During my recent sabbatical, I took some time to visit other churches. It is always an interesting experience. And, I purposefully chose churches different from the one I pastor. They were different in theology and different in worship styles. One was a mega-church, one was the size of the church I pastor, and one was smaller. One was very liturgical, one was charismatic, and one was reformed. (I hate labels)

As a visitor on the "other side" of the pulpit, I found myself wanting two different things at the same time. On one hand, I was hoping that people who regularly attended those churches would be welcoming of someone from the outside. On the other hand, I hoped to fly under the radar - to maintain a bit of anonymity. It is asking a bit of a church to have it both ways. Two of the churches did a "meet and greet" during the service. I am a bit ambivalent toward such actions. It does help you meet people around you but it is forced. One church recognized guests during the service. That was awkward and was really the last thing I wanted. Of course, my visit to these churches was quite different from someone searching for a church to attend. Only one of the three churches had people in place whose job (read ministry since it occurred in church) it was to greet people like me. And, they did their job well.

As a pastor, it is very difficult to go to other churches and worship without constantly evaluating all that is taking place. It was wonderful to see people worshiping in a variety of ways. In all three churches the scripture was read. In all three statements were made that indicated they believed Jesus was "the way, the truth, and the life". I was surprised by how much I enjoyed the liturgy of the "high church". There was no attempt there to mask the gospel, to necessarily go out of the way to make you feel like you were any where else but church. Sometimes, I think we try too hard to mask our identity for the sake of being seeker friendly.

Don't tell your pastor, but every now and then you should visit other churches. If for no other reason than to appreciate what you have in your home church.