It's worth counting the cost to follow Jesus as He calls you to. In a relationship with Him as Head, and with His body.
Can you enjoy fellowship with believers walking in the light (as Jesus is in the light) even outside of a church? Yes, and I hope you do.
When a real Christian father runs into other Christians here and there, but due to fears or other concerns about possible group corruption, keeps him away from regular involvement with a healthy church, what would Christ say to him from the Bible?
When he doesn't lead his whole family into involvement with Christ and horizontal fellowship in a healthy church, what could they all miss out on? Sir, it's worth thoroughly considering early on.
Scripture calls believers not only to be present, to attend, or be involved in a healthy church, but to be assured that you really belong tight with the Body of Christ while abiding close with the head of the Church. Jesus alone saves people. He bought us, so you and I are to be vitally connected to a living, Christ-centered community.
Many people today say they are seeking truth, but true seekers will find God's truth.
“Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you. 8 For everyone who asks receives; the one who seeks finds; and to the one who knocks, the door will be opened." Matthew 7:7-8 niv
They seek on the internet all hungry, but true seekers will start to discern and find the truth. All truth is God's truth. They will earnestly seek Jesus with Christ's Body in God's word.. Him who is the Truth.
Jesus said, “I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me."
Did you find Him or did He find you? If you've been redeemed, believer, you totally belong to God the Father. And you belong in God the Father's family too -- more than anywhere else.
"And let us consider how to stir up one another to love and good works, not neglecting to meet together, as is the habit of some, but encouraging one another, and all the more as you see the Day drawing near." Hebrews 10:24-25 esv
"When the day of Pentecost arrived, they were all together in one place. And suddenly there came from heaven a sound like a mighty rushing wind, and it filled the entire house where they were sitting. And divided tongues as of fire appeared to them and rested on each one of them. And they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak in other tongues as the Spirit gave them utterance. Now there were dwelling in Jerusalem Jews, devout men from every nation under heaven." Acts 2:1-47
"And day by day, attending the temple together and breaking bread in their homes, they received their food with glad and generous hearts, praising God and having favor with all the people. And the Lord added to their number day by day those who were being saved." Acts 2:46-47
"What then, brothers? When you come together, each one has a hymn, a lesson, a revelation, a tongue, or an interpretation. Let all things be done for building up." 1 Corinthians 14:26
"Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly, teaching and admonishing one another in all wisdom, singing psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, with thankfulness in your hearts to God." Colossians 3:16
And there are countless reasons this matters so deeply. A healthy church enjoys the benefit of Koinonea fellowship:
- It helps you remember that your past foolish choices and sins don’t define your identity or future (2 Corinthians 5:17).
- It opens Scripture up in expository ways that deepen your understanding and steady your walk of faith (Acts 2:42).
- It pulls you out of the echo chamber of your own thoughts and into the reality of God’s people with kind, respectful, and honest feedback (Proverbs 27:17).
- It surrounds you with brothers and sisters in a real family, so you don’t drown in isolated, inverted loneliness (Psalm 68:6).
- It’s a place where you are warmly welcomed, valued for who you are, loved, and genuinely missed when you’re absent (Romans 12:10). Everyone adds unique edification.
- It builds your confidence by reminding you that you matter to God and to His people (Ephesians 2:19).
- It lets you invest in future generations of your own family (Psalm 78:4–7).
- It gives you opportunities to help others, and the humility to ask for help when you need it (Galatians 6:2).
- It shows you the tangible impact a local church can have on a community (Matthew 5:14–16).
- It gives you a place to pray for others, and ask others to pray for you (James 5:16).
- It lightens the burdens you carried through the week, and helps you carry the burdens of others (Galatians 6:2).
- It lets you model a Godward life for your children (Deuteronomy 6:6–7).
- It creates stability in your home and strengthens marriages (Ephesians 5:25–33).
- It encourages healthier dating habits rooted in holiness.
- It gives your family a life-giving rhythm on the weekend.
- It gives your children the chance to make Christian friends who shape their character (1 Corinthians 15:33).
- It teaches them who God is—and what it means to serve Him and others (Joshua 24:15).
- It surrounds your teens with other godly teens, giving them anchors in turbulent seasons.
- If you’re a single mom, it gives your kids godly men to watch and learn from (Titus 2:2–8).
