Church is where we "Practice" Religion

I have been traveling a lot the past few weeks, and so I had the satellite radio on and was listening to different channels. I find I get bored of music after a few hours and want news, talk radio, or NPR stories to get my mind off the long drives. I came across a religious talk channel and was interested by the discussion.

A caller called in and stated that he was struggling with going to church because it was just so boring. He wondered why he should keep going. He wants to go and be spiritually fed, but just comes home feeling it was a waste of time, and asked the show host how to make church more meaningful.

First of all, I had to double check my radio…had I accidentally tuned into a New Order Mormon channel? I swear this topic could have been about Mormons who talk of their pain in enduring a 3 hr block of meetings, something I’ve struggled with quite a bit, actually. Nope…it wasn’t Mormon related. Could it be that people of other religions struggle with getting something out of the Sunday church experience?

Apparently so. Then the show host responded (I don’t know the show name or the host name, but it could very well have been Ray right there on satellite radio!! It sounded like how I imagine Ray’s voice sounds ). [Paraphrased by memory as I was driving through the lovely country-side of Alberta Canada]:

Brother, the first thing you must come to understand is that you don’t go to church with an empty cup and expect someone else to fill it up for you. People who do that go week by week expecting that Sundays are their days of “recharging batteries”, which will slowly get drained during the rest of normal life.

No. This is not what church is for. These kind of “fill-er-up” Christians have shallow knowledge of God and His power. These kinds of Christians cannot last long in the religion, because there will always be someone or something or sometime that doesn’t provide them with their fill, and then they have no other source of inspiration.

I worry for folks like that. What I tell people is that they need to find a conduit to God to fill their souls themselves through the Spirit, outside of church. Then you should go to Church on Sunday to practice what you are learning. Church on Sunday is to practice the religion as you deal with other people and deal with how to love and serve and uplift others. If you go to church without that attitude, of course it will be boring and feel like a waste of time.

I thought this guy was pretty smart, and he “gets it”. I thought about the LDS church, and how it is all about volunteer callings and service…and that made so much sense. One of the great things about the LDS church is that it provides me and my family opportunities to practice my religion, in whatever calling I’m asked to serve in. There are plenty of imperfect situations (other people, rules, misunderstood teachings) that provide a sandbox for me to practice what I believe, and by practicing it, I start to understand things.

I don’t think this knowledge is gained by staying home and reading scriptures or blogging on the Internet or meditating in prayer. Those things can be helpful, but at some point I need to practice it. When I view church in this light, it makes me want to change my attitude about church and put forward effort to deal with it. Deal with boring talks, deal with over-zealous youth leaders, deal with my feelings towards others in the ward and if I feel needed, loved, or otherwise. It is all practice. And it is all up to me. And in this way, the church is true for me…truly an imperfect place that provides opportunity for personal growth.