Religion: Not Just an Instution

Times have changed over the past few decades, specifically with religion. I originally was going to have the title say that religion was not an institution. However, after looking up Webster’s definition, I found that one meaning was couched around being institutional.

I am alive in a religious time which is exciting for me. I have been affiliated with the Church of Christ all of my life. Throughout my life at home, my view of “church” were the practices we did on Sundays and Wednesdays. A typical Sunday morning would look like this: go to Bible class, and then sit in the auditorium for about an hour while listening to songs, listening to prayers, watching people take the Lord’s Supper, listening to the preacher talk over my head, and then going home. We would come back on Sunday night to sing some more songs, hear another sermon, and go home. A typical Wednesday was going to Bible class and then everyone coming together for the last few minutes to sing a few songs.

Your story may differ a bit depending on your experience. However, the institutionalized part of religion is a turn off to many. It is for me, too. Religion is not about a “check off list”. Religion is not “church”, though the church is religious. I have refocused my view of religion. It is not an institutionalized view, but rather an exciting opportunity to team up with my Creator, every day. Everywhere I go, every person I meet, and every action I take should reflect the appreciation for my salvation and wanting others to be a part of that as well. I am not trying to attract someone to “church”, the institutionalized part of religion. However, I am trying to attract someone to a challenging and rewarding way of life.

For those who have made religion institutionalized, that is a huge mistake. It has led so many people down a dreary and exhausting path. It takes all the joy out of it. The little bit of time you spend in a building on a Sunday is not geared to give you “brownie points” to God. In fact, the Bible speaks against the institutionalized part of religion. Jesus came to show that it wasn’t simply offering sacrifices because God wanted their hearts more than sacrifices. So, getting together on Sunday should be about revving you up and getting you ready for the week as you go back out into a world that is spiritually dark.

One of my goals, as a minister, is to show people that religion and Christianity is joyous rather than institutional. I have been “institutional” too much in my life and it did not bode well for my faith. Experiencing the uplift that comes from teaming up with God has allowed my faith to become stronger.

Remember, that God wants you, not just your presence in a church building. God wants you, not just your money in a plate. God wants you, not your hypocritical actions.

I go through days where I am guilty of all three of these. I am constantly working to give me to Him, so I don’t revert back to making religion an institution.