- Studies even show that those faithfully connected to a church community tend to live longer, healthier lives.
- It gives you mentors who anchor you when storms hit (Proverbs 11:14).
- It brings you wise counsel in trials (Psalm 119:24).
- It broadens your heart through fellowship with believers from different cultures and backgrounds (Revelation 7:9).
- It lets you see the light of Jesus reflected in countless lives (John 13:35).
- It forms a steady rhythm of corporate worship that lifts your soul (Psalm 95:1–6).
- It fills your heart with new songs of praise (Psalm 96:1).
- It gives you a “musical companion” to carry into the week (Colossians 3:16).
- It grounds you in the truth that community isn’t optional—it’s part of being a Christian (Acts 2:46–47).
- It resets you after a long week and launches you into a new one with renewed strength (Isaiah 40:31).
- It lets you pool your resources to impact eternity (2 Corinthians 9:6–7).
- It builds a foundation for a happier, more fruitful life (Matthew 7:24–25).
- It stirs a spiritual appetite—the more you go, the more you want to go (Psalm 84:2).
- It honors God (Psalm 34:3).
- It is SO very much needed and the Authoritative Bible says you should (Hebrews 10:25).
The Spirit points us to Christ as the Ultimate Solution. Our eyes are fixed on Jesus, and we joyously live for Him.
Jesus encourages us to find a healthy church. One that doesn’t simply give you a place to sit and be entertained, but a place to grow spiritually. It gives you a spiritual family to grow with, serve with, laugh with, weep with, and walk with until the Lord returns. As Augustine said, “He cannot have God for his Father who refuses to have the Church for his mother.” And as Jesus taught, the church is His body—His visible witness in the world (1 Corinthians 12:27).
What is koinonia? Yeah, what does koinonia even mean?
What is fellowship with God?
Who is the head of the household according to the Bible?
What are the roles to be?
What should be the order of priorities in our family?
What does it mean that “the truth will set you free” (John 8:32)?
I have been living with an unbeliever for years, so now what do I do?
How can I really know the truth?
What does it mean that we are free indeed (John 8:36)?
Why do so many PKs a.k.a. preachers' kids walk away from the faith?
What is the breaking of bread that the Bible talks about?
What did Jesus mean when He said 'the truth will set you free'?
Have many PKs been burned emotionally in whacko churches? It's tragic when preachers' kids, filled with potential walk away from all local churches.
In the Bible, what is a 'love feast'?
What is truth?
Do you fellowship with real believers at church and arrive at a knowledge of the truth (2 Timothy 3:7)?
What does it mean to buy the truth and not sell it (Proverbs 23:23)?
Why is there liberty where the Spirit of the Lord is (2 Corinthians 3:17)?
Do you have some more questions about the Church?
There are so many cold dead churches out there -- what's the truth about the Church?
What is spiritual dryness, and how can I overcome it?
Why is the Church called the Body of Christ?
Why is real fellowship so important?
The Christian community – What is it really?
What is the right hand of fellowship (Galatians 2:9)? Why not left hand of.. fellowship (Galatians 2:9)?
What does it mean to have the fellowship of the Spirit?
What does it look like to have fellowship with one another?
Every time you gather with God’s people, you collectively are building something eternal.
God the Father's Scriptures call us to His sinless Son Jesus, and then call us to gather with God’s people to acceptably praise and worship Jesus. Lots of sound teaching and learning from the Bible is to happen regularly at home and in the church. Not all pushy or after some stiff boring style.
We are to pray and live it like Jesus did.. first at home. Then wherever we go, following Christ. People don't want a one day a week experience with Christ, they crave an honest 24/7/365 experience, letting Jesus lead as Lord of all.
Have parents fallen short in this area? Yes, who hasn't? Have I needed to apologize before.. like for a sickly church I took my family to? Yes.
God works through His Church. He delights to use people to build His Kingdom.
It’s offering us a lifeline for our souls. The Bible repeatedly shows that believers grow best when they worship together, sit under God’s Word together, and walk side by side in a life shaped by Christ. The earliest disciples understood this instinctively. Luke describes how “they devoted themselves to the apostles’ teaching and to fellowship, to the breaking of bread and to prayer” (Acts 2:42). Their devotion wasn’t mechanical; it was the glad, wholehearted response of people whose hearts had been set on fire by grace.
