When you are looking for a local church, you may want to visit a few before you settle on one. There are a few areas to consider.

The most important aspect to consider is that the Bible is preached or taught. Whoever is speaking should be basing their message on what God says in the Bible. You want to learn about God and His Son, Jesus Christ, so that you can apply the truths of the Bible to your daily life.

Another consideration is the music and worship time. Try to find a place where you are comfortable with the music, prayer and worship time so that you can concentrate on worshipping God without distractions.

Is the atmosphere friendly? You want to be able to fellowship with others and get involved in the life of the church — to be encouraged and encourage others. We each have skills, gifts or qualities that we can use in
this area.

After you have visited a few churches, settle on one. Remember — no church is perfect! It is made up of real people. Enjoy it.

Glenn Elder, Jr., of the University of North Carolina and Mark Regnerus of Calvin College have shown that in low-income areas, attending church strengthens educational progress.
Christianity Today reports the findings of this and several other studies associating positive outcomes with church involvement. The Regnerus and Elder study, commissioned by the Center for Research on Religion and Urban Civil Society (CRRUCS), analyzed data from nearly 10,000 students.

Social involvement in church seems to matter more than specific beliefs in influencing academic improvement among low-income students. Elder feels that shared values among church members and commitment to seeing children in the church succeed helps kids build character. Regnerus notes that regular church attendance requires discipline, just as academic excellence does.

Others laud mentors in the faith community who encourage dedication and instill confidence. Church youth and college groups can teach leadership as students assume responsibility. They speak in meetings, help resolve conflicts and assist students younger than them with homework. Such involvement can enhance self-assurance and develop useful life skills.
According to the CRRUCS, over 600 studies demonstrate positive connection between religion and physical, mental or social wellness. CRRUCS director Byron Johnson believes that “Religion is one of the best predictors of avoiding crime and delinquency.”

I’ve seen firsthand how involvement in a faith community can correlate with university students’ positive employment ratings. In the mid-1970s, I directed a summer project in South Carolina that brought Christian college students to a beach resort. The students worked in restaurants, grocery stores and construction sites by day. Their off hours included fun, studying and community outreach.

For the most part, employers loved the students because – though not flawless — they were dedicated, honest, cheerful, faithful workers. Merchants were eager to hire project students in successive summers. That project still exists and others across the nation have seen similar results.

Of course, correlation does not equal causation. Does spiritual involvement improve grades (or decrease delinquency or enhance job performance)? Or do dedicated students simply gravitate to faith-based groups? And is it the faith that makes the difference, or is it the social group support and mentoring?
Causation can be difficult to demonstrate absolutely in these matters. But in a world desperately in need of solid character and hope for youth, possible links between church involvement and positive outcomes are worth considering. One could do worse.

A first century biblical writer admonished, “Think of ways to encourage one another to outbursts of love and good deeds. And let us not neglect our meeting together, as some people do, but encourage… each other…” Valuable ingredients for social and personal well being?

Valuable in many ways, say some. University of Pennsylvania researcher Ram Cnaan studied the contribution to the city of Philadelphia of urban churches and valued it at over a quarter of a million dollars annually in volunteer hours, goods and services.

Churches, of course, aren’t perfect. “If you find a perfect church, don’t join it,” one speaker advised. “You’ll spoil it.” But church involvement with solid, responsible leadership can be an option worth considering.

Rusty Wright is an author and university lecturer with Probe.org who has spoken on six continents. “Real Answers™” furnished courtesy of The Amy Foundation Internet Syndicate. To contact the author or The Amy Foundation, write or E-mail to: P. O. Box 16091, Lansing, MI 48901-6091; amyfoundtn@aol.com. Visit our website at www.amyfound.org.

“But when the Son of Man comes in His glory, and all the angels with Him, then He will sit on His glorious throne. All the nations will be gathered before Him; and He will separate them from one another, as the shepherd separates the sheep from the goats; and He will put the sheep on His right, and the goats on the left. Then the King will say to those on His right, ‘Come, you who are blessed of My Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world’” Matthew 25:31-34

Sometimes Christians limit the scope of their spiritual responsibility to the Lord and their local church. But the Word of God says that every single believer around the world is related to us as an arm is connected to a body. We are all part of the body of Christ. If our vision for service stops at the local church, our effectiveness for the kingdom will be diminished.

God’s kingdom is the realm where He rules in the hearts of men and exercises His authority. We who have been saved by the grace of God are a part of the kingdom, which is set up in the hearts and lives of all believers. One of these days, that realm will also be a physical reality with a new heaven and new earth. Until then, we should all be at work to build the kingdom by sharing the message of Jesus Christ with the world. That is the task of the church – it is the same mission that was given to the 11 disciples just before Jesus ascended to heaven. (Matthew 28:19-20)

Our responsibility is to construct the bridge of understanding about God’s grace. The Holy Spirit ultimately walks a lost person across the bridge, but we are charged with building it in the first place. Certainly God could have chosen to write a message in flaming letters across the midnight sky. Then people from every culture could see the Gospel, recognize the presence of God, and be saved. But instead, He placed His plan of salvation in the hands of each of us so we can take part in His work. Now is the time to build bridges for Jesus.

