I am often surprised by those who land in an area of the country and then find themselves sorely disappointed by the church options available to them. Some begrudgingly join the ‘least bad’ option and get on with it, others join what they thought would be tolerable and then spend their days railing against it. Dissatisfaction abounds and some even become disillusioned as ‘the only good church’ in the area turns out to have practices that they find less than excellent. It is a remarkably common story.

In such cases, I have a great deal of sympathy with those who have been moved for reasons beyond their control. For example, in our church, asylum seekers are frequently moved out of the area by the Home Office. They are picked up, dropped in a place entirely unknown to them and told to start again. Such people often find themselves in areas where good churches might be hard to come by. I can think of other scenarios whereby a person, due to matters beyond their control, is forced to moved somewhere they did not and would not pick. I have sympathy for those for whom the choice was foisted upon them.

Of course, in the vast majority of cases, this is not the scenario. More often than not, people move for work, schools, housing. Sometimes it is financial reasons and other times it is family reasons (I do not mean necessary family obligations here). There are many reasons why people might move and almost all of them represent a matter of choice. A legitimate choice, no doubt. But a choice nonetheless. In these cases – the majority of cases – I have far less sympathy.

Where there has been a choice, the brute reality is that your lack of church options has resulted from the choices you have taken. To put it more starkly: you have prioritised the reason for your move above the priority of ensuring there was a faithful church you could happily attend.

Now, you may have all sorts of reasons why your choice was a good one. You may have all sorts of reasons why your choice (as you judge it) was necessary. I am not here to argue otherwise. But if ever the phrase ‘you pays your money you takes your choice’ applies, here it is. You have taken the choice to prioritise what you have prioritised and now find yourself in a sub-optimal church situation. But we cannot escape reality: it was your choice and your priorities that have led you here. Indeed, our view of the Lord, the church and biblical priorities is often laid bare in such moments.

None of this is to say that nobody should ever move. Of course that isn’t what I’m saying here. Nor is it to say there are no legitimate reasons to do so. Also not what I am saying. What I am saying is two related things.

First, before we decide to move anywhere, it might be sensible to think about our spiritual life before we take the plunge. Is that job promotion really worth it if it moves us to an area where there is no solid church? Is that bigger house really a good idea if it takes us out of the reach of a good church? Is that school catchment area really the place to go if it means we can’t access a good church once we’re there? It pays to think about our spiritual life before we decide to make major life changes.

Second, before we decide to move anywhere, it might be wise to think about what our non-negotiables are for a biblical church. If you know that you are a dyed-in-the-wool Baptist who cannot fathom tolerating paedobaptism, moving to a village where the only church for tens of miles is Anglican might not be very clever. If you know that you are absolutely for exclusive unaccompanied Psalmody only, moving anywhere there is no Presbyterian Church (and being careful to make sure it is the right kind of Presbyterian too) just isn’t sensible. We could go on and on. Everybody’s non-negotiables will be different. But you need to make sure you know what they are before you go anywhere so you can figure out whether there is somewhere you can once you arrive.

In the end, this is a matter of priority. What are we prioritising in life. I am concerned that all too often – for many believers – the church plays second fiddle to all our other priorities. We make choices without much thought for the spiritual impact and then rail about the spiritual consequences after the fact. In the end, it pays to make sure our priorities really are our priorities. For any believer, that really should start with the Lord and his people.