It was a period in our lives where we were “just done with church”. The bridges had been vaporized when we left Church #1. We had been severely burnt and exhausted by “churchiness”. That’s how we found ourselves anonymously attending services at a church plant which met in the auditorium of a public middle school. At Church #2 there were less than 50 people meeting in this large dark auditorium and we could come in and leave without leaving a foot print. I knew that as believers we should be part of a local church, and I realized the Bible commands us (believers) to not forsake assembling together. (Hebrews 10:25). Whenever God gives us a command, He has a really good reason for giving it. However there were too many wounds that had to be submitted to Him to heal, before I would discover the wonder of the Body of Christ.
Yes, you read correctly, “the wonder of the Body of Christ”. I had made painful mistakes in previous churches I had attended and vice versa, mistakes had been made against me. So why should I metaphorically “put my head in the meat grinder of a local church” again? Wouldn’t it be safer to just ditch the whole corporate worship experience? I read this response: “There are a lot of people who have this “solo Christian” attitude. Some have had genuinely bad experiences in church. Some have been terribly hurt by people in the church doing and/or saying some very ungodly things to them. Others, though, stay away from church/fellowship because they do not want to be told that something in their lives is wrong. Some people flee from other Christians because they do not want to have their unbiblical beliefs/practices/presuppositions challenged. Whatever the reason for the solo Christian attitude, it is wrong. The Christian life is not supposed to be a solo venture. Christians are not to neglect meeting together (Hebrews 10:25). Christians are to love one another (1 John 4:12), encourage one another (Hebrews 3:13), serve one another (Galatians 5:13), instruct one another (Romans 15:14), and be compassionate towards one another (Ephesians 4:32). The spiritual gifts are designed to be used to build one another up in the faith (1 Corinthians 12:21-26). These “one anothers” are not possible if Christians are never around one another.
I am not necessarily talking about church attendance. The church, which is comprised of all true followers of Jesus Christ, is a body. For a body to function properly, all of its parts need to be present (1 Corinthians 12:14-20). Whether you are an eye or a toe, your purpose cannot be fulfilled while you are disconnected from the body. Your connection with the Body of Christ can be through attending formal church services in a church building. Or, it can be achieved through a home church or Bible study. In reality, the Body of Christ can function anytime Christians are gathered together. But, again, there must be a gathering together. ” https://www.gotquestions.blog/solo-Christian.html
Thus began my search and hope for a possibility of a much healthier relationship with the Body of Christ. Could God have something better in mind for me?