Hi, all. Just a thought to help start your weekend.

Let me start off by asking you to take a look at this picture. What do you see? Many of you might answer simply, “a church building.” That is true, but I believe it’s more than that.

I’d like to boldly say that I believe if you’ve never worshipped in a small country church, you have truly missed a blessing from Heaven. This particular church is a few miles from where I live. I have visited it many times in the past, and recently officiated a funeral service there. I’ve been to at least one large homecoming service there, other worship times, and dinner “on the grounds.”

Each of those activities has had the same meaning for me in much larger church buildings and facilities as well. I’ve worshipped corporately with hundreds of other believers in much larger churches than this, and each church has its own benefits and drawbacks.

Having said all that, I want to ask about the church you attend. Do you feel you aren’t receiving the instruction, the leadership, the guidance that you should be getting from your church worship and study gatherings? Before you throw in the towel and start looking for another church — be it much larger with its multiple opportunities, or much smaller with an everyone-knows-everyone family style — let me suggest that you instead look at the original “church house.”

We, as Christians, are the church. The building may have its benefits. The gatherings certainly do. But we are individually the church. If I’m not receiving what I believe I need to receive from worship, then I need to first ask myself to look at what I’m giving to the worship experience. If I leave church thinking I’ve gotten nothing from it, then I need to ask myself, “What did I put into it?”

I have been privileged to visit church buildings in several states across our country, our National Cathedral, and Notre Dame Cathedral in Paris. Not one of those buildings, in all their physical glory or lack thereof, can provide for me what the Lord can, if only I open my heart (my church) to Him and give Him my all.

Ask yourself this week, “How’s church lately? And what am I contributing to the worship experience?”

Rev. Brad Campbell can be reached at mastah.pastah@yahoo.com.