Question: How do you see your current role in God’s Kingdom, as it has been revealed so far on Earth?

About this Author: Charles Stanley

Join us for our Daily Devotional Chat today in our Women’s Chatroom at 10:30 am EST.

“And it is He who will supply all your needs according to his riches in glory, because of what Christ Jesus has done for us” (Philippians 4:19).

Married at last! It was so natural to be together all of the time – like we were made for each other. When we were first married, we were so poor – we didn’t even have a car. We lived in one room in a big old house and shared the bathroom with three other couples. My husband was going to college and I worked as a clerk in a drugstore. Life was good and we never even noticed that we were poor. We were happy!

Life kept changing and so did we. We began having babies. By the time we were twenty – five, we had four children. Marvin had finished college and we were owners of a large egg farm. We worked hard and God granted us a measure of financial success.

Marvin, being athletic, played hockey, baseball, football and loved to golf. The children and I spent many evenings at the hockey arena or on the bleachers at the baseball games; although, I loved reading, gardening and crafts. We both had leadership positions in our church and denomination.

After several years, I began getting tired with going to his sports events and discontent with the busyness of life. I felt like my husband wasn’t meeting my needs. I wanted the kind of relationship where he would understand and meet all my needs. Having a new house, nice clothes, jewelry and many holidays didn’t satisfy me either. I was putting a lot of pressure on my husband to be different. I wanted him to change. Marriage didn’t seem so great any more.

One weekend, Dr. Henry Brandt, a Christian psychologist, spoke at a conference we attended. He taught us some truths that revolutionized our marriage. He said the person we married could never meet our needs because they were only human beings – only God could meet all our needs. That was a new way of thinking for me! But I knew instantly that what he said was true.?

And so, my thinking began to change. I quit expecting Marvin to meet my needs (at least most of the time) and began to go the Word and the Lord when I felt needy. And I changed. I was happier. I began to thank God for all the wonderful characteristics in my husband. In response to my changed attitude, Marvin became sensitive to my needs. Amazing how God works!

Sometimes I still slip into my old way of thinking – but not for long. Only God can meet my needs and your needs. Jesus satisfies!

How are you doing in your marriage? Are you expecting your spouse to meet your needs? If so, pray the prayer below and begin looking to God, your Creator, to meet your needs:

Father God, I acknowledge that I have put pressure on people to do for me what only You can do – satisfy all my needs. From this day forward, I will look to You and Your Word to fill me with everything I need. Thank You!  Amen.

Questions: Do you sometimes feel your spouse is not meeting your needs? What would be a good step for you to take in order to begin solving this problem?

About the author Katherine Kehler

Do you regret having an abortion? Need someone to talk to?

“I know your deeds; you have a reputation of being alive, but you are dead. Wake up! Strengthen what remains and is about to die, for I have not found your deeds complete in the sight of my God” (Rev 3:1, 2).

When our lives progress at a steady pace, with no great difficulties, it is easy to become complacent.   We can slide into a “cruise control” mentality. What will it take to jar our thinking and make us pay attention to the direction our lives are taking?

Maybe that was the situation the church of Sardis found itself in when John received the revelation from Jesus about it. (Revelation 3:1-6) They had become careless in their spiritual lives.  They were inattentive to the voice of the Holy Spirit, oblivious to the true condition of their hearts. They were coasting. This letter was their wake up call.

They were challenged to remember what they had been taught, to obey it and to repent.  Jesus Christ is going to return. We can not afford to become negligent in our faith or slack in our service to God.  Jesus’ own words are recorded by Mark, “Be on guard! Be alert! You do not know when that time will come” (Mark 13:33).  Like Sardis, we are called to wake up.

Each of the letters to the churches is ended in the same way: “He who has an ear, let him hear what the spirit says to the churches” (Revelation 2:7, 11, 17, 29, 3:6, 13 & 22).  Let us not be found guilty of not listening to what God is trying to say to us.

O God, forgive my laziness and my carelessness in following you. Make me faithful and diligent, I do not want to be found sleeping when You return.  Amen

Questions: What lulls us into inattentiveness? What causes us to wake up?

About the Author Suzanne Benner

Do you have questions about what is truth? Ask us.

Join us for our Daily Devotional Chat today in our Women’s Chatroom at 10:30 am EST.

“I know your deeds, your love and faith, your service and perseverance, and that you are now doing more than you did at first” (Rev 2:19).

