The Church That Never Closes

I can remember going on long walks with my parents as a child and now and then we’d come to a small village and they’d be a church with an unlocked door. Churches were buildings that were always open, never locked. You could quietly and respectfully wonder around, explore the echoey interior, or the garden outside.  

I was never ‘religious’ growing up and didn’t come from a religious family, but it is also the impression given in books and films, that a church is somewhere that is always there for the lost and needy, for prayer, or even to find a priest for comfort for support. 

Randomly the other day I started watching a youtube video of some church leaders in lockdown. They were talking about closing the churches and locking the churches and the ‘selfish’ actions of ‘rebel’ churches that stayed opens. They were quoting Romans 13 and had obediently following orders, and yet, was it really the right thing to do? 

I wasn’t a Christian during lockdown, but I remember feeling eerily ill at ease with these ideas of closed doors, of churches that didn’t meet on Sunday. 

Recently I was visiting mountains in Northern Italy where in the past the Waldensian people were persecuted and killed for their faith. Going to church was an act that they risked death for. I’m sure the same thing still happens in places like China. 

It made me feel a little silly when one weekend I didn’t go to church because it was raining, and because my husband and daughter were away so I’d need to bring my dog, and I couldn’t face the idea of trailing across the city with a soggy dog. 

Of course those who believed in the importance of lockdown would have said they were doing it because they loved their neighbours, and didn’t consider the whole concept of lockdown to be based on a lie. 

But, how does this bode for the future? 

When I became a Christian, I was so excited to go to church. It was the only place in Italy that you didn’t need a green pass for (even the post office and the bank were off limits). I was so excited that there was actually, legitimately, a place that I was allowed to go. 

I dove in, and kept my ‘conspiracy theories’ to myself, I made new friends, and I was happy. At least I could talk about Satan being the god of this world, even if not everyone cared to consider the specifics of how he manifests in the physical world. I tried a few different churches and then found my church home. 

And yet, it comes to me over and over again. What if it happens again? Are you part of a church that never closes? Are you part of a place that will put following God above all else? Who knows until the time comes. 

As Hebrews 10.25 says, ‘not neglecting to meet together, as is the habit of some, but encouraging one another, and all the more as you see the Day drawing near.’

When it comes to making such a huge decision as to go against this scripture and lock the door like never before, there needs to be questioning, and discernment of where the truth lies. 

The day is most definitely drawing nearer, and so we must continue to meet, no matter what.

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I started a new blog for sharing about the dangers of the new age, with those who may not have questioned the COVID narrative. Sign up and read my testimony there, or share if you want a resource to give to friends and family that is not aimed at truthers!

I’m working on a learning language with the Bible project, and am going to release a series of devotionals for learning different languages using Bible verses. The first book for learning Italian, is now available on Amazon! Spanish to follow next, and then French and German.