Should I Stay at My Current Church or Look for a New One?

Yours is one of the reasons I left my first church - the one where I accepted Christ and was baptized. It was a difficult decision but I had the same sense of cliques and not fitting in with the other members. I, a single struggling Mom, most of the other women, married and not struggling. Don't get me wrong, they were lovely - I just felt uncomfortable.

So I church shopped....visited several, finally decided on one.

When I moved 3 years ago I did the same thing - my son was old enough to be a part of the decision for we went to bunches of churches. One thing about living in South MS is abundance of Baptist churches to select from. :)
The one I selected is homey, and family style, and everyone hangs out and does things together...sure some families spend more time together - but they have known each other longer.

You need to shop around, find a church that has the atmosphere that you want - they are out there.

Good Luck and God Bless.

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If you are not getting everything you want/need then I do not think it is the place for you. If you can scout out churches on your own having the rest of the family going to the same church and see what kind of a vibe you get at the new places you have attended ... treat it kind of like dating I guess is the best way I can put it, try some new places on your own before you introduce it to the rest of the fam and let them have imput too! I just would be afraid of dragging them from church to church until you find the right fit or learn if this is one you can live with by comparison to what else is out there in your area.

If you are thinking of moving churches, how about just visiting other churches, and taking a break from yours. There is nothing wrong with going to other churches on Sundays and seeing if anything is a better fit. They may not be. It could be the generation as opposed to the church, and where you are may be the best place for you.

I agree that this goes on to some degree in all churches. If you are new to MD, maybe it is that you are new to the area and not so much the church. Different areas of the country are slower or busier than others with people that are more down to earth vs snobby. There are nice people and snobby people and busy people everywhere, but some places tend to attract certain types. I have always been of the same faith but have moved around and every different church (in the same religion) has had nice people and snobby people. Do you live in a weathy area? Not to stereotype too much, but it seems to me that wealthy areas have the highest concentration of snobs.

I think it's great that you are trying to improve the situation at your church. It's hard sometimes for people to leave their issues or "cliqueiness" at the door and remember that everyone's there for the same reason. I assume you've already talked to your minister about this issue. What were his ideas? At our church we have a couple different small groups going for anyone who's interested and try to have different themes each time. I really like getting to know people who are different from me. Maybe God is using you to help the church change into a more unified congregation. Don't get discouraged if it's a slow progress!

((hugs)) ~A.

I would probably start visiting other places if it were me. You don't have to leave, but you can go look around and see what is out there. Try several. If community and fellowship is important to you, you should go find it.

My college student is trying to do that now. Tried 3 churches near school that are of our denomination. Didn't care for them. He called last week and asked what I thought about him trying a different type of church. I said as long as they worshiped God, it didn't matter to me what he tried. He needs to find what he likes in a church.

Good luck.

Maybe you need to voice your feelings to the Pastor and possibly request this issue as a topic for the Sermon on Sunday. I have been in the same position before and the Pastor suggested doing a Sermon on this for lots of reasons. It made a difference in some people who didn't realize there was this perception, and of course , for some , who are in denial about how they treat others, it didn't matter. They just need to remember they will have to answer for calling themselves Christians and living as a hypocrit. Pray about it too, and if worse comes to worse , change churchs, but, be forwarned, the same thing exist in all churchs to some degree, it just some are more considerate/discreet about it. Blessings, C. S.

E., don't be discouraged. It is a different time now and perhaps a different environment from when you grew up. People are constantly busy and don't take the time for themselves. Don't forget, today parents drive their children everywhere, because it is safer. When I grew up, I could ride my bike or walk to school, today I won't have it. I live in a wonderful neighborhood & community, but I have no clue who comes in during the day.

I cringe every time I see another birthday invitation, but I find a way to get my daughter there. However, very true, I don't have much room in my busy schedule to do anything else. I hate that I have to look at my calendar before I can commit to a random lunch invitation.