They didn’t even have a church building, yet “every day they continued to meet together in the temple courts. They broke bread in their homes and ate together with glad and sincere hearts” (Acts 2:46). Their gathering places varied, but their hunger for God and for one another did not. Wherever they met, they flourished. That same pattern still stands: Christians thrive when they worship, learn, and live in fellowship with other believers.
Hebrews puts the matter plainly: we should be “not giving up meeting together, as some are in the habit of doing, but encouraging one another—and all the more as you see the Day approaching” (Hebrews 10:25). Even then, some believers were drifting from the gathering. Scripture lovingly warns us not to repeat their mistake. As the Day of Christ draws nearer, the church’s need for shared worship, shared courage, and shared perseverance becomes even more urgent. As Dietrich Bonhoeffer wrote, “The physical presence of other Christians is a source of incomparable joy and strength.”
Church is the place where the “one another” commands of Scripture come alive. It is where we learn to love one another (1 John 4:12), encourage one another (Hebrews 3:13), “spur” one another toward love and good works (Hebrews 10:24), serve one another (Galatians 5:13), instruct one another (Romans 15:14), honor one another (Romans 12:10), and practice kindness and compassion toward one another (Ephesians 4:32). These commands are not solitary exercises. They are family responsibilities. As Charles Spurgeon said, “A church is not a select circle of the immaculate, but a home where the outcast may come.”
When someone trusts Christ, repents, is forgiven, (is regenerated inside), they are joined to His body (1 Corinthians 12:27). And a body only works when all the parts show up and work together (1 Corinthians 12:14–20). We aren’t spectators in the church. We are living members of it, intentionally placed there by God Himself. Scripture says that Christ gives His people gifts that equip the entire body (Ephesians 4:11–13). When we gather, those gifts strengthen others. When we isolate, those gifts go unused. None of us matures alone, and none of us can say, “I don’t need the rest of the body” (1 Corinthians 12:21–26). In community—serving, worshiping, forgiving, bearing with one another—the church becomes a visible picture of her Lord. Together, Jesus says, we are the light of the world (Matthew 5:14–16).
So yes, gathering with God’s people should become a regular rhythm in a believer’s life. Not because a rule demands it, but because love makes us long for it. A Christian belonging to Christ will naturally hunger to worship God, hear His Word, and share life with His people. Augustine captured it well: “He who has God for his Father must have the Church for his mother.”
Gobs!
Jesus Himself is the Cornerstone of the Church (1 Peter 2:6). And we, by His grace, are “like living stones… being built into a spiritual house to be a holy priesthood, offering spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ” (1 Peter 2:5). Living stones do not lie scattered. They are fitted together. They belong together. And something beautiful happens every time God’s spiritual house gathers: Christ is seen, faith is strengthened, and His people grow into the likeness of the One who called them by name.
After you gently lead them into a relationship with Jesus Christ.. or as you are leading them into this vertical relationship while at church.. teach them about faithfulness and truth-based fellowship.
Can you enjoy fellowship elsewhere? Sure, but what will your family miss out on away from a healthy local church?
Children who grow up watching a lot of people.
They watch genuine Christianity lived out at home. If they see Jesus in their parents and accept Him, they naturally begin searching for a church where that same life pulses through the people.
We were meant to live it all alone, isolated.
When they see Christ honored at home and believe on Him (via repentance and saving faith), they have a new nature inside and instinctively want to be a part of this.
Many grow up looking for a kononia fellowship where Christ is honored among growing believers. It is not a mystery—it is spiritual gravity.
1. They saw Jesus' character in their parents. They saw faith in action that looked real, not rehearsed.
When a child watches a parent pray like God in heaven is listening (cuz He really does), obey Scripture when it costs something, and admit it and quit it.. repenting when they fail, they learn early that God is not an idea—He is the Ultimate answer.
“The righteous who walks in integrity—blessed are his children after him” (Prov. 20:7).
George Barna reports that 87% of adults who stay committed to church long-term were raised by parents who modeled a vibrant personal faith, not just church attendance.
Authentic faith is contagious; hypocrisy is repellent.
2. They watched Scripture shape all decisions (not all stern, cold or harshly, not merely decorate shelves).
When families say, “Let’s see what God says on that,” the Bible becomes a living voice. That kind of home makes a healthy church feel like a natural extension of daily home life.
