Talked myself out of going to church again, it sounded good last night, sounded pretty good this morning… then about an hour before my anxiety of it took over. It is hard for me to sit there for an hour and listen, I worry I will get too anxious. Plus, I take my medicine at 8, and that can normally increase my anxiety a bit for an hour or two. Then I worry about the heat and being uncomfortable… needless to say, I talked myself out of it.
Although I do like to go, I enjoyed going at Christmas this last year, it reinvigorated me, reminded me of why I am in this situation a bit. Plus, I like to get a little of that spiritual energy and get the feeling of the spiritual aspect of all of this, it actually makes me feel the reality of the situation a whole lot more. Makes it feel less like the game it ends up being in my head many times, not that I think it is a game, but I am competitive like that. I could sum it up, by saying it gives me that boondock saint feeling a bit, if any of you know what I mean…
I envision a type of church I would love to attend, not that I would like to replace cathedrals or anything like that… I feel those are more like monasteries of the Christian faith that serve their purpose, can be especially good for people going through difficult times, but that is a conversation for a different day.
But, I envision something more like a community center, where people should feel rejuvenated and excited to go to every Sunday. I want people to say, I can’t wait to go to church on Sunday. I like the idea that the main service is only like 10-15 minutes long, just a short sermon and give everyone something to talk or think about. Then, everyone breaks off a bit, which if you wanted to do bible study or hear more from the preacher, that would be an option, people should be available to answer questions and things like that.
I think though, we should do things like hire babysitters and let friends and family get together every Sunday. Have yoga, meditation, arts and crafts, and different things that may make you feel good. Have a place to have breakfast, maybe even a little coffee shop. A library, TV’s to even watch football or whatever. I wouldn’t care if you stayed all day long! Plus, I think there should be more BBQ’s and things like that, make it like a family reunion a bit. Perhaps even some video games and whatever other activities for the kids… maybe some churches would want to put in a pool!
It is just 4 or 5 days a month, it is your excuse to hang out with friends and family every week. Which hanging out with friends isn’t always about you, it is about your friends seeing you as well. Many relationships suffer when people get caught up in the rat race of life, having kids and everything else. So, it is like mandatory time to have fun and take a break, get yourself ready for the work week ahead and whatever other issues.
I think you get the general idea of where I am going with this… these rejuvenation centers, I think if they were done right, too many people might start coming… would have set up so many within whatever distances depending on population size. Perhaps some people might do some church hopping on Sundays hehe.
But, I want to try and develop a place that really helps fill people with spiritual energy, love, and faith… A place people really can’t wait to go to every Sunday, not just a chore for many people. Often times churches end up with a preaching to the choir type of situation. But, like I said, there should be bible studies available, and options to hear more from the preacher, or if there are people that have questions and want to learn more, there should be people to ask. But, that isn’t for everybody though… I would like it to be somewhere everyone would want to come and be at God’s house for a bit.
Which, Perfect Capitalism is such a charitable system in general, it is a charity in its own way… It is designed to take care of people and develop communities… I think then that churches should feel free to spend a bit more of their donations and funding on themselves and these rejuvenation centers. I think it would help in the bigger picture, draw more people locally. Plus, I think prayers are more powerful when we are full of love and the holy spirit as well, so it is a little like putting on your own mask first in the airplane. But, who knows, you may get more donations than ever before and still be able to donate even more than previously.
Hopefully you get where I am going with this though… You can even imagine when you are first walking in, the preacher out there saying hello and shaking hands and everything…
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