Why bother with church at all?

It’s easy to think of ‘church’ as the falling down building on the corner, still trying to raise money for the roof fund. Or that boring, uncomfortable hour spent on a wooden pew once a week. That may be your experiece of church

In the Bible, God says that church is exciting for two main reasons. God uses church (as in God’s people) to keep us going until heaven, and God uses the church to make His glory known to the rest of the universe. Not bad reasons for bothering with church

We need God’s word, so we need church

Right from the start, God’s people have opened up the Bible when they meet together. God speaks to us through the Bible - it’s his living word that gets us started in the Christian life, and it grows us up in the Christian life.

We need each another, so we need church

The Bible is clear that there’s no such thing as a ‘lone-ranger Christian’. Through the church, God has given us one another, and he wants us to build each other up as we wait for Jesus’ return. The Bible pictures church as a family or body, with every person having a part to play.

CU is not church, so we need church

CUs don’t have older, more mature Christians called to lead and teach, so as well as being involved in CU, you’ll want to get stuck into a church family. Hearing God's word preached and meeting with other Christians is how we grow, both when you’re a student, and also for the rest of your life. The patterns you set at university (particularly early on) are a good indication of those you’ll keep later in life.

There are two more big differences to mention. First, because church is family, you’ll meet and learn from Christians of different ages and backgrounds - not just students. Also, because CUs focus on making Jesus known, the teaching is usually geared to that. A good church will be committed to preaching parts of the Bible and important subjects you might not get at CU.

How do I find a good church?

1. Ask your home church leaders if they can recommend one – they might know a good church or have some contacts for you.
2. Contact the UCCF Staff Worker in the city you’re moving to, ask them to recommend some good churches.
3. See if you can go to church with some of the students from your campus CU – most CUs arrange to take people along to different churches or produce a guide with info on local churches.  Get to CU early in the term, so you don't miss out.
4. Try a couple of different churches (maybe something different to what you’re used to). Aim to find somewhere within the first few weeks so you feel settled and able to get involved.
5. Don't be put off by just one visit to a church, try a couple of different services or events. If you don’t meet anyone, introduce yourself and give them the chance to welcome you.
6. Remember that the perfect church doesn’t exist. If a church is committed to the right things and you feel at home there, stick with it, even if it's not exactly how you would like it.
7. Avoid a consumer attitude where you attend different church meetings, one for the teaching, one for the music, etc. Going to more than one church makes it  harder to get involved and the danger is that you are never really part of any church.
8. However much you love your home church, don’t use being away from home as an excuse not to get stuck into church at university. It would be unwise to not have the teaching and support of a good church for a whole term. Any good home church will say the same and will encourage you to join a new church while you are at university.
9. Look for a church that is excited about evangelism and that seeks to encourage and equip its people to share the message of Jesus.

Some good questions to ask yourself

1. What are the main things I’m looking for in a church, how do they compare to what God says should be the main things?
2. Am I willing to go to a church that does things a bit differently, if it has the main things right?
3. How can I serve the people God has put in my local church?

If I find a church I like, how do I know if it’s good?

1. Is the church faithful to the gospel? Is it committed to learning more about God and His gospel, and growing to be more like Jesus as the Bible is preached? (Acts 2:42)
2. Are the church leaders clear even on things that are unpopular? (Titus 1:9)
3. Do the church leaders submit themselves to God's word? Are they godly? (Titus 1:7-9)
4. Do the church leaders love you enough to correct and rebuke you when needed? (2 Timothy 3:16-17; Titus 2v15)
5. Do the members encourage one another in their faith? (Hebrews 10:24-25)
6. Is the church obviously a Christian family where people love one another? (1 John 3:11-18)
7. Can you imagine feeling at home there, getting involved with the life of the church and serving practically?
8. Is it a place you could take non-Christian friends? Are there encouragements and specific opportunities to do this?

How do I adapt to a church that’s different to what I’m used to?

It’s easy to give-up on churches when they’re not what we’re used to. We’ll either grumble lots, or end up moving church. A better attitude would be to ask yourself if the differences are major or minor. If they are minor, ask God to help you see that they don’t really matter. If you feel they are major, you might want to ask to chat to a small group leader or church leader. There may be very good reasons that you  haven’t thought of for why things happen the way they do.

Another approach, if you spot something that concerns you or that you don’t agree with, would be to make an effort to be different yourself, going out of your way to welcome newcomers for example, or to not be in a clique. Watch out for pride creeping in, as you have grand vision of changing a whole church!

How will I get involved? How much? In what way?

One way to stay humble in a church family, is to look for ways to serve. As a student, you won’t be able to serve in exactly the same ways as a regular church member who is there all year around. But churches that are used to students will be used to the term-time holiday cycle. If there aren’t obvious ways to sign up to serve, ask someone which jobs need more volunteers. Don’t only consider the more public ways to serve, like welcoming, or playing music. Think about the unseen things like putting the Bibles out before people get there, washing up the teac cups, baby sitting so that a family can go to homegroup, or cooking a meal for someone who is ill.

If a big part of church life is being encouraged and encouraging others, being part of a small group is a great idea. If you are part of a homegroup or a cell, this is as much being church as a Sunday meeting, so should be as much of a commitment.

Being involved in CU might mean you can’t be involved in everything at church, but hopefully your church leader will recognise the unique opportunities CU’s have. Remember, though, that as a student you have lots of time at your disposal. As long as your relationships with non-Christian friends aren’t impacted, there is time to be involved in lots of great church and CU activity.

If you end up being involved in CU leadership, that is no excuse not to be serving your church family. You might not be able to commit as much time as before, but find a way that you can serve regularly.

How do I relate to my home church when I’m hardly there?

Just as your church at university will understand that you are only there term-time, your home church should understand that you are part of a new church family away from home. There are practical things that you could do to keep relating with them well, for example; ask them to pray for you whilst at university. Make it a priority to go to church in the holidays, even if you have exams to revise for! If there are a few of you heading off to university, or even if it’s just you, offer to lead a short slot for the youth group on how to thrive as a Christian at university, or in the main church meeting sharing how you are getting on as a Christian and how they can be praying for you.