A pastor in a small town of a very close-knit community noticed as a few weeks went by that a recent widower had not been attending church. The pastor queried some of the members of his life group about the normally talkative man who never met a stranger. The response seemed to be the same in that they rarely saw him out in public anymore, and when they did he seemed closed off and not interested in people around him.

This out of character behavior led the pastor to show up at the man’s house one chilly night. The pastor knocked on the door and the man, not saying a word, let him in and they both set quietly by the warm glow of the fireplace. After a few minutes of silence the pastor got up, walked over to the fire and moved a small piece of burning wood separating it from the intense heat of the collective fire. After a few seconds the small secluded piece began to lose its spark. The pastor then moved it back into the main fire where it began to glow and catch fire again. The pastor then started to walk towards the door and as he was leaving the man spoke up and told him he would see him Sunday.

Wikipedia reports that in 2014, 47 percent of churchgoers attended an average of once a month. Steve Arterburn, during a recent sermon, mentioned the effectiveness of reading our Bibles four days a week. This might have been the one week that month some of us attended and thought to ourselves, “Well if I read my Bible, come to church once an month and catch the rest of the sermons online I will do just fine.”

The writer of Hebrews addresses the importance of church attendance stating, “And let us consider how we may spur one another on toward love and good deeds, not giving up meeting together, as some are in the habit of doing, but encouraging one another — and all the more as you see the Day approaching” (Hebrews 10:24-25).

No matter our present circumstances in connection to our relationship with Christ, the companionship of fellow brothers and sisters in Christ is integral in developing mature disciples.

At one point, in my intentional, self-imposed separation from following Christ, it was not just my decision to return to church on a regular basis but the people I met who willingly poured into my life supporting me to make Christ the main priority. My love for Christ and others has grown since then as a result of placing importance on church attendance and regular fellowship.

Consequently, I have reaped the spiritual benefits while being spurred on by others as well as spurring others on myself. The opportunities to grow, serve and encourage one another are endless when we meet together regularly. Church indeed has its benefits. Hope you’ll join me at one of the Northview Church campuses this weekend to get your spark back!

BY LEAH MCCLAIN

An Easy and Effective Way to Engage with the Bible BY STAN PRIEBE

PHOTOS BY JOSH POLK