{"id":1399,"date":"2019-02-22T23:29:56","date_gmt":"2019-02-22T23:29:56","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/?p=1399"},"modified":"2019-07-20T08:49:54","modified_gmt":"2019-07-20T13:49:54","slug":"how-do-i-get-others-to-see-the-necessity-of-attending","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/how-do-i-get-others-to-see-the-necessity-of-attending\/","title":{"rendered":"How do I get others to see the necessity of attending?"},"content":{"rendered":"\n\t

Question:<\/h2>\n

Hey brother Hamilton,<\/p>\n

I have a concern I know you will be able to help me address. I am a teacher at a local church of Christ. I have been doing my best teaching the congregation starting about a year ago. I am also a teenager who will be graduating this year.<\/p>\n

My concern is that my fellow brothers and sisters do not believe it is necessary to attend Sunday evening and Bible class. The majority does show up during these meeting times but do not believe it is necessary. Our preacher does not attend Sunday evening or Wednesday night due to his health problems, neither does a couple of other members. The small congregation is mostly family. Among them is my grandma who cares for my siblings and me. She takes us whenever we meet but does not find it necessary to go. We often get into heated discussions over many scriptural topics which turns into arguments (which I know I am supposed to avoid, honoring her) because her reasoning is fallacious. I know it is best to do what is right, and this happens to be one of the disagreements. My understanding is that we are not to forsake the assembling of ourselves together (Hebrews 10:25), which means we are supposed to be there whenever the opportunity arises and to do it in joy.<\/p>\n

In a nutshell, I don’t know what I am supposed to do, partly because I am still young and maybe a little afraid because they are family. However, I fear what God is capable of way more and am willing to do what I must to not only get myself to heaven but my brothers and sisters too. What shall I do?<\/p>\n\t

Answer:<\/h2>\n

Sadly, your observation is correct. Despite clear commands to assemble and be a part of a church, many people only attend what they feel is the absolute minimum necessary. These are the people who are most likely to fall away into sin because they lack the encouragement of fellow Christians. See:\u00a0Does the command to “forsake not the assembling of ourselves together” apply only to Sunday worship?<\/a><\/p>\n

Skipping services is a symptom of deeper problems. Without addressing the cause, the symptom will only get worse. It is a guess, but I suspect that most aren’t getting much out of the worship services. Even though they are mostly family, they don’t look forward to seeing each other. Addressing the problem would require changing attitudes, and I suspect that won’t happen easily because the leadership you have in the preacher is lacking because of his own health problems.<\/p>\n

However, the anger is something we can address. You are trying to make people do what is right. I understand the desire. I face it all the time, too. You know what needs to be done, but others resist the obvious. But when you try to force people, the result is anger in yourself and others. Think about this: If you pushed your brother, what would happen? Unless caught off guard, he will shift his weight and dig in, so he won’t move. It is a natural and automatic response. People do the same thing with arguments. The more heated the debate, the less anyone involved moves.<\/p>\n

Therefore, you need to shift your expectations. First, you set the best example that you can. “Let no one despise your youth, but be an example to the believers in word, in conduct, in love, in spirit, in faith, in purity<\/em>” (I Timothy 4:12). Second, become another Barnabas (a\u00a0son of encouragement<\/a>). Tell people how much you enjoy seeing them and being with them. As best you can, make your lessons interesting so that people will want to come and learn more.<\/p>\n

Do you remember the story of the prodigal son? When the younger son insisted on leaving, the father did not chase after the son. Having a free will, each person has the freedom to make their own mistakes. You can teach people the right way to live, you can encourage them to make good choices, you may even scold when they make bad ones, but never forget that ultimately it is their choice. In the case of the prodigal son, he chose to return and what drew him back were the memories of father’s household.<\/p>\n

Thus, you can’t make people want to be with their brothers and sisters in Christ, but you can show an example of eagerness to serve and help foster an environment where people can look forward to coming to services. For example, you can tell your grandmother “I know it is hard to get out and get us to services, but I’m glad you’ve made an effort for us, and I hope it has been for yourself as well.”<\/p>\n\t

Question:<\/h2>\n

Thank you, brother, for responding.<\/p>\n

I did not exactly how I should respond, but your response has given me more encouragement, and that is exactly how I will respond.<\/p>\n

