Going to Church for the First Time

A few suggestions

Photo by John Onaeko on Unsplash

It’s okay to go to church because you are curious.

I recommend it.

Depending on your background and experience with religion it will seem strange.

Expect this.

Wear nice clean clothes that you already own. Avoid cutoffs, T-shirt’s and sandals unless this is all you’ve got.

They will do things in the church service you do not understand. For example, they may take communion.

Don’t participate in this if you do not understand it, and it is okay not to understand.

Simply let it pass or don’t go forward when others around you do.

If asked why you are not participating, tell the truth. You are a visitor and you do not understand the particular ceremony and so out of respect you are abstaining.This should be acceptable to others around you.

Another approach is to meet with a pastor or minister in private before attending a service and explain that you would like to come to a service to better understand this particular religion. They should help you.

When it comes to putting money in the plate, let it pass. You do not have to give anything to any group you do not understand.

If you want to put a dollar in the plate, feel free.

The purpose for any church collecting an offering is for those who belong to that church to support its ministry. If there is pressure placed on you to give as a visitor, this is not a good sign.

So why go through all of this?

Because you are better off finding a church family than not.

Because there are friends there you have not met.

And because they need you as much as you need them.

Of course it will seem weird.

It seems weird going to foreign countries where you don’t speak the language as well, but the experience of travel is life changing.

So is going to church.

Photo by Josh Applegate on Unsplash

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Now for those of you who attend church, can you share your experience going for the first time to church, or what it was like going to a church service of a different denomination or religion?

What are your suggestions to people who have never set foot in a church sanctuary before? If you agree or disagree with what I have written, please share.