Do You Have Church Friends?

[LadyKay]

For those of you here who attend church each week.  Have you met friends at your church that you hang around with or visit with outside of church and church activities?  Or do you only see these people when you attend church or do church things?  

[Neighbor]

Yes, but not many at all. My life, for the past 20 years anyway,  has revolved around what you are calling church things.  When I am away from those things,  I do not socialize often with anyone except churched people. After 50 to 70 hours a week, plus services, classes, and various church social functions, mostly I have just rested and enjoyed quiet study, and my family.

So I guess I am a bit of a recluse though I have had many  churched friends within church settings, and so many grand people that have helped me through life's hard sessions as well as sharing of some of it's joys.

I'd much rather have one church friend than be popular on the secular social set though. My very recent trip into California forced me into social situations in which I was quite the outcast!!! I did not  enjoy the social settings where people compare notes on their comparative prosperity, play one up on who went where in Europe; and especially did not find interesting the need  by males and females alike to  throw in the coarsest of profanities into most every sentence. When they finally did get around to asking of me," what do you do?"  And I responded, "I have worked for a local body of Christ Jesus for the past fifteen years", they look for the exits. Ha, gets funny! Course I  could add; but  I started out in my younger years as an embalmer, a funeral director, and a cemetery sales manager- don't think it would improve my social acceptance level much. What do you think? Never mind. The stories I could tell about my career as an innkeeper though-wow.

 

Edited September 20, 2017 by Neighbor

[The_Patriot21]

I have a few, but my social lifes actually pretty limited. not a huge people person.

[Sower]

Yes actually, some married couples we still hang out with  go back maybe thirty five years, and others less years, and some more recent. Family get together s, home school family outings, fishing, golf movie/date nites eating out and eating in,etc,etc. But the older we get, the crowd is shrinking. Our church family involvement is more active than with our own relatives. Maybe it's because this church has been our only church home we have been members of. (Since we were saved).

[creativemechanic]

This is a problem im seeing now with my church- It seems to me at least, fellowship has declined and people just come for sunday mornings and disappear til the next week.

[Aimes]

Yes and no - I have a few I spend time with outside of church. Sadly though I'm in the awkward age group at my church. We have many who are younger, the 16-25 crowd, and then the 50 plus crowd but not many who fall into the 25-40 crowd. Most of the people who are in my age group are already married, getting married, or having babies ... so that doesn't leave much time for "hanging out". There's a few of us single and bored "20ish somethings" though and we try to hang out when we can. Most of my friends are actually from work though and even the majority of them are married with kids so coordinating plans can be a challenge.  

[Neighbor]

Just realized in reading the posts that for the years whenever  I had the close up duty at church, I was in for a long day  and night, for people just stayed and stayed and stayed socializing. It was always tempting to turn the  air conditioning off and the lights out,-BUT one never knows when a conversation is Holy Spirit led and is helping a hurting attendee. So it just made for the privilege of serving some rather long days and nights. 

My own experience is people do enjoy the fellowship of informal talk after services or  meetings, and  if allowed the opportunity they will all but camp overnight.

Edited September 20, 2017 by Neighbor

[Littlelambseativy]

I have found that the groups formed in church often become cliques and have heard more people mention that the church is influenced or directed by them. Not a good thing. Friends in church yes. I grew up with a number of them but socialize with only a handful...and these are older than I am.

[TheMatrixHasU71]

On 9/18/2017 at 6:51 PM, LadyKay said:

For those of you here who attend church each week.  Have you met friends at your church that you hang around with or visit with outside of church and church activities?  Or do you only see these people when you attend church or do church things?  

I only see them in church; but I am a loner by nature anyway. I prefer to be alone with God. 

[bryan]

When we had a home church, we had a fellowship and would help each other out with home projects, have potlucks, and all sorts of things.  At formal churches, there seem to be 'church events' and not much else.