Article April 21, 1997 Issue

Cherishing church, being cherished by God

Tony Lobl

Cherishing church doesn't always come easy. I found it particularly hard one cold winter's day, when my work had taken me some distance away from the church location. To attend church that night would entail a walk or taxi ride to the nearby railway station, a train ride, a bus ride, and another walk at the other end, not to mention getting home!

I reached a "rational" conclusion. It seemed sound to stay right where I was and spend four hours in prayerful study instead of wasting three hours in transit just to attend a one-hour service. The thought of keeping warm and comfortable was the icing on the cake.

In my heart, though, I knew that personal comfort isn't really God's plan for us, at least not at the expense of fulfilling our spiritual responsibilities. This doesn't mean that God expects or wants us to suffer. On the contrary, when we recognize our responsibilities and act on them, we feel the divine support, which is truly comforting. The comfort we believe we can gain from inertia and laziness, however, receives no such support from God's law. We may convince ourselves that something really is just "too much trouble," but Paul's words to the Philippians present a different view, always applicable. He writes, "I can do all things through Christ which strengtheneth me" (4:13).

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