Do you have a church you go to regularly?
Jul 12, 2011 14:52:52 GMT -5
Post by PrisonerOfHope on Jul 12, 2011 14:52:52 GMT -5
I admit I don't. I went to some pretty bad ones in NY, where they were into all kinds of weird stuff - one "pastor" would hold "auctions" for money, like, "We need another $10,000 this week. Who will give $1,000? Anyone? OK, you, you, you....so who will give $500?"...etc., down to $50. He'd tell people, "God doesn't want you to have a house; He wants you to have a one bedroom apartment so you don't have to clean so much...and you'll have more money to give to the church!" (Of course, he had a large, lovely home....)
Same guy would do things like say, "Brother David, you need humbling. Lay down on the platform." So the poor sap would, and the "pastor" would then pour ice water from a pitcher under the podium over him! When people laughed, the "pastor" would say, "Oh, you think that's funny, brother Eric?" Lay down in the aisle! He would then drag the guy through the church by his feet!
One "pastor," after my husband died, said, "Well, your husband is dead and you don't know how to drive, so why don't you let me have his car?" (I guess it never occurred to him to offer to teach me how to drive!)
I've been rebuked from the pulpit because - when I had NO cash to give but wanted to do something for the Lord - gave a very expensive bracelet.
When I moved to Hawaii I found a wonderful church, and a humble, loving pastor who is truly a man of God...I really miss him, and still consider him my pastor.
When I first came to Tennessee I started going to a Calvary Chapel, and let me tell you, although the teaching was good, they were the most unfriendly bunch of people I ever met! Extremely cliquish; the "inner circle" (i.e., "big tithers") ran the show. I didn't have a car, so I walked the mile or so from my apartment...carrying baked goods which I made for the fellowship table. Not once did anyone ever offer to pick me up, and when they had the annual church picnic, I wasn't offered a ride. Finally, one broad from the "inner circle" (whose FIL is a surgeon and authored a book about hell, so she thinks she's better than anyone else) called and accused me of breaking up someone's marriage, and pretty much let me know I wasn't welcome at their church. Excuse me? Hardly anyone there even talked to me, except some of the men who would compliment my baking, while their wives glared at them! I told her off, slammed the phone in her ear (I still had a land line - too bad you can't do that with cell phones!), and never went back.
A neighbor suggested a well-known Presbyterian church with lovely people....but, they don't want to hear that Jesus is coming soon, and are into replacement theology. In fact, when one of the pastors wanted to start a Sunday School group about Bible prophecy, he left very suddenly because he "wanted to pursue another path." Uh huh... I went there for a couple of years, mostly because I needed fellowship and they had a great group for middle-aged singles, but when the group eventually broke up, I left.
My pastor in Hawaii told me about a new E Free church that started in my area, so I went there. As soon as the pastor (who, I later found, had no theological training whatsoever) found out that I was pretty knowledgeable about the Bible and asked questions during Bible study (which he couldn't answer), he decided he didn't like me. When I applied for membership, he "forgot" to include me in the induction ceremony. If I'd share an insight (my own, or from a respected Bible teacher), he'd put it down. One day he called me into his office and reamed me out for a laundry list of "faults"...including "You sit in the same place every Sunday," and - my personal favorite - "I don't like the expression on your face while I'm preaching!" ;D Of course, he did manage to blow his own horn and praise himself to no end, even claiming he has an IQ of 176! ;D He said he wasn't asking me to leave...yet...as he thought I could change. I never went back...especially since he did some other nasty things to me...but can you believe this creep had the nerve to call and ask when I was coming back to church? Thankfully, he left the ministry abruptly (and the church building was foreclosed on shortly thereafter) and is now claiming to be one of the country's upcoming new photographers.
That pretty much did it for me, although I visited a church near the house I moved to before I bought this one, and thought it might be OK until I went to the ladies room and saw a poster advertising a prayer meeting: "Bring a head covering and a bath towel to use as a prayer rug." I called the church the next day, saying I was new to the area, and when I asked why they were doing that was simply told, "That's how the pastor's daughter wants to do it." No one got back to me, welcomed me to the area, or invited me to visit again.
Ever the sucker for punishment, I tried a church someone I got into a conversation with attended and invited me to. Friendliest people you'd ever want to meet, and it seemed pretty nice - in fact, some people got into an argument about who was going to treat me to the Wednesday night dinner! They gave me a package of welcome gifts, and I thought I might go back again...until I saw the gifts included a booklet called "Welcome to the Family" by Kenneth Copeland and a Jesse Duplantis magazine.
Last try...I met a lovely elderly gentleman who invited me to his church, where he's an elder. The pastor got up and said, "I'm not going to talk about money, because I know you don't want to hear it." He then proceeded to give a sermon....all about money, and even "volunteered" someone who did woodworking to make some offering boxes so people could give without having to wait for the plate to be passed around.
