Churches

John 14:26 But the Comforter, which is the Holy Ghost, whom the Father will send in my name, he shall teach you all things, and bring all things to your remembrance, whatsoever I have said unto you.

1 Corinthians 12:5
And there are differences of administrations, but the same Lord.
2 Corinthians 9:12 For the administration of this service not only supplieth the want of the saints, but is abundant also by many thanksgivings unto God;

Based on the latest available data from the Center for the Study of Global Christianity at Gordon-Conwell Theological Seminary (a leading authority on global Christian demographics), there are approximately 49,000 distinct Christian denominations worldwide as of 2025. This figure includes major branches like Roman Catholicism, Eastern Orthodoxy, Oriental Orthodoxy, Protestantism, and independent or indigenous churches, but counts each as a separate “administration” when they operate autonomously with unique governance, even if sharing broad theological roots.

Those numbers are just Christian based bible believing administrations and do not include those that are considered “cults”. The reason I mention this is because if you believe that God is calling you to join or change administrative organizations you should know what you’re getting into. Remember that Abram had no administrative organizations to look into, he was alone with God in his faith. Abram did not have a people controlling what he thought.

I knew nothing about administrations when I first encountered my sovereign God. As I look back now over 70 years after my very first contact with organized religion, I realize that I have no idea how my parents chose one for me. They did not attend church or read or teach the bible in our home.

I am not even sure how old I was when my mother dropped me off at the Congregational Church Sunday School. Even after I stopped going because they didn’t insist, I never asked why.

When I was a teen I began going to the Cape Neddick Baptist Church because a pretty girl invited me to a youth group there. I thought she liked me. I was wrong. She had other plans for me. It turns out that church was a branch of the American Baptist Convention. I did not know that until at the age of 20 when I followed another gorgeous girl into a Southern Baptist Church.

Pentecostals + Charismatics + Independent/Non-denominational now make up roughly 70–75% of all Protestant Administrations. So how are any of us to know where God wants us?

John 14:26 But the Comforter, which is the Holy Ghost, whom the Father will send in my name, he shall teach you all things,  (If you are born again He will put you where you need to be)

The Path

Deuteronomy 6:6 And these words that I command you today shall be on your heart.

Psalm 19:14 Let the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be acceptable in your sight, O Lord, my rock and my redeemer.

Jeremiah 11:8 Yet they did not obey or incline their ear, but everyone walked in the stubbornness of his evil heart. Therefore I brought upon them all the words of this covenant, which I commanded them to do, but they did not.”

Luke 8:12 The ones along the path are those who have heard; then the devil comes and takes away the word from their hearts, so that they may not believe and be saved.

Luke 8:15 As for that in the good soil, they are those who, hearing the word, hold it fast in an honest and good heart, and bear fruit with patience.

Romans 10:8 But what does it say? “The word is near you, in your mouth and in your heart” (that is, the word of faith that we proclaim);

Colossians 3:16 Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly, teaching and admonishing one another in all wisdom, singing psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, with thankfulness in your hearts to God.

Hebrews 4:12 For the word of God is living and active, sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing to the division of soul and of spirit, of joints and of marrow, and discerning the thoughts and intentions of the heart.

Colossians 3:15 And let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts, to which indeed you were called in one body. And be thankful.

After my father died I repented in my heart for not reading the bible in years. At that moment God said “What is stopping you from starting over again today?” I knew it was God and I knew the answer, “Nothing”.So I went home that night and began diligently reading nothing but the bible.

Some weeks later I was at the food court in the mall with my bible and a yellow tablet writing down meaningful passages. A man came along and was looking over my shoulder and commented, “I see you are writing a sermon.”

When he left I looked at the passages I had copied and he was right.

I was writing a sermon to myself.

That was when I took it to mean that God wanted me to return to church. So I did.

But which church? My boss at the time was an elder in a local church. I had heard him ministering to family and church members on the phone since his office was the cubicle next to mine. It was like grace came over the wall and landed on me. This sounded like a good place to start.

My church journey returned that next Sunday.

Daily Christian Devotionals