Stop Dating the Church

I am currently re-reading "Stop Dating the Church" by Joshua Harris. I first read it shortly after it was released. Our elders also read it. Since our reading, we decided we wanted potential members of our church to read it as well. There are so many in the church that do not see the church as "the only institution God promised to sustain forever" (15). Therefore they are not committed to it. As Harris describes his own life, he says, "I was perfectly happy to keep playing it with the church. I liked attending on weekends, and I enjoyed the social benefits of church, but I didn't want the responsibility that came with real commitment" (14). Most people who date the church tend to be "critical." They are "short on allegiance and quick to find fault in [the] church. [They] treat church with a consumer mentality---looking for the best product for the price of our Sunday morning. As a result, [they're] fickle and not invested for the long-term, like a lover with a wondering eye, aways on the hunt for something better" (17). Does this describe you? How can you turn from a "church-dater" to one committed for the "long-term?" First, recognize this has been your attitude and repent of it. Second, pick up a copy of "Stop Dating the Church" by Joshua Harris and READ it. Once you read it, start applying the principles found in this book. Third, if you haven't already established this, most likely you haven't, commit to time each day in God's Word. As you read the principles in "Stop Dating the Church," study what he explains about the church in God's Word. Changing from a "church-dater" to one who is in it for the "long-term" involves a commitment. Isn't that what this is all about? Isn't this what distinguishes one who dates the church from one who is committed to it?