Run to the House

“Ugh, what is the pastor going to say? What is everyone going to think? What if they call us out in front of everyone?” These were some of the thoughts that ran through mine and my husband’s heads as we made the long drive to church. Our stomachs turned with nervousness. Our hearts were racing. I had grown up in church. Why did I feel this way?

It was February when God told me to go back to church. Having one reason or excuse after the other, I was lucky if I even watched it online. God had been patient with me, but by the time June came along, He spoke again.

For the Lord had said to Moses, “Say to the children of Israel, ‘You are a stiff-necked people. I could come up into your midst in one moment and consume you. Now therefore, take off your ornaments, that I may know what to do to you.’ ”So the children of Israel stripped themselves of their ornaments by Mount Horeb. Moses took his tent and pitched it outside the camp, far from the camp, and called it the tabernacle of meeting. And it came to pass that everyone who sought the Lord went out to the tabernacle of meeting which was outside the camp.

– Exodus 33:5-7

I had already asked God to make me a clean slate. My ornaments had been removed. But in my own stubbornness, I still hadn’t done the first thing He told me to do – go back to church. Now, it would no longer be to the church down the street. It was time to travel “far from the camp” and seek the Lord in His house.

When we arrived, we were greeted with nothing but smiles, hugs, and the introduction to new friendships. We had worried for nothing. The only thing holding us back had been our own convictions, left for God to judge and not others.

Nothing but the Blood

The music played, and we stood there, lightly tapping on the chair to the beat, clapping when called for, and singing quietly along to what songs we knew. We both knew why we were there. God called us to be. I was going to be healed.

It was communion Sunday. The worship band began playing, “How Great Is Our God”, and the pastor made his way towards me. This was it.

He told the church about my sickness and placed the broken piece of bread directly on my forehead. This broken piece of bread represented Christ’s body that was broken for us.

But He was wounded for our transgressions,
He was bruised for our iniquities;
The chastisement for our peace was upon Him,
And by His stripes we are healed.

– Isaiah 53:5

Jesus was beaten and punished, not only for our sins, but for our overall healing. His body was broken so that ours could be made whole again. His blood was shed to wash away every impurity in us.

I had asked God to remove my sickness. He answered me by telling me to go back to church. When I finally obeyed, He reminded me of the basis of salvation: Christ died for our sins and our healing. He wanted to wash me completely clean and make my body new again.

Create in Me a Clean Heart

It has been almost a year since we started going back to church, and I can already see the transformation that God has performed in our lives. My husband, who years ago questioned God’s existence, now raises his hands in praise. My son, only two years old, feels the excitement of running in the presence of the Holy Spirit, even when we are home alone. My own insecurities and restraints are being broken every day, as we are continually challenged to serve our purpose for God’s kingdom.

I grew up in a Christian home, going to a Christian school and church my whole life, but I have never felt the desire I do now to be in church and be in His presence. I have never been so excited for Sunday to come around. That hour long drive is no longer filled with a stomach of anxiousness but a stomach of butterflies, as if I’m on my way to a much needed vacation.

But Is it Really Necessary?

Be honest. You don’t feel that sort of excitement watching church online. You don’t feel the power of the Holy Spirit listening to a mediocre video of the worship part of a service. People cant lay hands on you through the phone or tv or tablet. God wants you with Him, and while yes, God is always with you, there is nothing like the presence of the Holy Spirit in His own home.

The Bible makes it clear that if we build Him a house, He will meet us there. If our ultimate goal is to be with God, then what better way to reach Him here on earth than in that house!

We go to school to learn and grow. The same goes for church, where we become equipped with the wisdom and power and love of the Spirit and are challenged to go out and share it with the world. We are surrounded by a God-given family of people who want nothing but to support us.

So run back to God. All of the sorrow and pain you feel is how He feels when you stray from Him. He loves you. He misses you. He wants a close relationship with you. Run back to church and be in His presence. The righteous follow His laws and keep His commandments. This is where He wants you until you can be in His Kingdom forever.

So Christ himself gave the apostles, the prophets, the evangelists, the pastors and teachers, to equip his people for works of service, so that the body of Christ may be built up until we all reach unity in the faith and in the knowledge of the Son of God and become mature, attaining to the whole measure of the fullness of Christ.

– Ephesians 4:11-13

What’s Your Excuse?