Between all this garbage, cliquish congregations, emergent theology, seeker-sensitive churches, "purpose driven" churches, etc., I've given up. I can listen to good sermons on-line, but long for good fellowship - which is part of the reason I created this site.
How about the rest of you? Do you have a good home church? Any weird experiences?
Same guy would do things like say, "Brother David, you need humbling. Lay down on the platform." So the poor sap would, and the "pastor" would then pour ice water from a pitcher under the podium over him! When people laughed, the "pastor" would say, "Oh, you think that's funny, brother Eric?" Lay down in the aisle! He would then drag the guy through the church by his feet!
One "pastor," after my husband died, said, "Well, your husband is dead and you don't know how to drive, so why don't you let me have his car?" (I guess it never occurred to him to offer to teach me how to drive!)
I've been rebuked from the pulpit because - when I had NO cash to give but wanted to do something for the Lord - gave a very expensive bracelet.
When I moved to Hawaii I found a wonderful church, and a humble, loving pastor who is truly a man of God...I really miss him, and still consider him my pastor.
When I first came to Tennessee I started going to a Calvary Chapel, and let me tell you, although the teaching was good, they were the most unfriendly bunch of people I ever met! Extremely cliquish; the "inner circle" (i.e., "big tithers") ran the show. I didn't have a car, so I walked the mile or so from my apartment...carrying baked goods which I made for the fellowship table. Not once did anyone ever offer to pick me up, and when they had the annual church picnic, I wasn't offered a ride. Finally, one broad from the "inner circle" (whose FIL is a surgeon and authored a book about hell, so she thinks she's better than anyone else) called and accused me of breaking up someone's marriage, and pretty much let me know I wasn't welcome at their church. Excuse me? Hardly anyone there even talked to me, except some of the men who would compliment my baking, while their wives glared at them! I told her off, slammed the phone in her ear (I still had a land line - too bad you can't do that with cell phones!), and never went back.
A neighbor suggested a well-known Presbyterian church with lovely people....but, they don't want to hear that Jesus is coming soon, and are into replacement theology. In fact, when one of the pastors wanted to start a Sunday School group about Bible prophecy, he left very suddenly because he "wanted to pursue another path." Uh huh... I went there for a couple of years, mostly because I needed fellowship and they had a great group for middle-aged singles, but when the group eventually broke up, I left.
My pastor in Hawaii told me about a new E Free church that started in my area, so I went there. As soon as the pastor (who, I later found, had no theological training whatsoever) found out that I was pretty knowledgeable about the Bible and asked questions during Bible study (which he couldn't answer), he decided he didn't like me. When I applied for membership, he "forgot" to include me in the induction ceremony. If I'd share an insight (my own, or from a respected Bible teacher), he'd put it down. One day he called me into his office and reamed me out for a laundry list of "faults"...including "You sit in the same place every Sunday," and - my personal favorite - "I don't like the expression on your face while I'm preaching!" ;D Of course, he did manage to blow his own horn and praise himself to no end, even claiming he has an IQ of 176! ;D He said he wasn't asking me to leave...yet...as he thought I could change. I never went back...especially since he did some other nasty things to me...but can you believe this creep had the nerve to call and ask when I was coming back to church? Thankfully, he left the ministry abruptly (and the church building was foreclosed on shortly thereafter) and is now claiming to be one of the country's upcoming new photographers.
That pretty much did it for me, although I visited a church near the house I moved to before I bought this one, and thought it might be OK until I went to the ladies room and saw a poster advertising a prayer meeting: "Bring a head covering and a bath towel to use as a prayer rug." I called the church the next day, saying I was new to the area, and when I asked why they were doing that was simply told, "That's how the pastor's daughter wants to do it." No one got back to me, welcomed me to the area, or invited me to visit again.
Ever the sucker for punishment, I tried a church someone I got into a conversation with attended and invited me to. Friendliest people you'd ever want to meet, and it seemed pretty nice - in fact, some people got into an argument about who was going to treat me to the Wednesday night dinner! They gave me a package of welcome gifts, and I thought I might go back again...until I saw the gifts included a booklet called "Welcome to the Family" by Kenneth Copeland and a Jesse Duplantis magazine.
Last try...I met a lovely elderly gentleman who invited me to his church, where he's an elder. The pastor got up and said, "I'm not going to talk about money, because I know you don't want to hear it." He then proceeded to give a sermon....all about money, and even "volunteered" someone who did woodworking to make some offering boxes so people could give without having to wait for the plate to be passed around.
Between all this garbage, cliquish congregations, emergent theology, seeker-sensitive churches, "purpose driven" churches, etc., I've given up. I can listen to good sermons on-line, but long for good fellowship - which is part of the reason I created this site.
How about the rest of you? Do you have a good home church? Any weird experiences?