“Let the Word of Christ dwell in you richly… teaching and admonishing one another” (Col. 3:16).
George Barna notes that children who see their parents study Scripture at least weekly are 35% more likely to pursue a Bible-teaching church as adults.
3. They long for real fellowship that feels like what they saw happening at home. It was and is still a family thing.
When Christian love is practiced inside the four walls of a house—gentleness, forgiveness, warm encouragement—children learn to treasure the kind of fellowship Scripture celebrates.
Biblical fellowship is not shallow friendliness; it’s shared zoe life:
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“They devoted themselves..to fellowship” (Acts 2:42).
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“Encourage one another and build one another up” (1 Thess. 5:11).
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“Stir up one another to love and good works… not neglecting our meeting together” (Heb. 10:24–25).
Barna’s research shows that children involved in intergenerational fellowship (real relationships with different ages of adults at church) are twice as likely to remain connected to the local church on into adulthood.
4. They hunger for spiritual Biblical food that actually nourishes.
A spiritually healthy home can detect the difference between a dead religious institution and a church where Christ’s presence is evident in the preaching, winning, non-controlling discipleship, worship, and sacrificial love.
Jesus said, “Feed My lambs” (John 21:15). Are you feeding them while sitting on the couch watching TV or not so much. I guess it depends what you are watching and hearing together right?
Tozer wrote, “Nothing less than God will satisfy the longing of the heart.”
Children who grow up around authentic faith will not be satisfied with shallow religion; cuz they thirst for the Word. We acquire a hunger for what we are fed.
5. They recognize the world is spiritually starving out there—and they don’t want to be that way and starve with it.
Barna reports that Gen Z is the most spiritually open generation in decades—but also the most lonely and the least connected to real Christian community.
Lots of people have been through trauma and losses. A child who watches Christ heal wounds at home wants a church that offers the same.
“God sets the lonely in families” (Ps. 68:6).
A real church—a biblical one—feels like the family they need for the storms they face and will soon face.
6. They experienced strong grace at home, not lame religious performance.
When parents confess sins, ask forgiveness, and apologize.. they demonstrate humility, the Gospel becomes believable.
Spurgeon said, “A parent’s life is a child’s first Bible.” In a way that is true for the godly.
The child who sees grace lived out wants fellowship with believers who live the same way:
“Confess your sins to one another.. pray for one another” (James 5:16).
Barna research confirms that children who regularly see Christlike behavior at home are dramatically more likely to trust the church as a place of healing, not puffed up judgment.
7. They want a church that resembles the Jesus they fell in love with at home. Your busy, hardworking parents might have let you down at home. Probably have some, but He never has.
If the Jesus (of the Bible) taught at home is radiant with warm, winsome grace and truth, children are drawn to sublime churches where He is magnified.
“For where two or three gather in My name, there am I among them” (Matt. 18:20).
Healthy fellowship can feel like an extension of their earliest spiritual memories.
A high school senior once said, “I stayed with church because my parents’ lives at home matched what they sang on Sunday. I trusted their Jesus, so I trusted their church too.”
That kind of consistency is a loud sermon that children will never forget.
8. They understand that life is too short to drift spiritually.
Barna shows that 74% of young adults who leave unhealthy shallow churches will return to fellowship once they find a church that teaches Scripture with conviction, vertical passion and pure horizontal love.
Kids raised in godly homes sense early on that eternity matters more than trends.
“The world passes away.. but whoever does the will of God lives forever” (1 John 2:17).
They choose churches that prepare them for forever, and to be with their Father and His forever-family.
9. They’ve been planted—and they want to be rooted.
“Those who are planted in the house of the LORD shall flourish” (Ps. 92:13).
A godly home plants seeds inside and outside--that's from an obedient parent sensitive to the Holy Spirit. You want them to have healthy church roots that are first going deep into the living Word. We all are to do the work of farmers watering, tending, weeding and reaping.
Children who experienced the life of Christ at home long to mature -- grow up in the fellowship of believers who walk the same road.
A Christian father, mother, and child will lose far more than they realize when they stay away from a spiritually healthy, Bible-teaching church. Count the cost, it's too high in our day. Scripture, current events that are really happening out there, along with history keep reminding us of what slips through our fingers when we try to “go it alone.”
