There are people who wonder, “Why should church attendance be required as part of my rehab program?” Here at Eternal Awakenings, we offer Christian drug and alcohol rehabilitation to people from all over the nation, and one of the elements that we’ve strategically included in our program is church attendance. In our last blog post, we covered four of these reasons, and today, we’ll be covering four more. Attending church is not a random or unrelated part of your recovery. In fact, we’ve intentionally made Living Waters Fellowship an integral part of the treatment that our guests receive. Keep reading to understand more about why our Christian drug rehab program in Gonzales, TX thinks church attendance is important.

5. Church Attendance Surrounds You With A Positive Environment

Think about all the people you know who grew up in a negative environment. Their parents did drugs, or they grew up in a foster home, or there was nothing but cursing and anger and abuse in the home. It takes herculean efforts for a child born in circumstances like that to find a way to escape, get a college degree, stay sober, and do well for themselves. Maybe that sounds like you. If you know how powerfully harmful a negative environment can be, it only makes sense to give yourself the powerful benefit of a positive environment. Church is one of the most reliable places where you can find that positive environment.

Breaking old patterns is not easy, because you’re tempted to go back to them. Don’t try to do it all on your own, in the same environment that got you into this pickle in the first place. When you surround yourself with people who are positive, wise, godly, and knowledgeable about Scripture, you’ll find that it’s easier to stay on the right path.

6. Church Attendance Establishes Healthy Patterns In Your Life

In business, there is a movement towards having “rituals” that make high-achieving business people even more productive in their daily lives. The thought process goes like this: If you live at random, you’ll get less done. But if you have a ritual for how you get up in the morning, when you go to the gym, and how you start your work, then it’ll always happen the way you want it. “I always brush my teeth because it’s the first thing I do after I eat my oatmeal. I always get my exercise because I go at precisely 6:40 AM every day.” No longer are you wondering how or when you will fit in the things that are important. You’ve already plugged the important ones into your daily ritual.

When you harness the power of good habits, it can have tremendous benefit, whether you’re a person trying to leave behind an addiction or a business executive trying to make more money. Church attendance is just one habit among many, but it can lend itself to living a life that is growing, achieving, and thriving. When you establish a pattern of church attendance in your life, it can help to support and uphold all the other healthy patterns that you are seeking to establish.

7. Church Attendance Points You Back, Again And Again, To The Savior

We are all forgetful creatures. We are prone to lose sight of what’s important. We are so easily drawn off track, only to find ourselves coming to our senses later and realizing, “Wait! What am I doing? This is not what I wanted. I didn’t set out to do this. How did I end up here?” No matter who you are, no matter how strong you are, no matter what kind of background you have, you need something in your life that constantly reminds you, refocuses your attention, and redirects your course. Staying on track is exactly what we all want, but it’s easier said than done. In a healthy church, you have pastors, Bible study leaders, and other members of the congregation all pointing each other back to the things that are truly important.

It’s hard to be drawn into a deep dark pit while your eyes are firmly fixed on Christ. It’s only when you get your eyes off Christ that you suddenly start to fall. Regular church attendance gives you a regular opportunity to assess where you are and realign your life to Christ if necessary.

8. Church Attendance Gives You Food For Your Soul

You wouldn’t expect a baby to survive very long if no one ever fed it, and you wouldn’t expect a baby Christian to survive very long if they never get any food for their soul. What feeds your soul? Reading the Bible, prayer, worshipping God, and obeying his commands are things that nourish our souls. Now, can you feed yourself with these things? Absolutely! But just like we don’t expect a baby to be able to feed itself independently at first, God doesn’t expect his children to feed themselves. Even the most mature Christians, believers who have walked with God for more than 50 years, don’t count on their own independent ability to feed themselves.

The Bible likens pastors to shepherds who are supposed to feed their sheep. (In fact, the Latin word, pastor, means, “shepherd.”) In a good church, you’ll have a pastor who takes that commitment seriously. Every week, your pastor will be looking to provide his flock with a word of nourishment, comfort, and growth. This is what God has provided to his children for their good. Don’t let your soul waste away from starvation. Let the Lord bless your woul with nourishment and blessing through the preaching of his word.