Answers

Q:

We moved across the country last year, and our family got so busy we just stopped going to church. Besides that, we like having our weekends to ourselves. You'll probably try to talk us into going back to church, but why should we? We don't really miss it.


A:

Some time ago, a doctor told me about a patient of his who refused to take his blood pressure medicine because, he said, he didn’t feel like he really needed it. A year later, he suffered a serious stroke.

Tragically, the same thing can happen to us spiritually. We get preoccupied with other things… life seems relatively stable… nothing is happening that we don’t think we can handle, and as a result we don’t feel like we need God. But in reality, we do need Him, and eventually our spiritual poverty will catch up with us. It’s true for us as individuals, and it will be true for our children.

It may come through some crisis we can’t control; it may not happen until we face death. But the result is always the same: We’ve turned our backs on the only One who truly loves us and can help us, and as a result we’re left empty and alone. Jesus warned, “Wide is the gate and broad is the road that leads to destruction, and many enter through it” (Matthew 7:13).

Face honestly your need for God, for only then will you realize your need to be with God’s people and learn from God’s Word. Begin by committing yourselves to Jesus Christ as a family and asking Him to become the foundation of your lives. Then ask Him to lead you to a church where you’ll not only feel comfortable, but you’ll also be able to grow strong in your faith.