Going Church Shopping
Being at a Christian institution like Huntington University is an excellent opportunity to develop your faith. University programming through the Center for Spiritual Formation provides ample opportunities to engage with your faith through things like chapel, small groups, and campus events. These on-campus opportunities are a great and convenient introduction to your college faith journey, but looking off campus to further your growth through a local church can be a crucial element of your faith journey overall.
The process of finding a church home looks different for everyone. If you are from the area, you might simply continue attending the church you have attended growing up, but if you are not from the area, you will find yourself church shopping. Church shopping can be intimidating, but once you find your church home, it is very rewarding.
Finding a home church helps you in making your faith your own. Not only is it another way for you to continue developing spiritually, but it gives you a sense of belonging in the community as a whole. By finding a home church, you will make connections with people off campus and have an opportunity to get involved in the community through church events and service projects. Many local churches have HU faculty and staff in their congregations, providing another touch point to form relationships. Many churches also provide programming geared toward college students, which will again give you opportunities to grow spiritually alongside your peers.
There are many ways to shop for a church, and there is not necessarily a right or wrong way to do it, as long as you are taking the initiative to go through the process. Arguably the most important parts of the process are keeping an open mind, continuing to assess things as you go, and not settling.
If you do not know where to start, asking your friends, a professor, or a residence assistant would be a good place to accumulate some recommendations of churches to check out. From there, the ball is in your court. You might decide to visit a handful of churches once to narrow it down to one or two you explore further. You might opt to visit the same church for a few consecutive weeks to get a better feeling for the church before moving on to the next option to repeat the process. You might tag along with where your friends go to feel comfortable as a visitor. You might do some homework ahead of time to find churches you think might be a good fit with what you’re hoping to find. Going back to the point of not settling, it is important to try multiple options rather than simply settling for whatever church you visit first or is most convenient, though there is of course nothing wrong with choosing that first or most convenient church if you feel it is the right fit after exploring other options. Again, there is no right or wrong way of going about your search, but going through whatever your process is should eventually get you where you want to go.
Of course, there are seemingly countless churches to consider in Huntington and the surrounding area, so it may feel daunting out of the gate. If you need a suggestion for where to begin your search, the Church of the United Brethren in Christ, the denomination that has a close partnership with HU going all the way back to HU’s beginning, would be a good place to start. Huntington is home to four UB churches: College Park UB Church (right next to campus), New Hope UB Church, The Well, and Bippus Calvary Church. Emmanuel Community Church in southwest Fort Wayne is another UB option nearby that many people from the Huntington community attend.
Regardless of where your church shopping brings you, finding a church home is a crucial element of your faith journey, helping you take ownership of your faith through expanding your involvement and investment in it. The process of finding a church to call home can be tough, but it is well worth it!