Some in the church in Thyatira (Revelation 2:18-29) had managed to keep themselves separate from the evil that was going on in their church, but others were following a woman who called herself a prophetess and had misled people into sexual sin.  God proclaimed judgment on this woman, “I have given her time to repent of her immorality, but she is unwilling” (Rev 2:21).  God promised the same to her followers unless they repented.

Sometimes we find ourselves in the first group, simply following God to the best of our ability, doing what is right in the midst of wrong teaching. We might even be looked down on or ridiculed for not being as “enlightened” or for not understanding these “deep secrets”.   If that is where you are, then the message for Thyatira is for you: hold on to truth.

“Now I say to the rest of you in Thyatira, to you who do not hold to her teaching and have not learned Satan’s so-called deep secrets (I will not impose any other burden on you): Only hold on to what you have until I come” (Rev 2:24, 25).

You know the truth: that Jesus died for your sins and He alone makes you righteous, that life is not about pleasing ourselves but pleasing God who sacrificed all for us.  Don’t worry about what is going on around you. Jesus will return. God will judge those who do evil.  As for you, simply hold on until then.

Gracious God and Father, help me to walk in love and faith and truth. Thank you that You know my heart. Keep me safe from the lies that come at me from every side. Help me to hold on to the truth until You come.  Amen

Questions: How does knowing Jesus will return give you hope? How can we encourage each other to hold on to truth?

About the Author Suzanne Benner

Have you been hurt? Take this study to learn how to deal with pain so that bitterness doesn’t take root.

“By this all men will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another” (John 13:35).

Step 5:  Be willing to plant stakes in the ground

When we recognize there has been hurt in our church, we must be willing to take a stand to say what will be different from this day forward. So often we experience hurt within the church walls and we retreat for awhile, only to return to find a new vision or a new program. A “forgetting what is behind” attitude can spring up without ever acknowledging why we got to the hurtful point we did.

If there is one thing we have learned throughout history it is that history repeats itself. The struggles with pride and accountability, tending the seeds of our heart, and not recognizing our enemy, are all day-to-day struggles. We will not mature and move ahead in our journey with God as a church unless we recognize where we have been in hurting times and plant some stakes to serve as markers to check us when we begin to spiral into the same patterns. Ask yourself:

“Am I willing to acknowledge my part and take steps to prevent a repeat?”

When conflict threatens your heart and your church, as it will, seek first to be intentional about raising the prayer banner. This invites the Spirit of God to be at work in the lives of those involved and minimizes our tendency to lean on our own understanding. It moves us toward recognizing afresh our utter dependence on God. God alone is the hope of the hurting church.

If you are part of a church that is experiencing hurt and conflict, confusion and disorder, God gives a measuring stick to determine what value system is at work.

Two kinds of wisdom…

James 3:13-17 talks about the two kinds of wisdom. One that does not come from heaven and one that does. The one not based on heavenly values is centered on earthly, unspiritual values with envy and selfish ambition at the core. Not hard to spot.  The trademark of love will be missing as well.

The wisdom based on heavenly values will be pure, peace loving, considerate, submissive, full of mercy and good fruit, impartial and sincere.

This higher value system can be reached by applying these five steps (see this devotional and the previous parts in the series) based on the foundation of love. It’s love that comes from the heart of our Father God to our own individual hearts. Then the world will see our trademark and glorify God in Heaven.

Tend your heart wisely!  The state of your soul, the health of your church, and a watching world needing Jesus depends on it.

Father God, I thank you for my church. I pray that You will work in me and through me to display Your love and Your wisdom within my church. Help me to do my part to keep my heart pure, peace loving and considerate so that You will be honored in this community by our trademark of love. In Jesus’ powerful name I pray, amen.

Questions: When someone has hurt you, what is your initial response? Where do you first go for comfort?

About the Author Gail Rodgers

“By this all men will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another.” John 13:35

Step 5:  Be willing to plant stakes in the ground

When we recognize there has been hurt in our church, we must be willing to take a stand to say what will be different from this day forward. So often we experience hurt within the church walls and we retreat for awhile, only to return to find a new vision or a new program. A “forgetting what is behind” attitude can spring up without ever acknowledging why we got to the hurtful point we did.

If there is one thing we have learned throughout history it is that history repeats itself. The struggles with pride and accountability, with tending the seeds of our heart and not recognizing our enemy are day-to-day struggles. Unless we recognize where we have been in hurting times and plant some stakes that serve as markers to check us when we tend to spiral into the same patterns, we have not taken the opportunity to mature and move ahead in our journey with God as a church. Ask yourself

“Am I willing to acknowledge my part and take steps to prevent a repeat?”

When conflict threatens your heart and your church, as it will, seek first to be intentional about raising the prayer banner. This invites the Spirit of God to be at work in the lives of those involved and minimizes our tendency to lean on our own understanding. It moves us toward recognizing afresh our utter dependence on God. God alone is the hope of the hurting church.

