Church.

Our Church is fantastic. We have been there a year now and we love that they preach from the Bible, love people well, and make everything about Jesus. The congregation keeps growing and we see new faces and families every week.

But families mean babies.

Babies are adorable and squishy and gifts from God. They make me so happy for the parents and siblings that get to help them grow up. But they also make me sad for my own not-yet family.

I don’t blame churches for reminding me of my childlessness. But sometimes I don’t go to church because: I love Jesus, but I don’t know why He won’t give us a baby.

The kicker, though, is that none of us are strong enough to never go to church. We need others. We need the Word of God to pierce our hearts. We need to respond to calls of repentance. We need guiding and teaching and brothers and sisters. We need to worship Him. Missing church on Sunday doesn’t always mean that I missed Jesus on that Sunday, but it does mean I missed out on Him using others’ gifts and abilities to lead me closer to His heart. So even if church reminds you of what you don’t have – be it a baby, a spouse, or even things like faith or hope – do your best to show up.

I don’t believe that Jesus is an attendance-tracker taking a point off for each service you miss. But I do believe it moves His heart to see you go to His House even when it hurts. There will be days you can’t, but most will be days you should.