The Problem with Choosing

So many choices...
(from grammartales.wordpress.com)

In the 1980s a friend of mine moved to Dallas, Texas. He tried to find a church community to worship with, so (pre-Internet, remember) he turned to the Yellow Pages. He figured that it would have taken over 100 years, visiting one church per Sunday, to try them all. How could he possibly pick the best one? And this is not only a problem for city-dwellers. In my rural community I drive past three other churches on my way to preach on Sunday mornings. (It would be 4 times that many if I had to drive through town on the way.)

How does one begin to choose which church to worship in? Is it a denomination? Style of music? Day and time of the services? All the above? Church-growth consultants have been working on these questions for years. Suggestions for how churches can win in the war of choices range from better parking lots to singing popular songs to playing video clips during sermons to offering communion more often. Each of these suggestions has had varying levels of success. But I believe that the problem is with offering too many options rather than too few.

Barry Schwartz has made a career of writing and speaking about how too many options to choose from can make us miserable. Contrary to the conventional wisdom, greater freedom through more choices does not result in happiness. In fact, having too many options can make us depressed. Think about the last time you went to a new restaurant and spent several minutes poring over the menu. At some point you had to limit your options and choose just one meal. Chances are that someone at your table ordered something that appealed to you more. Schwartz says that when faced with many choices we tend to regret what we did not choose, which makes us the opposite of happy. (That's why restaurant managers create daily specials--so we will stop trying to decide and just order something. Making it seem like a good deal makes us happier with choosing the special.)

My last blog post was about how the limitations of certain art forms (like icon painting) actually create freedom. By limiting what is possible, the worshipper can stop thinking about all the creative possibilities and instead focus on the subject at hand. This applies to all the choices we make around worship--from where to when to how. At some point we have to limit our options as worshippers by deciding which church we will join. And then we have to further restrict our freedom by making the commitment to be active there, in spite of other appealing activities that present themselves on Sunday (or whenever).

As a pastor, the choice is easy for me. On Sunday mornings I don't have to decide if I want to go to church, nor do I have a pick a place to worship. That's done for me through the appointment process. Does it make me unhappy to be limited in that way? Absolutely not. I love the congregations I serve and view each Sunday morning as an opportunity to meet God along with people whom I love.

The quest for your perfect church will never end and it will leave you miserable. Just choose a church. You can narrow the field slightly by investigating theological and doctrinal positions. Then plant yourself there. Watch how God works in and through you.