongoing effect of not gathering in-person; attendance levels are all over the place, people are apprehensive about going out and meeting together and some have even gotten used to the idea of not ‘doing church’ etc. and the list could go on.
However, this does provide us with a number of opportunities and in Pastor’s Ponderings, Scott Strissel provides five for us to ponder as he explores how we can be the Church in a post-pandemic world.
The thing is, in the past few weeks and months for many of our Corps and Centres gathering together has been made even more difficult by the Covid-19 restrictions that have been placed on us within New Zealand. However, this has also seen many Corps adapt /pivot to different ways and means of meeting together, some online in Zoom meetings, others in smaller house church and small group settings, while others have moved their entire worship experience online – which of course raises interesting challenges especially in the area of one-on-one contact and being ‘together’ etc.
In these times it is helpful to be reminded of the importance of why gathering with the people of God matters and find ways in which we can not only pastorally care for each other, and those within our families and communities. But also how we can adapt our model of church worship and discipleship to better impact those that are seeking our Lord and Saviour.
These may be challenging and interesting times for many, but they are also exciting times for those of us that are looking at what God can and will do to impact the hearts and minds of His people going forward, and those that He is longing to bring into relationship with Him, and us, through the local church.
Why not check out some of the following links:
Fresh Expression US is a form of church for our changing culture, established primarily for the benefit of those who are not yet part of any church.
It is part of an international movement of missionary disciples cultivating new kinds of church alongside existing congregations to more effectively engage our growing post-Christian society.
Fresh Expressions UK is a growing movement of everyday people forming new, vibrant Christian communities in every ordinary nook and cranny of life.
Fresh Expressions are new forms of church that emerge within contemporary culture and engage primarily with those who don’t ‘go to church’. (Mission Shaped Church Report)
Messy Church is a church for everyone who may not feel comfortable attending a ‘normal’ church service and who don’t yet belong to a church.
It is a relaxed style of church suitable for all ages and typically includes a meal, hands-on activities such as arts and crafts and more.
The Dinner Church Collective is A Nation-Wide Community Of Mealtime Missionaries Spreading The Word About A Simple, Effective And Historic Approach To Starting New Forms Of Church.
Also why not check out The Dinner Church Movement which is made up of churches across the world that share a eucharistic meal as their primary form of worship.
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