10. They miss the steady nourishment of God’s Word.
“Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceeds from the mouth of God.” (Matt. 4:4)
Healthy churches feed families non-watered-down truth every week. Research from Lifeway shows that families consistently engaged in Scripture-centered worship have far higher rates of long-term faithfulness.
11. They lose the protection that comes from godly shepherds and accountability.
“Obey your leaders and submit to them, for they watch over your souls.” (Heb. 13:17)
Charles Spurgeon said, “A Bible that’s falling apart usually belongs to someone who isn’t.” Healthy churches help keep families and indivistuals from falling apart.
12. Their children grow without models of worship, prayer, and Christian friendship.
“Planted in the house of the Lord, they shall flourish.” (Ps. 92:13)
George Barna reports that children connected to Christ and a safe church community are five times more likely to stay in the faith as adults.
13. They miss out on loving correction clearly taught that steers them away from spiritual drift.
“Encourage one another daily… so that none of you may be hardened by the deceitfulness of sin.” (Heb. 3:13)
Dietrich Bonhoeffer wrote, “Nothing can be more cruel than the tenderness that consigns another to his sin.”
14. They lose the encouragement, comfort, and living hope that come through Christian fellowship from God directly.
“Encourage one another and build one another up.” (1 Thess. 5:11)
Isolated families burn out spiritually faster; connected families grow stronger.
15. Their gifts remain unused, so joy and fruitfulness shrink.
“As each has received a gift, use it to serve one another.” (1 Pet. 4:10)
A.W. Tozer said, “The world waits to feel the impact of a soul fully surrendered to Christ.” Many never discover one fully surrendered saint to Christ as I would hope they would.. I mean this kind of impact apart from real godly community.
God the Father expects faithfulness and fruitfulness from each of us -- from simply abiding in the vine all sold-out to Jesus. All in, not half in.
16. Their marriage loses the shared wholesome rhythm of acceptable worship that keeps hearts united.
“Speak to one another with psalms, hymns, and spiritual songs.” (Eph. 5:19)
Couples who worship together show higher stability and deeper emotional bonding. Those who pray together stay together. God helps them -- He pours in His love when or if they run out. Ask.
17. Their children miss spiritual mentors and older believers who reinforce the gospel.
“He who walks with the wise grows wise.” (Prov. 13:20)
Faith rarely lasts when it is isolated; it thrives when surrounded by godly examples.
18. They lose belonging, identity, and mission.
“You are the body of Christ, and individually members of it.” (1 Cor. 12:27)
Charles Stanley said, “We are saved to serve together—not to sit and sour.”
19. They can miss out on the power of God from the united prayer times.
“When they had prayed, the place was shaken.” (Acts 4:31)
Corporate prayer strengthens families in ways private prayer alone cannot.
20. Their minds slowly conform to the world instead of being renewed by truth.
“Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind.” (Rom. 12:2)
Mr. Gallup found that weekly-church-attending families report significantly higher levels of hope in their hearts, with peace, and emotional well-being.
21. They lose out on communion, baptism, and the joy of obeying Christ publicly.
“Do this in remembrance of Me.” (1 Cor. 11:24–25)
You wife expects you to lead her like a caring man would do. Don't let the children miss out on knowing Jesus.. not just knowing of Him. Don't let them miss out on the Bible ordinances of God’s appointed way of keeping hearts soft, humble, and thankful. Can hearts grow stony hard in churches? Yes, but not if we each respond in faith to His loving admonitins like we need to.
22. Their home becomes spiritually vulnerable.
“The thief comes to steal, kill, and destroy.” (John 10:10)
A disconnected family is always an easier target.
23. They miss watching their children grow up spiritually with other believing kids. Their first birth was important, but their second birth is far more so.
“I have no greater joy than to hear that my children walk in truth.” (3 John 4)
24. They lose opportunities to serve the hurting together as a family.
“Let your light shine before men.” (Matt. 5:16)
25. Their spiritual confidence and joy slowly fade.
“Two are better than one… a cord of three strands is not quickly broken.” (Eccl. 4:9–12)
John Wesley said, “There is nothing more unchristian than a solitary Christian.”
