importance of attending church

Denene Erasmus

I have always been a churchgoer, but never a believer in the necessity of church as a part of the Christian package. I started travelling in August last year and because of the limited space in my backpack I only carried two books around with me. My Bible and a copy of Lonely Planet's Europe on a shoestring-budget. Daily I clung to the Lonely Planet, knowing I would be lost without it, while I neglected going to church and reading the Bible. I met no Christians along the way and even though I got to visit all the places I wanted to see, I veered off course. I got to Edinburgh at the end of January and thanks to God and Google ended up at Destiny church one night. It was only then, in the company of fellow believers and the presence of the Holy Spirit, that I realized that Jesus had somehow become this character in a book I read once. I finally understood the importance of going to and belonging to a church. Being surrounded by real people, worshipping a real God can affirm you're faith in a very real way.