# What church is right for me?



## .17485 (Jan 12, 2011)

I was thinking about which church is right for me. I like going to the church I go now, but I normally find it too big. It's kinda hard to now people. I like the praise and worship. It is a Pentecostal church. I am thinking which church is right for me. I know one that teaches the bible, a church that isn't too big, I'm not into the super size churches, you get to know the church members in a small church, have social activities where you can go bowling, cinema, etc. Certain churches are always against secular events like bowling, cinema. I enjoy the praise and worship in pentecostal churches and the people are friendly and warm. I've never spoken in tongues or had a prophetic vision. I'm skeptic about the modern day speaking in tongues. I want to know God more and feel like I have a relationship with him. I feel like I go to church for the sake of it. Any christians on PerC have suggestions on how you find the right church to go to? I took this quiz to give me a few ideas. ▷ ▶ Christian Denomination Selector SelectSmart.com free Religion personality test, selector quiz, matching, choose, compare.


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## Flipit (Nov 13, 2009)

Tega1 said:


> I was thinking about which church is right for me. I like going to the church I go now, but I normally find it too big. It's kinda hard to now people. I like the praise and worship. It is a Pentecostal church. I am thinking which church is right for me. I know one that teaches the bible, a church that isn't too big, I'm not into the super size churches, you get to know the church members in a small church, have social activities where you can go bowling, cinema, etc. Certain churches are always against secular events like bowling, cinema. I enjoy the praise and worship in pentecostal churches and the people are friendly and warm. I've never spoken in tongues or had a prophetic vision. I'm skeptic about the modern day speaking in tongues. I want to know God more and feel like I have a relationship with him. I feel like I go to church for the sake of it. Any christians on PerC have suggestions on how you find the right church to go to? I took this quiz to give me a few ideas. ▷ ▶ Christian Denomination Selector SelectSmart.com free Religion personality test, selector quiz, matching, choose, compare.


You mention that you enjoy worship. So do I, but it's not the main emphasis in the place I go to. The main danger of many pentecostal churches is emotionalism - that part of the church service focuses on the feelings of the individuals. You basically have to _feel_ connected in order to _be_ connected. This is both dangerous and addicting. If you can strip away the message in worship and still feel good, something's very wrong. Is the emotional connection a criteria?

You also mention that you know a church that teaches the Bible. What's keeping you from joining that?

I think you need to get into Scripture and pray for guidance. Try different churches around your area. Beware of "church-shopping" - you need to root yourself in a ministry.


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## Siggy (May 25, 2009)

check out local churches websites too. Find out what they believe in,and what they do.You can also listen to sermons on line. I eliminated many by just doing that.


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## .17485 (Jan 12, 2011)

Flipit said:


> You mention that you enjoy worship. So do I, but it's not the main emphasis in the place I go to. *The main danger of many pentecostal churches is emotionalism - that part of the church service focuses on the feelings of the individuals*. You basically have to _feel_ connected in order to _be_ connected. This is both dangerous and addicting. If you can strip away the message in worship and still feel good, something's very wrong. Is the emotional connection a criteria?
> 
> You also mention that you know a church that teaches the Bible. What's keeping you from joining that?
> 
> I think you need to get into Scripture and pray for guidance. Try different churches around your area. Beware of "church-shopping" - you need to root yourself in a ministry.


What do you mean by the main danger of penecostal churches are emotionalism? I've never heard that before. You mean during the praise and worship when people are in the spirit? Which type of church do you go to? I don't think the emotional connection is a criteria to me. I appear stoic lool. I don't show any emotions or moved by the worship. 

The church I go to is a penecostal church. They teach the bible in the week day activities. Are they dangers in going to a penecostal church? The ones I've been going to have been them. Speaking in tongues, visions, miracles, etc


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## Flipit (Nov 13, 2009)

Tega1 said:


> What do you mean by the main danger of penecostal churches are emotionalism? I've never heard that before. You mean during the praise and worship when people are in the spirit? Which type of church do you go to? I don't think the emotional connection is a criteria to me. I appear stoic lool. I don't show any emotions or moved by the worship.
> 
> The church I go to is a penecostal church. They teach the bible in the week day activities. Are they dangers in going to a penecostal church? The ones I've been going to have been them. Speaking in tongues, visions, miracles, etc


I mean that people put too much attention on the emotional part, getting a kick from the music and the environment itself. There's nothing wrong with worship, emotions and music in its essence, but it should have one sole purpose and not just help people feeling moody. It's not for nothing that South Park made a joke on Christian songs where they replaced any occurence of "Jesus" with "baby". You also have to remember that some people go to these services aren't Christians at heart - they just come for the experience and the socializing.

