Something is off. 

A good friend sent methisabout the way the early church conducted church services. 

It wasn't just a time to sing and have someone stand up and talk for thirty to forty minutes. 

It was a time of true blessing, where all voices were heard. People edified (encouraged) one another, prayed for each other, confessed their sins (Can you imagine? But you should if you're a Jesus follower since we'recalled toconfess our sins to one another) and comforted their brothers and sisters. 

The body also asked questions during this time, and they were answered. 

Church wasn't a form of entertainment with people singing at you or performing certain traditional rites on stage. 

It was a community of believers who bore one another's burdens. 

And honestly, I think this is why I've felt "off" about what we mistake for church in America for a while now. 

Singing and teaching are great, but aren't we missing the wisdom that pours out when a group of like-minded individuals living for Jesus get together and bare their hearts? 

Like the gentleman in the IG reel I linked to above says, we're in a habit of paying the "professionals" to burden the role of spiritual guide, and that was never what God intended. It's too much to put that kind of expectation on one man, and honestly a bit unfair. 

As human beings, we can easily fall down that rabbit hole of possession, and I think we've seen too many "good" pastors trip and plunge. The church becomes "their" church where they can exercise "their vision," and all of a sudden, you've gone from a space where the Holy Spirit moves to a space that's focused on high attendance and tithes. 

Ew. 

Of course, the idea of implementing the ways of the early church means complete vulnerability. I had a friend who was a part of a community group at a previous church, and she mentioned how everyone prayed for their "cousin's  sister's aunt's great nephew twice removed" as if they never had any issues they were personally contending with at home. 

This needs to stop. 

If we can't speak truthfully about our trials and tribulations to those we should trust most, then we're living in denial–a false reality of our own making. 

And we all know how ungodly living that kind of existence can be. 

So, what's the fix? Well, we all have voices. We all have the opportunity to make small changes. Maybe we talk to our church leaders. Maybe we start a Bible Study at home that incorporates these elements of the early church. Maybe we attend groups likeCelebrate Recoverythat essentially incorporate all these elements (we'll be checking the one at our church again here soon). 

But ultimately, don't stay stagnate. If you feel in your soul something is off, then that's the Holy Spirit talking to you. Pray and ask God what the next steps are. Maybe it's to find a new place to commune with believers who feel the same way or maybe it's to be the change in the church you're currently attending. 

I pray that we all follow God's leading when it comes to being the body of Christ.