Thought of the Day !!

Let us not give up meeting together, as some are in the habit of doing, but let us encourage one another -- and all the more as you see the Day approaching.
                                                                            Hebrews 10:25 (NIV)

Have you ever heard (or said) something to the extent of "I can worship God in the woods on Sunday mornings" or "God is in nature and can be seen or felt on a golf course (or lake) just like in a church" or "I don't have to go to church to be a Christian".  I know I have.  I even used to say that last one.

The fact is, there is some truth in these.  You CAN worship God anywhere.  You CAN see God anywhere.  And you DON'T have to ever walk inside a church building to be a Christian.  BUT...every time I've heard these or said these, they were used as excuses not to go to church and not explanations of how someone actually planned on being with God.
 

The Church of today may not be what it was in the book of Acts.  But when anything grows tremendously it's going change.  So maybe we should look back to the early church that is detailed in Acts to remind us of our roots and where we need to be more like our beginnings.  And as for coming together, we have to do this.  We need it for accountability, for learning, for lifting up and being lifted up.  God wants it, for it shows that we're putting Him first before ourselves.  I really do believe that the Church would have never been formed if God didn't want us to gather together.  You can debate if this gathering should be on Sunday mornings at 11:AM or Saturday or Wednesday nights.  You can debate whether or not you go to a big church, a small church, a home church or whatever.  The point is simply that we gather with others for the purpose of placing God first and being guided by His Holy Spirit. 

So in the end, I say to you today to be a part of the Church.  You'll make God happy, and you'll be blessed for doing it.  Remember, the Church is not a building...it's all of us who claim Jesus as our Lord and Savior, putting our faith and trust in Him for our salvation.

In the love of Christ,
greg