4 Ways to Connect to God More Deeply at Church
There are times when going to church is hard. So why do we do it? Listen as I share 4 reasons I feel a deeper connection to God when I attend church.
Going to Church Bible Verse
In Ephesians 4:12 we learn a great reason to go to church, “For the perfecting of the saints, for the work of the ministry, for the edifying of the body of Christ.”
4 Reasons I Feel a Deeper Connection with God at Church
Go to Worship God
Christ is the head of the church. In Ephesians 5: 23 we learn,
“Christ is the head of the church and he is the Savior of the body."
increase connection by renewing our promises to God at church by taking communion or the Sacrament—this shows God you are willing to be His disciple.
Perhaps you will feel God teaching you how you can become more “perfected” by repenting or acting differently.
Psalm 150: 1, “Praise ye the LORD. Praise Good in his sanctuary.”
2. Listen with your heart
Tell God you are going to Church and hope to hear what He needs you to hear/learn
watch for the fruits of the Holy Spirit as taught in Galatians, “love, joy, peace, long-suffering, gentleness, goodness and faith."
Pay attention to how you feel
Listen to the music, sermons, thoughts you have and notice how God speaks to you.
Often when I go to church I feel strengthened and empowered as I hear the testimonies of others
3. Take Notes and Take Action
When you get thoughts, write them down.
Write it on your phone, email yourself, write it in your journal
Then act when you get home. Make sure you put the thoughts on your “to do” list.
4. Ask Who Needs Help
Matthew 18:20 “Where 2 or 3 are gather in my name, there i am with them.”
Maybe you feel like "I don’t know anyone/no one talked to me/offended"
Maybe you feel like need a friend—so go and chat with people before or after the meetings
Be brave and follow impressions to meet someone new.
If you physically can’t go to church right now, remember God knows you and the desires of your heart and will help you.
Invitation
Go to church this week with a listening heart.
Download the pdf of the infographic listing all 7 Ways to Increase Connection with God here:
#tamarakanderson #storiesofhopeinhardtimes #podcast #hope #God #hardtimes #church #JesusChrist #WorshipingGod #minister #listen #Act #helpothers #ConnecttoGod #Bibleverses
Transcription
You can find the transcription of today's episode here:
Tamara Anderson 0:03
How do you feel about going to church? Honestly? Are you excited about it? Do you love it? Are there days that you wish you didn't have to go or days you just refuse to go? Maybe you haven't been in a long time? Well, today we're going to talk a little bit about four ways that we can connect to God more deeply by going to church. So stay tuned for those reasons and see if they help you out.
Tamara Anderson 0:33
Welcome to Stories of Hope and Hard Times, the show that explores how people endure and even thrive in difficult times, all with God's help. I'm your host Tamara K Anderson. Join me on a journey to find inspiring stories of hope and wisdom learned in life's hardest moments.
Tamara Anderson 0:58
Hello, and welcome to another episode of Tamara's Takeaways on the Stories of Hope in Hard Times podcast. For the last many Tamara's Takeaways, we've been doing a series on ways that we can connect with God more deeply; we've talked about through daily devotionals through nature, through creating, writing, healing.
Tamara Anderson 1:20
And today, we're going to cover four ways you can connect to God more deeply by going to church. And I'm sure some of you out there are thinking, "I don't know about this Tamara, I stopped going to church during the pandemic. And I don't really want to go back. I'm comfy at home. And I just don't see the reason". Since we're talking about ways that we can connect to God, I talk a little bit about how I found a deeper connection with God by going to church and how it has helped me throughout my life.
Tamara Anderson 1:56
I really love the verse in Ephesians, that talks all about one of the main reasons for church. It says in Ephesians, chapter four, verse 12: for the perfecting of the saints, for the work of the ministry, for the edifying of the Body of Christ.
Tamara Anderson 2:16
So part of the reasons that we unite and go to church is to help ourselves become a little more perfected, perfected in Christ, not perfected by ourselves, also, for the ability to minister one to another, when we meet together, we see people's needs, and they see ours. And it helps us to minister one to another, and then for the general edifying of the Body of Christ, and that is to help all of us move closer to him.
Tamara Anderson 2:48
So there are four main things that I'm going to talk about today; about how I found increased connection to God, through attending church. The first one is the most important one, why do I go to church? My primary reason is to worship God. Sometimes I think we get so caught up in the world: nobody talked to me, or I didn't learn anything, or somebody offended me, that we forget that we're not there for them, we're there for us, for our soul, to connect our soul to God.
Tamara Anderson 3:23
And so one of my first invitations to you, is for you to ponder: do I go to church for the right reason? Do I go to worship God? And if not, how can I change that in my heart? I love in Ephesians chapter five, verse 23, where it talks about Christ is the head of the church and he is the Savior of the body. We go because Jesus is the head of the church and we love Him. That is why we're there.
