Help Me, Jesus! Devotions From Time Of GraceSample

Help me, Jesus, be glad for church

I rejoiced with those who said to me, “Let us go to the house of the LORD” (Psalm 122:1).

Some days, Lord, I feel like an imposter. I’ve been a churchgoer for a long time. I was raised in the church. I participated in all of the programs. I know most of the right answers and can dish them out. Most Sundays I’m really not hearing anything new. Am I just keeping up appearances? I go more out of habit and less out of conviction. I know it’s a good habit, and I don’t think I want to break it. It makes my parents happy when I go. But sometimes my heart just isn’t in it. And I want my heart to be in it. There have been stretches where I don’t go, and the longer I’m away the easier it is to stay away. It’s not because I want to sleep in or have other things to do. It’s because I’ve lost interest. It’s just not a priority for me. I’m missing the connection between going to church and being a Christian.
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You know I’ve met someone, Lord. It’s going well and we could get married. Now I think we should go to church together. Isn’t that weird? When I was single, it wasn’t always that important. But now that there’s someone else in my life, I think we should go. I want to get married in the church. I want to raise my children in the church. I want it to be a big part of our lives together like it was when I was growing up. Having someone to be in church with seems to make a difference. Maybe that’s the whole point of church. It’s a gathering of people who believe in you and support each other. When I went alone, I felt isolated and it didn’t mean as much. But when I feel the connection to you and those around me, it means more. I guess I had the focus wrong. It was on me. Let me refocus on you, Lord Jesus, and appreciate everyone around me.