It's too easy to start beliving all the lies and fake news on the internet apart from a well taught church. A father doesn’t just drive the family to church—he sets a good example before their eyes. He then prayerfully sets the spiritual climate of the home.
When he leads the family to Christ and a healthy church, yes, he is teaching them by example that Jesus is worthy of their loyalty, obedience, joy, and biblical worship. A Christian father would indeed do well to take his wife and children to a healthy, Bible-teaching church with a genuinely saved, spiritually balanced pastor.. primarily for their soul's salvation (not that any of them can earn this free gift) and for spiritual formation through communal worship, biblical instruction, and the modeling of authentic faith.
Top family Priorities?
Win each one and the relatives, too. Salvation can happen for each child, and healthy Spiritual Nurturing too from skilled teachers: The most critical reason is to expose children to the gospel message repeatedly from various godly messengers.. is each one's salvation. While parents are the primary spiritual influences, the church can provide minus pushy presure.. additional mature voices and living examples of faith which can lead each child into a personal conviction of sin, into true repentance without humans guilting any, and then to trust in Christ for salvation. It is where they can learn about God's love, healthy 10 commandment safe-guard-rails, and more about the way (Jesus) the to eternal life.
God commands believers not to be negligent in this area (See Hebrews 10:25). By prioritizing church involvement/with regular attendance, a father models obedience to God's Word, which instills a foundational habit in his children that they are likely to carry into adulthood. Only if we can humbly follow well minus sinning, can we also lead well. Our children instinctively know this.
Do kids need to have a Moral Foundation laid inside of them? Sure. A healthy church (with well-trained elders/pastors) teaches through all the counsels of God in the Bible diligently, which provides children with a strong moral and ethical framework to make decisions with and then navigate in a world that often promotes very conflicting values. You know everyone forms their worldview, but this teaching helps them develop a biblical worldview with godly wisdom needed for daily applications and better than common sense living.
The church provides a supportive community (a "church family" for holy Community Mentorship) where children can form relationships for life with other believers of all ages, including positive adult role models and peers who share their faith. My wife Liney is excellent at teaching kids in Sunday school. They all (the parents and kids from multiple classes) really looked up to her where she serves the Lord in a wholesome manner. Her motivation is to please the Lord and assist each one of them in the right direction.
This community offers encouragement, accountability, and a real sense of belonging, which is crucial for spiritual and emotional health. We parents are to do vetting in certain ways.. even after the church does smart background checks with smart vetting.
And each parent is of course to remain vigilantly, prayerful, watchful and discerning, especially around teens and the children's ministry. You know even the best churches have sinners in them, saved and unsaved religious posers in them. We seek to win them all to Christ.
Experiencing Bible-loyal Corporate Worship is what heaven and the millennium's focus will be all about. God can provide all we each need (while we're attending church to pray collectively) -- He delights to give a clear vision so to speak to kids. Like of the Universal Church, and to reveal each child's future ministry at the right time.. to win people from "every tribe, language, people, and nation" (See Revelation 7:9), as we remain united in worship.
Experiencing the power and joy of corporate worship, prayer, and Bible ordinances (like the Lord's Supper and water baptism) gives children a sense of the vastness of God's glorious work.
The emphasis on a pastor who is genuinely "saved" (not merely externally religious acting) is vital because his relationship.. his authentic faith in leadership ensures the true gospel is preached and modeled, preventing hypocrisy and providing a healthy environment for genuine spiritual growth. A genuinely saved pastor who is spiritual instead of carnal or worldly will "preach the word; be prepared in season and out of season; correct, rebuke and encourage—with great patience and careful instruction" (2 Timothy 4:2).
What's the heart of the matter here?:
The heart of the matter for you and for me.. is the matter of the heart. Will you humbly submit and gladly obey direct Authority (that is God)? Will you be quick to obey God's written authoritative word?
Children choose strong, biblical churches because they’ve tasted of life in Jesus and real biblical Christianity—gracious, kind, respectful, alive, relational, scriptural, prayerful, humble, grace-filled, and Christ-centered.
A living home leads children to a living Lord and Savior.. and to a living church. Dead religious churches and living away from God and His people -- that's so overrated.
They run toward Jesus and His churches because the Holy Spirit uses people do draw them. They run to a church where the fellowship is honest and mirrors the faith their parents who live it.