Why Church?

These days I've started a new sermon series entitled, "Why Church?"  Why do we gather as a church?  What keeps us coming to church?

I'm also exploring the 102-year-old "Great Ends of the Church," which are a part of the Book of Order of the Presbyterian Church (USA).

The Great Ends of the Church are:
(1)  The Proclamation of the Gospel for the Salvation of Humankind.
(2)  The Shelter, Nurture, and Spiritual Fellowship of the Children of God.
(3)  The Maintenance of Divine Worship.
(4)  The Preservation of the Truth.
(5)  The Promotion of Social Righteousness.
(6)  The Exhibition of the Kingdom of Heaven to the World.

How well have those statements weathered through the years?  Just today there was an article in the Washington Post about how millennials are leaving churches in droves.

http://www.washingtonpost.com/national/on-faith/young-millennials-losing-faith-in-record-numbers/2012/04/19/gIQA9QoxTT_story.html

But this also begs the question, why do some people stay?

I recently came across the following Blog Post by blogger and writer Rachel Held Evans:

15 Reasons I Returned to The Church

What about you?  What draws you to church?  Why have you stayed in spite of all of the frustrations?  Of if you've left, why have you left?