Don't take this as direct critique of pentecostal churches. They exist for a reason, and they're not wrong in themselves. All churches have different "pros and cons". You just have to be very sure _why_ you to to church and be critical to whether it's beneficial to your relationship with Christ.

I come from a baptist church that has a touch of calvinism. It basically focuses on the Scripture, but is light-hearted when it comes to singing, e.g. letting members ask for any song they like during service.


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## bluekitdon (Dec 19, 2012)

You may want to try and see if your existing church has small groups. I go to a large church, and it is difficult to get to know people unless you attend the small group functions. Those are like churches inside of the larger church, and you can make friends that way.

The advantage of small churches is certainly that everyone knows everyone, but they also generally are somewhat limited in their services like children's functions, group events, etc. I grew up in a very small church (usually about 20-30 people on a Sunday), and am now in a larger church (about 1200 people per service with multiple services on Sunday). 

The service is generally better in the larger church and there are more options as far as ways to get involved, but you do have to take the next step of joining a smaller group to really get to know anyone.


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## Glenda Gnome Starr (May 12, 2011)

I think that you ought to visit churches in your community. You already know that you like the Pentecostal church. You just need to find a church that is smaller and feels more like home to you. And that is, in my opinion, the key to finding the church that you will want to attend. Which church feels like a church home to you? You need to go to the churches to know where you can find that spiritual home. Best wishes to you and God bless you on this search.


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## Finaille (Aug 8, 2010)

If you like the dynamic of your church, you could try a smaller baptist church. They vary in levels of intensity, but I find they are a step down from Pentecostal churches. I've found plenty of baptist churches stick to scripture, but don't overly focus on specific books or scripture (doesnt Pentecostal favor Acts?). Many will also have other activities and small groups to try. 

Try a bunch from there. A congregation often reflects the style of the pastor, and it may take some time to find the right fit. Most same-denominational churches are always a little different from the other.


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## PandaBear (Jul 2, 2013)

I'm not in any religion right now(Hopefully, I will sooner.) But my aunt who is Christian says that " Pick what your heart desires." 
I have now transfer this advice to you


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## Razare (Apr 21, 2009)

Tega1 said:


> I was thinking about which church is right for me. I like going to the church I go now, but I normally find it too big. It's kinda hard to now people. I like the praise and worship. It is a Pentecostal church. I am thinking which church is right for me. I know one that teaches the bible, a church that isn't too big, I'm not into the super size churches, you get to know the church members in a small church, have social activities where you can go bowling, cinema, etc. Certain churches are always against secular events like bowling, cinema. I enjoy the praise and worship in pentecostal churches and the people are friendly and warm. I've never spoken in tongues or had a prophetic vision. I'm skeptic about the modern day speaking in tongues. I want to know God more and feel like I have a relationship with him. I feel like I go to church for the sake of it. Any christians on PerC have suggestions on how you find the right church to go to? I took this quiz to give me a few ideas. ▷ ▶ Christian Denomination Selector SelectSmart.com free Religion personality test, selector quiz, matching, choose, compare.


Hey. I go to a full gospel church that's maybe 30 members, and I love it. It's like a pentecostal because we speak in tongues, and I received some words of wisdom just a few weeks ago, which was amazing. God gave me a gift for dealing with people. I like the small size because it's like a family.

You have to get filled with the Holy Spirit before you're going to speak in tongues. It happened to me when I began to wonder genuinely about speaking in tongues. I felt the presence of the Holy Spirit and words right there at my mouth but I didn't speak them. But going up and having someone lay hands on you is probably the best way, and matches up with the word in the Bible. Also when someone lays hands on you to baptize you with the Holy Spirit, you have to choose to speak the words because the Holy Ghost doesn't force it on us.

When I was praying in tongues at first, I had my doubts about whether I was doing it right or if it was real. That's normal.

You really begin to appreciate speaking in tongues when God gives you the interpretation of what you're speaking. When that happens, it gives you a lot more confidence in praying in the Spirit. You realize you're actually praying for something, but your mind doesn't know what that is yet until you're given an interpretation or someone else is.

