OK who wants to start a new church!!!

[bek1]

What part of OR are you in? I am originally from WA state and have a lot of family in OR. Some in the Portland area and some in Corvallis area.

My advice is to keep looking until you find a sound, biblical based, church that has a heavy emphasis on biblical prophecy and equipping the body for Christ's return. One with sound doctrine. (and on a personal note, I wouldn't feel comfortable in a church that puts a lot of emphasis on tongues either.) It really sounds like the way you are going about it is really good. Most people in this day and age don't even care about the doctrinal statement of a church. Keep looking online at the churches in your area (if they have websites) and always pay close attention to their doctrinal statements and their vision. If the website doesn't include everything you need to know, then call them up and talk with someone on staff. (or if you drive by a church but they don't have a website.) My advice is to not blindly walk into any church without thorough investigation first. And above all, keep praying for discernment and direction. The Lord wants you involved in a local church body and He will provide. Hang in there, as it can be such a long process and very discouraging at times. Oh, and if you are getting close to considering a visit to a church and they have a website, check to see if they have recorded sermons on their site that you can listen to.

We recently moved (6 months ago) from WA state to Phoenix AZ area. Leaving our church family was probably one of the hardest things I have ever experienced in my whole life. I LOVED my church (and still do!) We knew that the search to find a new church could be challenging and frustrating and potentially very discouraging. God was the One who moved us from WA to AZ, so knowing this was His will, we also had to trust He would place us exactly where He wanted us within the church locally. But it was still very hard, as the church we came from was probably the best teaching I had ever recieved in the Word, and the local body we were apart of was just an amazing family. We grew by leaps and bounds while we were there, and then God said "ok, time to go now...i have other plans". Our constant prayer through this transition was ideally to find a place that had teaching along the same lines. (we love the type of teaching that is vs by vs teaching through the Word -expository?..i think is what is called...rather than topical..) We longed for a church body that had heavy emphasis on biblical prophecy and such. Anyway, (sorry this is such a long reply) while we were searching for a church, we continued to listen to our old pastor's teaching online. We did a lot of online research into churches and often would call and talk to a pastor or assistant pastor prior to visiting a church to get a little more info. Our concern really wasn't so much about programs, music and such, but the teaching content, doctrine and vision and focus of the church. We visited several churches before finding our new home. God is so amazing in how he brought it about. I was reading a book review online about a book that was written on a subject I am passionate about. A particular doctrine. The person reviewing the book was someone who I totally agreed with and just someone likeminded. When I got to the end of the article to see who wrote it, it turned out to be a professer at a local Seminary in the area. I emailed him and explained to him our longing to find a local church body to be involved in, and let him know what kinds of things we were looking for. He replied almost immediately with a recommendation of a church near us. The pastor and associate pastor have both been mentored and/or taught by this professer and he indicated it may be just what we were looking for. We visited and fell in love...fell in love with the teaching, the people and just the church. We know without a doubt this is where God intended us to be and the wait and research and everything was all worth it. And the other prayer we kept praying was not just for a church that edified our needs for sound, biblical teaching etc, but the place where God wanted us to serve and be involved using our gifts for His glory.

One thing to keep in mind as you search, is there are non compromising aspects to look for (like someone mentioned above) and then other not necessarily things you absolutely have to have, but it would be nice things. Be willing to compromise on the things that aren't necessary if God is leading you to. It could be that there is a church body that needs your gifts more than you need whatever thing it might be you want but isn't necessary. (does that make sense?) And it's always good for us to remember that all churches have area's of weakness and dysfunction...and people will disappoint us at some time or another within the church body. We need to hang in there for better or for worse even if it's not comfortable to do so sometimes. (this is more down the road once you find a good church and decide to stick with it.) Oh, and once you find a church you like, give yourself a month or so of going before you decide it's the church where God wants you. (might be a good idea not to commit to any services or ministry's during the first month in case you decide it's not the right place.)

Anyway, that may have been more of a response than you were looking for, but it was all so fresh in my memory after just going through it myself. We have now been at our new church for 4 months. It is such a blessing.

Blessings to you in your search. Keep praying! God will bless your desire to find the right place.