Tamara Anderson 3:53
I love the increased connection I feel to God when I go to church. I also love that by taking communion or sacrament, that I am kind of showing him that I'm committed to being his disciple, and his follower. That first scripture that I read about becoming perfected also comes into play. Sometimes when I'm at church, I feel prompted that maybe I should do something or maybe I feel that I should stop doing something. And so I go to church because I feel God whispering to me to improve in different areas of my life.
Tamara Anderson 4:32
And that's good because I don't want to stay the same. I don't want to stay stagnant. I know that there are areas that I can improve on. There's another scripture that I love that I wanted to share with you. And it's in Psalm 150:1 and it says, "Praise ye the Lord. Praise God in his sanctuary." Isn't that beautiful? So we go to church to praise God, to feel closer to him, to become a little better.
Tamara Anderson 5:01
The second reason that I love going to church and that it helps increase my connection to God is I've learned that it's important for me to go with a listening heart. And what I mean by that is that sometimes I do go to church with probably the wrong attitude. I go, because it's pattern, you know, it's a habit that I've developed. Sometimes I'm so tired, I can't pay attention. And sometimes, I'm just distracted by everything else going on around me at church.
Tamara Anderson 5:41
But the second reason to connect to God is super powerful and important. It teaches us to listen with our heart and go with that attitude of God, I'm coming to church today. And I want to hear Your word for me. And I've found that when I go with that type of an attitude, where I'm consciously inviting God and His Spirit to be with me, when I go to church, that I've learned more, and I feel more promptings.
Tamara Anderson 6:14
And what I mean by that is, there's a great scripture in Galations that talks about the fruits of the Spirit being love, joy, peace, long suffering, gentleness, goodness, faith. When I feel those feelings in my soul, then I feel God speaking to me, giving me faith, or encouraging patience through a long trial.
Tamara Anderson 6:39
So listen with your heart, pay attention to how you're feeling inside. When you go to church, listen to the music, listen to the sermons; sometimes what they're saying isn't what's popping into my head. I've had several instances where I'm listening to someone speak, and maybe it's in a Sunday school lesson, or maybe it's over the pulpit. And what they're saying aren't the thoughts that are coming into my mind.
Tamara Anderson 7:07
We're going to take a quick break. But when we get back, we'll have more lessons, tips and things you can apply to your life. Stay tuned.
Tamara Anderson 7:17
My friends, it's Tamara K. Anderson, and I need your help. I am gearing up for a wonderful Christmas season this year. And I need your stories to be part of it. I'm launching a new part on my podcast that I'm going to start doing every holiday season called Holiday Stories of Hope. And so I would love to hear your stories that you and your family have had happen to you during the holidays that have inspired hope in Christ, hope in your family; stories that perhaps you've passed down for generations. Or perhaps it's something that's happened to you personally. So if you have a story you would love to share; If you wouldn't mind coming on a ZOOM call with me and recording it, we can do it in 5, 10, 15 minutes. And then I will be sharing it this November and December with my audience so that we can all be inspired by your story of hope. If you're interested, go to my website, tamarakanderson.com, to contact me and reach out to me that way, and we'll get something set up. Alright, guys, thanks for being such great supporters. And I look forward to sharing more of your stories of hope.
Tamara Anderson 8:35
I've had several instances where I'm listening to someone speak, and maybe it's in a Sunday school lesson, or maybe it's over the pulpit. And what they're saying aren't the thoughts that are coming into my mind. Sometimes I've had big impressions. And I'm like, Oh, wow, that's a good thought. I don't know where that came from. It came from God.
Tamara Anderson 8:57
Maybe just because I'm there and I'm doing what I'm supposed to be doing, He inspires me, answers a question or gives me an idea to do something. And I love that about going to church.
Tamara Anderson 9:03
Sometimes when we put ourselves where we're supposed to be, in a place of worship, God gives us the inspiration that we need because we're trying to connect with him. And as we try to connect with him, he blesses us with the inspiration that we need in our life. Maybe it's faith; maybe it's courage. Maybe it's listening to the testimonies of others that inspires us.
Tamara Anderson 9:34
Well, look, if they could do that, perhaps I can get through my own challenge a little bit better. So I feel strengthened and empowered. When I go to church and listen to the stories of others and interact with others during Sunday school or right now I'm teaching children and so I love teaching them the stories of the Old Testament, it brings me such joy to teach them these amazing stories and show them how they apply to their lives. So interacting with kids is just powerful to me.
Tamara Anderson 10:04
So we've got number one, worship God. Number two, learn to listen with your heart. Number three, this is an interesting one: take notes and write down your thoughts. I don't know about you, but my memory isn't super great.
