Solitary Christianity?

I've often heard people say they didn't need a church because they could worship just as well on the lake or at a ball game or while hunting.  And, I have to agree that one can worship anywhere, anytime.  But I question, "Do they?"

I mean, the ones who say they don't need a church in which to worship God, do they worship him regularly when fishing, hunting or watching a ball game?  Are they encouraged by the crowd to give praise or humble themselves before God?  Is their focus on God as they set the hook or take the shot or yell at the ump?

Is Christianity really designed to be lived out in solitary?  Is the world around us encouraging us to worship God or live out our faith in deference to him?  Do you find the strength and support in your job or in the streets to make God the center of your existence?

I'm not saying that gathering in a church building will necessarily provide that support.  I'm not even saying that Sunday morning assemblies is what faith is all about or that church buildings have any real significance in Christian faith.

What I am saying is that being a part of a church or congregation or family of Christians, where worship and service and faith are encouraged is God-ordained and paramount to the growth and development of the disciple.

Listen to the writer of Hebrews: "Let us hold unswervingly to the hope we profess, for he who promised is faithful. And let us consider how we may spur one another on toward love and good deeds, 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" (Heb 10:23-25).

What helps us "hold unswervingly"?  What "spurs us on"?  What "encourages us"?  Answer: "Meeting together" for those purposes.  We need a spiritual support system, a church family.  Jus' Sayn.