[hurryupJesus]

OH candlelight you did not offend me I said it in a good spirit of fun! I really appreciate all the responses.

bek1 , that is interesting, everything you said. we moved to OR from MN. and we really liked the church we were going to, but had I never found RR I wouldn't have known of the emerging church. I am so grateful that God led me here. I started to feel uncomfortable with a few things at my church a few months ago, but my hubby, bless his heart, does not read the Bible, so he thought our church was just fine. But what sealed the deal was when Tony Campolo came and spoke, I had no idea who he was but when he said he studied catholic mystics, that was it! I was ready to stand up and walk out.
You know how you alway think well that will never happen to me??? Well when I was in high school I said to myself, (foolishly) I'll never get pregnant!! and I did. and when I was 25 I thought well my mom will never die of cancer, she will be healed, and she died. and now again, I thought thank goodness my church isn't emerging! that could not happen in my church! Well it was!!

You just never know!

[bookworm1711]

This has been a very pressing issue for me, too, as I have written here before.

Our Bible believing churches need to wake up to the truth in the Bible emphasized in Psalm 25:9 and Romans 15:7. If they don't, or won't, either heads or jewels may roll on Judgment Day!

I mentioned recently in a post here that there are no denominations to be found in the New Testament church as found in the Bible, in the book of Acts!

Now, don't get me wrong. I am NOT against denominations. I am against those in denominations that seem to think they belong to the only true church, or that all their views on Bible doctrine are sacrosanct and not open to question based upon further study of the Bible itself.

I am against the age discrimination that is blatant in many of our churches. You don't see that in the book of Acts (has anyone read that book lately?) or the rest of the New Testament.

Believe it or not, once in a while the old folks (like me) who have been faithfully studying the Bible for fifty years or more might know a thing or two that the younger folks, including the pastor, may not have learned yet.

I benefited greatly as a young person from at least three older Christian men who helped me along in my Christian life. Pastor Norman Douty, a Baptist pastor who had to leave his church because of the views he taught in a book he wrote about Bible prophecy, taught me much as I visited his home. I learned from him what books were the most important to read, in terms of good Christian authors. I had asked him, if he were to make a list of ten or so books or authors he would recommend as most essential, what would those be?

I immediately sought out those books, many of them even then were out of print, and obtained them. I am reading one of them now to the family, Adolph Saphir, The Lord's Prayer.

I met Pastor Douty through my scholar friend, Mr. G. E. Hoyer, who knew him well. Mr. Hoyer would be the second elderly Christian who greatly influenced my Christian life and walk. He was a Greek scholar. He had met and knew personally such scholars as Bruce Metzger, Dr. Allan Wikgren (of the University of Chicago), and many others, including the Greek scholars who produced the Greek New Testament in the Majority Text. Mr. Hoyer visited my apartment in Detroit and also my home where I now live out in the boon docks, far from any of the churches I once associated with. I often visited Mr. Hoyer's home in Chicago. Mr. Hoyer assisted me in getting many rare and valuable scholarly books on the Greek New Testament and textual criticism.

The third elderly gentleman I met who was a great influence was "Uncle Frank," Mr. Frank Burrell, a retired factory worker who once worked at Kelvinator. He retired in 1950. I knew him from 1965 until his death in 1975, when he died at the age of 86. He also recommended books for me to get, and I'm glad I got them when he suggested me to do so, for they are largely unobtainable today. He had memorized the New Testament word for word, and could quote any verse you might name--just give the chapter and verse. Sometimes I would read a verse and ask him to quote the verse that came before and the verse that came after, and he could do it. He spent a lifetime studying the types in the Bible, especially those connected with the Tabernacle. He had a professionally carved model of the Tabernacle and made presentations about it.

My wife says we don't have to go to church, because we are the church! Jesus said where two or three are gathered in His name, he would be in their midst. He surely is with us.

The local churches which have refused to receive us don't know what they are missing. On Judgment Day they will no doubt find out. No doubt dozens of souls may not have been reached for Christ because they did not permit me to be a part of their fellowship.

In Detroit, churches begged for me to come to their church and teach the high school class or the adult class or the college and career class, and I did. These were churches of different denominations: Baptist, Methodist, Presbyterian, among others.