May our glorious God be with you and our brotherhood until the end of the world.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Question: Hey brother Hamilton, I have a concern I know you will be able to help me address. I am a teacher at a local church of Christ. I have been doing my best teaching the congregation starting about a year ago. I am also a teenager who will be graduating this year. My concern…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"advanced_seo_description":"","jetpack_seo_html_title":"","jetpack_seo_noindex":false,"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[20],"tags":[356,357,309],"class_list":["post-1399","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-answer","tag-attendance","tag-encouragement","tag-youth"],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_likes_enabled":true,"jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":8996,"url":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/is-it-acceptable-to-take-the-lords-supper-at-the-evening-service\/","url_meta":{"origin":1399,"position":0},"title":"Is it acceptable to take the Lord’s Supper at the evening service?","author":"Jeffrey Hamilton","date":"March 13, 2007","format":false,"excerpt":"Question: I work shift days and nights. I go home on Sunday morning, sleep, and then get up and go to church on Sunday night to take the Lord's Supper. I hope this is good in God's eyes. Answer: This particular question has been the subject of intense discussion. Up\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Answer"","block_context":{"text":"Answer","link":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/category\/answer\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":60045,"url":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/which-congregation-should-i-have-my-membership-at\/","url_meta":{"origin":1399,"position":1},"title":"Which congregation should I have my membership at?","author":"Jeffrey Hamilton","date":"March 22, 2023","format":false,"excerpt":"Question: Hello Jeffrey, Thank you for your excellent work on the La Vista Church of Christ website. Over the years, I have learned very much from your sermons and the question-and-answer section posed there. I am writing because an elder asked me to choose to be a member of the\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Answer"","block_context":{"text":"Answer","link":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/category\/answer\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":24070,"url":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/do-you-believe-it-scriptural-to-offer-the-lords-supper-at-an-evening-service-in-a-separate-room-from-the-remainder-of-the-congregation-after-the-invitation-but-before-a-closing-prayer\/","url_meta":{"origin":1399,"position":2},"title":"Do you believe it scriptural to offer the Lord’s Supper at an evening service in a separate room from the remainder of the congregation after the invitation but before a closing prayer?","author":"Jeffrey Hamilton","date":"July 19, 2010","format":false,"excerpt":"Question: While researching this question, I stumbled across your web site. \u00a0What a wonderful amount of information! Do you believe it scriptural to offer the Lord's Supper at an evening service in a separate room from the remainder of the congregation after the invitation but before a closing prayer? \u00a0My\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Answer"","block_context":{"text":"Answer","link":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/category\/answer\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":92373,"url":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/does-a-church-have-the-right-to-remove-from-its-roll-a-member-who-no-longer-lives-in-the-area\/","url_meta":{"origin":1399,"position":3},"title":"Does a church have the right to remove from its roll a member who no longer lives in the area?","author":"Jeffrey Hamilton","date":"November 28, 2025","format":false,"excerpt":"Question: Dear Sir, I have been reading your articles and learning a lot from your Bible teachings. Thank you for all you do and for your heart to spread the Truth. Here's my question: There's a sister in our Church who was reached out while working as a house helper\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Answer"","block_context":{"text":"Answer","link":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/category\/answer\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":6775,"url":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/do-abuses-prove-that-preachers-are-being-overused-in-congregations\/","url_meta":{"origin":1399,"position":4},"title":"Do abuses prove that preachers are being overused in congregations?","author":"Jeffrey Hamilton","date":"July 3, 2006","format":false,"excerpt":"Question: I suppose my reasoning for my concerns with\u00a0the article on preachers\u00a0is rooted in other issues.\u00a0 I see so much abuse of the preacher position in the churches of Christ, in general.\u00a0 We are expecting these men to do everything while many members feel their role is to put their\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Answer"","block_context":{"text":"Answer","link":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/category\/answer\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":28132,"url":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/is-it-wrong-for-teenage-girls-to-give-a-report-to-the-congregation-during-the-worship-service\/","url_meta":{"origin":1399,"position":5},"title":"Is it wrong for teenage girls to give a report to the congregation during the worship service?","author":"Jeffrey Hamilton","date":"July 18, 2011","format":false,"excerpt":"Question: I am visiting a new church of Christ. Today was my second Sunday to attend, both Sunday morning and evening services. Tonight, during the Sunday evening service, a group had just returned from a mission trip to Guatemala. 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