Tamara Anderson 10:19
So sometimes I'll get a really great thought from God at church. I'm like, oh, I need to write that down. And I didn't bring any paper. But I do have my phone. And I can't even tell you how many Sunday's I ended up emailing myself one sentence or one thought, and I go home, and I read the email and go, Okay, that's something I can act on. And I write it down on my to do list.
Tamara Anderson 10:45
Or maybe it's to visit someone, or maybe it's a thought with regards to my business. It's interesting that all sorts of different thoughts will come to me when I'm at church. But it's important when I get those thoughts or impressions to write them down. Because once we write them down, the statistics are astronomically higher, when you write it down, that you will accomplish it.
Tamara Anderson 11:08
So when you get those thoughts and impressions from God, be sure to write them down. Either email yourself, sometimes I've brought a journal to church, and I write down thoughts that I have. And so if you're showing God, hey, if you give me something, I'm going to write it down, God will know that he can depend on you. If he tells you to do something, you're going to do it because you're going to write it down and go home and act on it. So take notes, take action. That's number three.
Tamara Anderson 11:36
Now we're on to tip number four, and that is ask who needs help. I love this one, because we're all part of the body of Christ. And some days you're going to be awesome and doing great and other days, you're not going to feel so wonderful.
Tamara Anderson 11:53
I love the verse in Matthew chapter 18, verse 20, where he says, "Where two or three are gathered in my name, there I am with them." So he is with us when we're talking, even amongst two people, maybe in the hallway at church, he can be there with us, and maybe he's inviting you to minister. Remember at the beginning that verse about perfecting the saints, the work of the ministry, and the edifying of the Body of Christ. Sometimes you're the one being ministered and edified. And other times you will be impressed to minister or edify someone else through personal connection.
Tamara Anderson 12:32
And when we connect with God, he naturally invites us to connect with others, because we can be his hands to them at church. Or maybe we feel impressed to visit someone who didn't come to church, but follows impressions. So ask God who needs help. Go to church with the attitude of maybe I'm lonely. Ask God, who else is lonely? Who can I talk to, and approach them, and be brave, because sometimes God will impress us to walk up to someone we don't know very well.
Tamara Anderson 13:04
Or maybe you'll notice a mom who's struggling and needs help with her kids. Maybe you go sit by her. I've been blessed by so many people who have helped me when I've been struggling at church. I remember, I used to call people when my husband was going to be out of town and my kids were young, because I knew I couldn't wrangle all four of them on my own.
Tamara Anderson 13:25
And so I'd call one of the women in our congregation and say, My husband is going to be out of town on Sunday. Would you mind sitting with me? Not only did that give her a reason to come to church, but she had older kids at that point. And she didn't need to sit by them to make sure that they stayed in the pew; but I needed help. And so she came and served me that day.
Tamara Anderson 13:45
And I love that I've been able to help others. I've been struggling with that same challenge with kids who are rowdy and don't want to sit. It's okay. We all have times and seasons of life.
Tamara Anderson 13:57
So those are four ways that we can connect to God more deeply at church. Remember, we are there first to worship God. Don't forget, that's the primary reason you go to church. Second, learn to listen with your heart, and feel the messages that may be coming from the person speaking, but also the messages that are whispered in your heart from God.
Tamara Anderson 14:24
Then write those things down; write down impressions, whether in a notebook or emailing yourself, and then go home and act on them. That's number three.
Tamara Anderson 14:32
And number four, go with the attitude of who can I help, who can I serve today? Those are four ways that as you go to church, you will feel closer and more connected to God. If you go with a willing heart, wherever you are in your journey, whether you're physically able to go to church or not physically able to go to church, I want you to remember one key thing: God knows you. He loves you.
Tamara Anderson 14:57
He sees you where you are and He will bless you for the desires of your heart. If you desire to go to church and you're physically not able to do it right now, then God knows the desires of your heart. So remember, he sees you, he knows you, he will connect to you. But if you're able, I invite you to attend church. And I promise that as you go with the listening heart, that you will feel a closer connection to God as you attend church.
Tamara Anderson 15:26
Hope on my friends. Hey, thanks so much for listening to today's show. If you like what you heard, subscribe so you can get your weekly dose of powerful stories of hope. I know there are many of you out there who are going through a hard time, and I hope you found useful things that you can apply to your own life in today's podcast. If you'd like to access the notes of today's show, please visit my website: stories of hope podcast.com. There you will find a summary of today's show, the transcript and one of my favorite takeaways.
Tamara Anderson 16:03
You know, if someone kept coming to mind during today's episode, perhaps that means that you should share this episode with them. Maybe there was a story shared or quote, or a scripture verse that they really really need to hear. So go ahead and share this podcast. May God bless you, especially if you are struggling with hope to carry on and have the strength to keep going. When things get tough. Remember to walk with Christ and He will help you bear the burden. And above all outs. Remember God loves you.
Transcribed by https://otter.ai