I believe in attending a local church--the church closest to your home you can find that believes the Bible, so that you can help the church reach the neighborhood where it is. If you can't be a missionary here at home in your own neighborhood, what makes you think you would be a missionary because you went overseas? One church near to me now belongs to the Missionary Church denomination. They don't have the outreach they might have had would they have admitted me to their membership.

When I taught Sunday school at the Presbyterian church in Detroit, the whole neighborhood in Southwest Detroit near Southwestern High School, Chadsey High School, and especially Western High School changed drastically for the better as a result. Once I was walking home from the grocery store, and it was starting to get dark. There was a rather noisy, large gang of young people ahead of me on the sidewalk coming my way. I didn't know whether to quickly cross to the other side of the street and take a different side street home, or what. It turned out that the gang was my Sunday school class, so I was perfectly safe. My little Sunday school class grew from eight students to forty who regularly attended. The youth group had three hundred young people we were in regular contact with (I still have my address card file), though we never had them all show up on the same day for youth group meeting. To my knowledge, there is no such influence in that neighborhood today, so it would likely be a very dangerous place to go walking at night.

Too bad genuine Bible believing Christians couldn't get together for fellowship, teaching, and outreach with no denominational connection whatsoever, just a Bible connection.

In any case, I am thankful for the fellowship we have here on Rapture Ready.

[candlelight]

I've been spending hours online. today I looked up my friends church out of state, well they are affiliated with the church in CA that promotes being drunk in the spirit, cuz drunk people can be crazy, crazy for God!

Then I found a church that appeared to be ok, but they have Beth Moore for their womens BIble study.

I also found www.nlcchurch.com and they were the only website that talked about the Rapture! and the millenium! YEA!! BUT then it said when you are baptised in the HOly Spirit, the evidence is speaking in tounges. And I don't believe everyone is meant to speak in tounges.

SSOOOOOOOOOOOOOO..... I mean does everyone here over look these things if the church is BASICALLY what you believe in? Or do you keep holding out?

I am praying for a new church, and I know God will bring me to one in His time. But I am curious, I don't belive I have all the answers, maybe some people here can offer their insight. I know a few of you are in the same boat.

Where exactly are you in Oregon? Jon Courson is in Oregon. If he is not near you maybe they can recommend a church. Here is their website.

http://www.joncourson.com/contact/contact.asp

[Steph58873]

Never once have I seen an interpretor when people speak in tongues, NOT ONCE and personally they all sound the same. She ba ba ba. Do not mean to step on anyone's toes or hurt feelings, but they all sound the same?

I was in a small prayer meeting at Bible College and someone spoke in tongues, directly followed by someone else speaking the interpretation. It was truly edifying. It was a time when the gifts of the Spirit were used in direct accordance to His Word. So, it does happen ;)

[bek1]

OH candlelight you did not offend me I said it in a good spirit of fun! I really appreciate all the responses.

bek1 , that is interesting, everything you said. we moved to OR from MN. and we really liked the church we were going to, but had I never found RR I wouldn't have known of the emerging church. I am so grateful that God led me here. I started to feel uncomfortable with a few things at my church a few months ago, but my hubby, bless his heart, does not read the Bible, so he thought our church was just fine. But what sealed the deal was when Tony Campolo came and spoke, I had no idea who he was but when he said he studied catholic mystics, that was it! I was ready to stand up and walk out.
You know how you alway think well that will never happen to me??? Well when I was in high school I said to myself, (foolishly) I'll never get pregnant!! and I did. and when I was 25 I thought well my mom will never die of cancer, she will be healed, and she died. and now again, I thought thank goodness my church isn't emerging! that could not happen in my church! Well it was!!

You just never know!

A long time ago, before I was married, and when I was living in Seattle, I was involved in an Emergent Church too. (before I even heard the term Emergent, and before the church started to refer to themselves that way...but it was still the same thing if you know what I mean.) God was so good to prompt us to leave (soon after my husband and I were married). I am so thankful to Him for His protection. This was about 11 years ago. I think the Pacific Northwest has a lot of emergent churches, so you have to be really careful.