Years ago, I served as a hospital chaplain in a northwest suburb of Chicago. One afternoon I went to visit a patient who had a reputation for being… well… let’s just say if hospitals issued helmets to chaplains, I might have worn one.
The first time I walked into her room and introduced myself, she looked at me and shouted,
“I don’t need your games. I’m spiritual, but not religious. I can sit in a field by myself and worship God.”
I remember thinking, “At least take a lawn chair.”
I had two choices. I could turn around and leave… or do what chaplains are supposed to do. I pulled up a chair.
As we talked, I figured out her words weren’t really about me or religion. There was much more underneath.
Over the years, I’ve heard that same phrase countless times: “I’m spiritual, but not religious.” I think it’s worth slowing down and asking what people actually mean when they say it…and I think there’s more truth in it than many Christians are willing to admit.
The Bible teaches that God can be worshiped anywhere because He is omnipresent. Jesus told the Samaritan woman that a day was coming when worship would no longer be tied to a particular mountain or even the temple in Jerusalem. True worshipers would worship the Father “in spirit and in truth” – John 4:23.
You don’t have to be inside a church building to worship God. You absolutely can sit in a quiet field, gaze at God’s creation, and praise Him.
However, that’s only part of the picture. From the very beginning, a relationship with God was never meant to be a solo journey. Elijah met God on a mountain, Moses met God in the wilderness and Jesus often withdrew to lonely places to pray. Yet every one of them came back to God’s people.
Jesus didn’t merely save individuals; He created a people. The New Testament knows nothing of an isolated Christian who has no need for other believers.
We need community because we weren’t designed to follow Jesus alone and to hear biblical teaching because there is more to learn. We need people who will pray for us, laugh with us, cry with us, and remind us of God’s promises. We need opportunities to use our spiritual gifts because God designed us to serve one another.
Can you worship God while sitting alone in a field? Sure. But, you can’t be the Church by yourself.
The Christian life is personal, but never intended to be private. God calls us into a relationship with Himself, and into a family of faith where we live life together.
Being spiritual is a wonderful place to begin, but Jesus invites us into something even better… a life shared with Him and with His people. You can certainly find God in a field, but you’ll usually find His family in a church.
Rev. Dr. Mike Wooton 
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