What do you appreciate about your church

[ChristmasStars]

Just as a little contrast to another thread, which was interesting to read, I thought it would be encouraging to share things we love about our church. Not in a spirit of competition but to encourage one another.

I'll start. We take communion every week. I've never been in a church that does that before and I really like it. It feels very centring.

We have the option to take communion in separate little glasses ( thimbles!). As someone with immune system.issues this is great.
We have a varied and enthusiastic band, as well as a beautiful organ.
We have proper coffee and good biscuits after the services.

I’m looking for a church at the moment due to moving house. Previously I was part of a house church.

I appreciate so many aspects of house church: eating together, participation of those present, simple worship.

And we also had communion every week, which I just love.

Proper coffee is good @FuzzyPuffling !

@LeaningOnTheEverlastingArms I was in a house church for years. Really loved it. Simple, stripped back worshipping community.

The welcome. There are two churches that form my parish. The one close to me I attended for a year and spoke to barely anyone. The other I was welcomed, know people and belong. It’s further away but it makes such a difference.

The first church does have a sense of calm

That welcome is so important @Fatloss

Lovely thread!

I really appreciate the Jesus and bible centred community. I love the sermons, they are really bible centred and aimed at helping us understand the word - unlike the church I grew up in where the sermon was 'here's an anecdote from the vicar's week that kinda relates to the reading'.

Our church runs what is called 'Life Groups' - where we meet every week in a group of less than ten and chat, pray and study the bible together. The aim is for the groups to give us a defined group of Christians to pray for, make friends with and support each other to be better Christians. Its lovely.

That's great @purplesparklydinosaur I love small groups.

Everything I appreciate. For what I cannot appreciate it someone else certainly will and nothing will be wasted.I enjoy coffee meets after church everything my brothers and sisters in Christ the brances and vines and superior support.They are only 3 rectors we are a community with a capacity in numbers. Some things I have truly enjoyed. I would like to see something added and had the guts about to suggest and just announced it online appearing questionably as I have done with other things. Noone to facilate it I was told.. Another group did this before. A group for me and those chronic conditions often.

I would to see again a corner for those chronic conditions. No really a corner to support eachother in scripture for many of us get it having living with it. I get this group online but too late a Christian group as well. It is later for me. May be though I need to give it a go.

My physical church though perfecto for it is the House of God and it is safe place.

That we are such a diverse set of people who come together as one.
We have people of so many different walks of life, but we're united under Christ,

I have recently had a terrible experience in my lovely church and am really struggling to get over it. But as part of the healing process I wrote a lost of all the things I loved about it prior to the incident happening. There were over 40 items on that list.
Jesus is telling me not to give up. I could stay away, or go somewhere else, but he is telling me that isn't the right thing to do right now.

I see why you feel this and me as being humble as I am and lowly. Who I say in their right mind would wish to speak against our dear Jesus when is seen in heaven as well.
You seem to feel strongly about this and written 40 why you like church.
Yes, I love my church as well and wish others would enjoy this. Sometimes I will say though we need to be logical and very rational staying grounded to what is in your life. So in this stay with this.Yes, but do perhaps some searching around the area you live just to check the others out there if you are not so much attached to the demonination as such.
You may find online another church just down in fact with more to offer you for the package of you can you need.
This happened to me all just 8 minutes away I stepped away from of good people and experiences to one where the service suited me fine. Just the time limit I could cope with my autism and not have to shorten the say A to cope and others I found I found easier in the new church with the second brillant rectors who got my situation and now I am firmly fixed and loving it church B. It is not the church sometimes it is the wrap around so look at other services in the area I would say if you havent as well.
So, won't you be moving and still within that body of Christ.

It's a beautiful church. And Mass is never dumbed down or happy clappy!

As a convert to the RC church. I love the structure.

I've name changed from the name I usually use on this board, there are so many fairly unique/less common aspects to my church, that added together could be outing.

I love that my church is physically attached to a primary school. This means we have quite a few young families who attend, and the children have such a lovely understanding of so much due to learning about it at school as well. And of course they feel comfortable in the actual space as they are in there at least once per week.

We also have the refectory which is a lovely space where we host a term time, weekday "café." We have hot drinks and biscuits, with the occasional bacon sandwich. It's very much run by the members. We also use the space for various groups. Monday is craft. Tuesdays is toddlers. Weds is a wonderful small group that I'm part of. (More on this later). Thursdays is a small communion service where we have the chance to discuss the reading rather than listening to a sermon. Fridays is often nothing, but occasionally we get the projector out and watch a movie.

Our weds group started as a bible study for those of us who's knowledge was lacking. It then branched out into more general discussions on all kinds of topics. We try and include a bit of 'what would Jesus say?" But also never assume the Bible has the answer. Our regular members range from 20-86, we previously had a lady in her 90s who sadly died.

In terms of Sundays, it can really vary from week to week. I love that we have a fantastic music team, who between them can play pretty much every instrument known to man and some beautiful singers too. We use a mix of traditional and more modern hymns and songs which mean there's something for everyone so to speak. We take communion every week. We have a few preachers, all who have a very different way of preaching and it's very rare I don't get 'something' from it. It's a very inclusive and welcoming place. I've never felt that I don't fit in, despite the fact I'm a single Mum with no education past an access course and the congregation is full of highly educated, mostly married people. Teachers, doctors and so on.

ETA: I love the liturgy and the fact that it's the same most of the time. It feels very comforting to know what's happening when.

It's honestly such a wonderful place to be. It's not perfect and there are things I don't like. But it's only a couple!

That sounds wonderful. It really does- inclusive, welcoming, varied, accepting...all the things a church should be.

This thread is such an encouragement. 🙌🏻
Thanks for starting it @ChristmasStars 💐

You're welcome. It's lovely to read the posts.

The rituals and traditions are what I love most about my Catholic church.

Ah I love my church! I’ve been there for almost 30 years and we’ve grown from a small Baptist church to a church of 8 congregations and over 1,000
members. I love that our elders aren’t afraid to teach the Bible, and that we’re so encouraged to read and discover the word of god for ourselves. I love that we’re Holy Spirit lead as he always points us to Jesus! I love that we have kids prophesying and an 80 year old deaconess who dances with the children in worship (and sneakily hands out mini eggs to the kids, tenners to the students and home knitted cardigans to the new mums for their babies). I love that we have 27 different nations in my congregation and I love how we’re learning to live under kingdom culture and not our own individual cultures and preferences. I love that we worship vibrantly and reverently in a beautiful balance. Mostly I love that the encourage me to be more like Jesus and equip me to take his love to the world

Wow that's beautiful @Lifealittleboulder

What a hopeful and uplifting experience of church. 🎉

From a practical point of view I love that we live next door to it with an interconnected door (dh is a pastor). When the dc were little I could go to half the evening service and then put them to bed. I could go home to change a nappy or feed them if I wanted. Now they are older they don't have to stay for social events if they don't want to. We had to move out to have building work done and I really appreciated our house when we got home.

From a spiritual point of view I love that although we are small in number we are loud singers. We always have 20 minutes of singing before the evening service.

Can I come to your church please? Sounds amazing

Any time!!!

www.livinghope.im xx