The best way to have a relationship with God, as far as I can tell, is to genuinely seek one, and stick with what the Bible says because that's what God gave us to know him by... that and the Holy Spirit which will point us back to the Bible and help us understand it. This is probably the most important reason to have the baptism of the Holy Spirit. You can pray to have the Holy Spirit guide your study of the Bible and it helps tremendously. You can have the baptism without speaking in tongues but I don't recommend it. But you have to believe that the baptism of the Holy Spirit is real for it to happen. Just like you believed in Jesus by faith, you have to accept the help of his helper by that same faith.

And I really like my church because the gifts of the Spirit are at work in it (there are 9 category of gifts in total)... which really confirms that what is preached is in alignment with the truth of the Bible and not some watered down half-truth. I've seen over a dozen people healed by faith, including myself, tongues with interpretation, words of knowledge and a word of wisdom which was spoken to me.

If the gifts of the Spirit aren't working there, you have to wonder if what they're preaching is the truth... in my opinion. If God's not confirming what is spoken with his power, then where is the divine stamp of approval? That's just my opinion.


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## PowerShell (Feb 3, 2013)

I'm starting to like this new Pope. Maybe if he cleans a few things up, I might consider going back to Catholic Church. As of right now, I don't go to church at all and haven't in several years. The one thing I give the Catholic Church is it's genuine and authentic versus a lot of these other churches who remind me more of God snake oil salesmen with all the nice flashy bells and whistles (like coffee houses and other "modern" stuff). It seems more commercial and capitalistic to me. I'm not saying the Catholic Church isn't without faults because it has a ton of them, but it seems like it's way less concerned with being hip and essentially a fad.


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## niss (Apr 25, 2010)

Tega1 said:


> I was thinking about which church is right for me. I like going to the church I go now, but I normally find it too big. It's kinda hard to now people. I like the praise and worship. It is a Pentecostal church.


Bigger churches can sometimes have this feel. A good way to establish a feeling of connection to the other people is to get involved in activities other than just the worship service. Attending prayer meetings, smaller group bible studies, or groups that focus on a particular activity will allow you to connect with others in a more comfortable setting.


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## Razare (Apr 21, 2009)

PowerShell said:


> It seems more commercial and capitalistic to me. I'm not saying the Catholic Church isn't without faults because it has a ton of them, but it seems like it's way less concerned with being hip and essentially a fad.


Yeah, I agree. I tried my dad's church and my cousin's church and both of them made great efforts to be contemporary. To me at least, the service seemed geared more toward keeping the audience stimulated more than anything. If I want to be stimulated, I can watch TV. I'm sure they're good churches, just I needed something deeper and am glad I found it.

I did try a Catholic church, and felt the presence of God there, which I enjoyed much. I got so confused by all the procedures, though, because I wasn't raised Catholic.


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## Glenda Gnome Starr (May 12, 2011)

I like Pope Francis, too. I would go back to a Catholic church if I could find the right one or I would go to an eastern Orthodox church. I just don't like the Catholic church in my community. It is too big and impersonal. I've been going to an Episcopal church in my town because it is smaller and feels more like a church home.




PowerShell said:


> I'm starting to like this new Pope. Maybe if he cleans a few things up, I might consider going back to Catholic Church. As of right now, I don't go to church at all and haven't in several years. The one thing I give the Catholic Church is it's genuine and authentic versus a lot of these other churches who remind me more of God snake oil salesmen with all the nice flashy bells and whistles (like coffee houses and other "modern" stuff). It seems more commercial and capitalistic to me. I'm not saying the Catholic Church isn't without faults because it has a ton of them, but it seems like it's way less concerned with being hip and essentially a fad.


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## PowerShell (Feb 3, 2013)

Razare said:


> Yeah, I agree. I tried my dad's church and my cousin's church and both of them made great efforts to be contemporary. To me at least, the service seemed geared more toward keeping the audience stimulated more than anything. If I want to be stimulated, I can watch TV. I'm sure they're good churches, just I needed something deeper and am glad I found it.


It's funny because my cousin went to some other alternative Christian church and when their kids were "presented" (I think that's their term for Baptizing), my Grandma was in complete shock on how people were drinking coffee and how non-serious they actually were when she attended the service. None of those churches never appealed to me and I will tell people to f-off if they try to recruit me to one of them.


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