Wholeness

What We Gain When We Gather

When I think back to my childhood, church wasn’t just a building we went to on Sabbath—it was my identity. As charter members of the Burbank Spanish Seventh-day Adventist Church, my family spent the whole day together: Sabbath School, worship, missionary work, socials, even ingathering. I couldn’t wait for it.

My closest friends from that church are still my friends today. Church gave me a place to belong, to be loved, to serve, to sing, to lead.

Humans were created to be social. The 2020 pandemic showed us what happens when we isolate. Even introverts like me need community. Online is good, but nothing replaces gathering together in person.

I love the description of the early Christian church found in Acts 2:4247, which shares how early Christians devoted themselves to fellowship, breaking bread together and praying. This is the type of community we should all strive for. And creating that type of community starts with showing up.

When we choose to show up, we discover gifts that strengthen our faith and enrich our lives.

Accountability

Growing up, I knew that church kept me accountable. If I missed, someone noticed. If I slacked, a leader reminded me of my responsibilities. My friends encouraged me, and that helped shape my identity. Sabbath School classes are one of the best places for that—where attendance turns into relationships that challenge us to stay faithful and keep growing.

Emotional Strength

Many of us know the difference worship makes in our week. We walk out with burdens feeling lighter and hope renewed. Research backs that up. The SoulPulse study, a self-reported ongoing smartphone-based study created in 2013, found that people reported more joy and fewer negative emotions immediately after attending services. Over time, Harvard researchers have also shown that weekly church attendance is linked with lower rates of depression and despair. In fact, a 2020 study of health care workers published in JAMA Psychiatry found that regular service attendance was associated with significantly lower “deaths from despair,” confirming that the emotional strength gained in worship can last well beyond the service itself.

Life Satisfaction

Gallup’s “Mood of the Nation,” a religion and well-being poll, shows a strong connection between worship attendance and overall well-being. Ninety-two percent of those who attend weekly report being satisfied with their personal lives, compared with only 48 percent of those who attend less than once a month. The contrast is striking and points to the role worship plays in building a more contented life. Week by week, gathering with others who share faith and commitment provides not only spiritual nourishment but also a foundation for greater satisfaction with life as a whole.

Meaningful Connections

Choosing to attend worship regularly opens the door to friendships that grow into lasting support. Those bonds are strengthened by sharing responsibilities, mentoring one another and walking together through life’s milestones. For individuals who show up week after week, church becomes more than a service to attend—it becomes a circle of people who know them, care for them and encourage them to keep growing.

Finding Purpose

Being part of a church connects people to something bigger than themselves. By joining in service activities, members experience the fulfillment of serving with purpose. Rather than acting alone, they become part of a collective mission that multiplies their efforts and makes the church visible in the community as a place of hope and care.

Church isn’t only about what we receive—it’s also about who we become when we gather together. Choosing to worship with others forms us into people who are accountable, resilient, connected and purposeful. That’s the gift God offers when we come together in His house.

By Tony Anobile, Vice President for Church Ministries