Central Truth

Don't take pride in following a particular leader, it might stunt your growth.

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Reflections

When I was a child growing up. my family didn't attend church. Although as an adult I found one to my liking, my spiritual growth was relatively slow. I was getting a lot of input from well-meaning friends about which version of the Bible I should be reading, what type of music is proper, and which Christian authors and/or speakers had the message correct. 

In the meantime, my husband, George, spent most of his childhood in a very legalistic church, and most of his adult life in a very ritualistic one that exalted men. His spiritual growth was relatively slow as well. And so, when we married in 1985 and started our pursuit of a church in which we would both be comfortable, there was a lot of discussion about what each of us expected to find. Did you notice I mentioned we were looking for comfort? We didn't know yet that what we needed was growth.

In April of 1999 we attended a wedding at non-denominational Grace Community Church. Even though we liked what we saw, it took George until June of that year to convince me to try a church without a "connection." Immediately, we were both comfortable. We had no idea, however, that our spiritual growth was about to accelerate.

Clearly this was a place that would accept us just as we were, and then give us the tools that would equip us to become the Christ followers that we were meant to be.

I'm not advocating any particular church, and certainly I'm not condemning any. There is a necessity for diversity in churches as there is most certainly diversity in people. What George and I found was, that diversity doesn't need to cause division. As Christ followers, we are one church, and if we keep our focus on Him and not how, when, where, or with whom we worship, God will cause growth in us. That's what we were looking for all along.

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Discussion Questions

1. Why is it so easy for us to look to resources other than Christ, Himself, for our identity?
2. Why does God equip us with different gifts, abilities, and opportunities?
3. How can you encourage unity in ministries in which you are involved?
4. What role does diversity among churches play in building up God's kingdom?

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