If you are part of a church that is experiencing hurt and conflict, confusion and disorder, God gives a measuring stick to determine what value system is at work.

Two kinds of wisdom:

James 3:13-17 talks about the two kinds of wisdom. One that does not come from heaven and one that does. The one not based on heavenly values is centered on earthly, unspiritual values with envy and selfish ambition at the core. Not hard to spot.  The trademark of love will be missing as well.

The wisdom based on heavenly values will be pure, peace loving, considerate, submissive, full of mercy and good fruit, impartial and sincere.

This higher value system can be reached by applying these five steps based on the foundation of love. It’s love that comes from the heart of our Father God to our own individual hearts. Then the world will see our trademark and glorify God in Heaven.

Tend your heart wisely!  The state of your soul, the health of your church, and a watching world needing Jesus depends on it.

Father God, I thank You for my church. I pray that You will work in me and through me to display Your love and Your wisdom within my church. Help me to do my part to keep my heart pure, peace loving and considerate so that You will be honored in this community by our trademark of love. In Jesus’ powerful name I pray, amen.

Question: What has stuck with you most from this series on healing a hurting church?

About this Author: Gail Rodgers

Join us for our Daily Devotional Chat today in our Women’s Chatroom at 10:30 am EST.

“The poor and needy seek water, but there is none, their tongues fail for thirst. I, the Lord, will hear them; I, the God of Israel, will not forsake them. I will open rivers in desolate heights, and fountains in the midst of the valleys; I will make the wilderness a pool of water, and the dry land springs of water”  (Isaiah 41:17-18).

September 23, 1857, Jeremiah Lanphier, a middle aged single business man, responded to a call from the Lord to start a noon hour prayer meeting in the heart of New York City. He took posters around to the businesses in the area announcing the time and the place of the meeting. That first day Jeremiah was the only one there for the first thirty minutes, but by the end of the hour a total of six people attended. The next week there were twenty people and by the third week forty. Within short order, the idea had spread to seeing every church and public meeting hall filled with tens of thousands of New Yorkers for noon hour prayer, daily crying out to God for their city. The result was that over one hundred and fifty thousand new believers came to acknowledge Jesus as their Lord and Savior.

Interestingly, the cultural and economic climate of New York at that time was very similar to what it is today. It was extremely busy, culturally diverse, and its focus was on making money. Church buildings were empty and there was very little interest in Jesus in comparison to the American population at large. As is true now, America was facing a major financial crises caused by wide spread corruption and embezzlement. As a result businesses all over the country were struggling.

What an awesome historical precedent we have of the power of God to move over and change a city when the people rise up to pray. It amazes me how it took only one man to make a decision to be obedient, and to see many follow. Revival is already God’s plan and desire for our country. Our prayers are the trigger!

“For I will pour water on him who is thirsty, and floods on the dry ground; I will pour My Spirit on your descendants, and My blessing on your offspring” (Isaiah 44:3).

Questions: How can you make a difference in your “world”?  Tell us about some things that God has been speaking to you about.

About the Author Emmie Stanley

“The poor and needy seek water, but there is none, their tongues fail for thirst. I, the Lord, will hear them; I, the God of Israel, will not forsake them. I will open rivers in desolate heights, and fountains in the midst of the valleys; I will make the wilderness a pool of water, and the dry land springs of water.” Isaiah 41:17-18

September 23, 1857, Jeremiah Lanphier, a middle aged single business man, responded to a call from the Lord to start a noon hour prayer meeting in the heart of New York City. He took posters around to the businesses in the area announcing the time and the place of the meeting. That first day Jeremiah was the only one there for the first thirty minutes, but by the end of the hour a total of six people attended. The next week there were twenty people and by the third week forty. Within short order, the idea had spread to seeing every church and public meeting hall filled with tens of thousands of New Yorkers for noon hour prayer, daily crying out to God for their city. The result was that over one hundred and fifty thousand new believers came to acknowledge Jesus as their Lord and Savior.

Interestingly, the cultural and economic climate of New York at that time was very similar to what it is today. It was extremely busy, culturally diverse, and its focus was on making money. Church buildings were empty and there was very little interest in Jesus in comparison to the American population at large. As is true now, America was facing a major financial crises caused by wide spread corruption and embezzlement. As a result businesses all over the country were struggling.

What an awesome historical precedent we have of the power of God to move over and change a city when the people rise up to pray. It amazes me how it took only one man to make a decision to be obedient, and to see many follow. Revival is already God’s plan and desire for our country. Our prayers are the trigger!

“For I will pour water on him who is thirsty, and floods on the dry ground; I will pour My Spirit on your descendants, and My blessing on your offspring.” Isaiah 44:3

Question: How would you like to see God repeat one of His many great works of history today in your town, church, or your own life?

About this Author: Emmie Stanley