Why do you go to church?

Hebrews 10:25 (NIV)

Not giving up meeting together, as some are in the habit of doing, but encouraging one another—and all the more as you see the Day approaching.

Erik the Red, a ferocious Viking descendant living in newly established Iceland, followed in the footsteps of his dad. His father had come to Iceland after being expelled from Norway for an unjustified killing, and now Erik faced the same trouble: banishment from Iceland for 3 years.

Would we like to have friends like that?

But where do you go when you’ve been banished from the land you stand on, and all you can see is endless ocean water?

Erik was a proud man, and he decided to look for a rumored land further west. He set out in a boat, and he eventually landed on an island covered year-round with ice. He probably thought that this island was more suited to be called “Iceland” than his native home, which has a more moderate weather pattern. None-of-the-less, upon his return to Iceland, Erik enticed settlers to follow him to this new land by calling it Greenland.

Pretty deceiving, don’t you think?

Is it any wonder that Erik’s oldest son, Leif, also went looking for new lands farther West? But Leif did not follow in his father’s steps. He broke the pattern established by his ancestors, for crime did not force him to leave his land. In fact, he never caused trouble. He loved to help others. In fact, he earned the title of “Leif the Lucky” for himself by saving victims of a shipwreck.

So why was it that Leif broke the generational pattern? Why was he so “lucky”? Because Leif was a Christian. Jesus, the Christ was His Master.

Aren't we the lucky ones as well? There is hope, even with all the  patterns geared towards crime!

And for someone living in the 10th century, there was hope of finding the rumored land in the West, and Leif was the one to discover it. He called it “Vinland”, which in English means “Wine Land”, because of the abundance of wild grapes that grew there. Artifacts of Leif’s brief stay in “Vinland” can still be found in the area we now know by the name of L’Anse aux Meadows, situated on the northern tip of Canada’s Newfoundland. Leif the Lucky had discovered North America!

Being a Christian, Leif knew the importance of attending church. This is what he found out about why any believer wouldn’t want to miss such meetings.

The Bible also encourages us to not miss church!

We have all experienced times when our hope needs revival, especially now that we live in end times. Trouble is ever brewing, but hope can look beyond these difficulties, for our future as sons and daughters of the Almighty is guaranteed!

“One of the best things to do when we become discouraged is to become involved in helping others who are in need. This is one of the best ways to discover how God has really been at work! And where else but in church are we able to help others?

Dear Lord, we thank You that we can go into Your house and worship You. We pray that when we assemble together that we would be a blessing to those around us. In Jesus’ Name, Amen.