The Church
“And the Lord was adding to their number day by day those who were being saved.” Acts 2:47 (NASB)
When I was a young girl, my family and I would faithfully attend our local denomination’s church services. We were part of that community. We knew most of the people there, and that little church brought me a deep sense of tradition, security, and the knowledge that there was a God who loved me and who died for me.
I also knew in my neighborhood some of my friends weren’t part of our church, or any church. On Sundays, as I would go to church with my family, my friends were outside playing ball. I didn’t think much of it. This was just something that we did and they didn’t. It didn’t ever cross my mind that I could or should ask my friends to go with us to church. I never saw my parents inviting our neighbors to church; not that they wouldn’t be welcome - it just wasn’t what they were or did and it was just what we did. Being a part of church just wasn’t something we talked about with those who didn’t.
Then one Sunday, we didn’t go. Mom didn’t get us up and we weren’t rushing in our Sunday best to get to church on time. I don’t remember asking why we weren’t going. Mom was just making breakfast and dad was still asleep. Our family’s Sundays became the same as many of my neighborhood friends. I got to go outside and play earlier in the day. My friends didn’t have to wait until I got home from church and changed into my play clothes. We began this funny routine of going bowling as a family on Sundays. We would then catch the Cubs or Bears game on TV when we got home. That went on for almost 2 years. As a young girl I didn’t think much of it or asked why it changed.
On the day before my youngest sister was born, my mom woke me up early and told me I was going to go to a new church with her. It was in another town and though I had three other brothers and sisters, it would just be the two of us. She was invited to go by an old family friend who used to go to another church we were a part of. We walked into an auditorium, not a cathedral. There was nothing that looked like a church to me. It had a stage, electric instruments that played songs I never heard before. A short funny video played and a young man got up and spoke for a long time. Afterwards, my mom’s friend came up to us and my mom was crying. I didn’t know why. My mom’s friend just smiled at me, hugged my mom, and we headed home. That was the Sunday, the spiritual journey of my family dramatically and eternally changed.
We began a journey of rediscovering this God we knew, but maybe only from a distance. We opened the Bible, that before only was read to us, and we began to read it for ourselves. My family didn’t all start this journey together. Some began attending and others slowly came over time. We had our own Bibles now and as a family began to change. They had a camp for
kids and it was there that I told God I wanted to follow Him the rest of my life. Since that day, my journey with the Church has been this incredible dance of drinking in His Word, letting Him mold and change me with one foot and with the other foot wanting others who didn’t know this Jesus to join me and journey with me. We began inviting friends into this journey with us; wanting them to know what we were learning and becoming. Of course, some came and others politely (and not so politely) said no but my heart still longed for the day they’d say yes.
In Scripture, there’s a story of another church. The first church. And the first followers of Jesus were so compelled by what they had witnessed and how they changed they wanted the world to know about Him. They had a simple plan....
“And they were continually devoting themselves to the apostles’ teaching and to fellowship, to the breaking of bread and to prayer.” Acts 2:42 (NASB)
They gathered. They prayed. They cared for one another. In doing these things faithfully, the Spirit of God moved and did amazing among these very ordinary people.
“And everyone kept feeling a sense of awe, and many wonders and signs were taking place...” Acts 2:43 (NASB)
And they were doing this life, together. They “had all things in common”; they were “sharing with all”; they were “taking meals together”, and “continuing with one mind”. In coming together, the world woke up, took notice and “the Lord was adding to their number day by day those who were being saved.” Acts 2:47 (NASB).
The early church and the best churches today do two things. One, they build a community of love and unity, meeting one another’s needs and drinking in the power and Word of God to let God change them deeply. Then two, those churches reach out with a loving invitation to those who wonder, are curious to receive the One whom they didn’t know they needed.
Our goal. Our purpose. To live in the community of God’s people in a way that the rest of the world is drawn to Jesus because He made us into His very hands and feet. The Church is how this broken world heals. The Church is God’s plan to bring His children home. The Church, when being what it’s supposed to, is a small glimpse of heaven.
Will you be a part?
Megan Sinisi absolutely adores a good cup of coffee, chocolate, and sitting with people to share life stories. She is a native to Las Vegas, born and raised, and has four beautiful children with her handsome husband, Vincenzo. She is a counselor, specializing in the field of addictions, with multiple certifications, both in Nevada and nationally. She directed Nevada’s largest treatment court and has been building her private practice since 2014, acquiring contracts with the City of Las Vegas, City of Henderson, Clark County Special Defender’s Office, and Zappos.com. It is because of her own journey of healing and through her career that she has learned the wounds we have can begin to be healed as we share our stories. She considers it an honor when someone shares their story with her, and hopes that as she shares her stories of victory and healing that others can be inspired, encouraged, and challenged. Megan has a love and fervor for writing and is walking in faith that God is calling her to use that passion and gift for His glory. She is someone who is known for her honesty and transparency that brings light to difficult situations and feelings, and offers hope and encouragement for the journey of life. It is her hope that by sharing her journey, it encourages, challenges, inspires, comforts, and most importantly, shines the light of Jesus and the reality of His love, grace, and mercy. You can find more from Megan at www.meganjsinisi.com And @meganjsinisi on Instagram, Twitter, and Facebook.