We need the awkwardness of a worship service where not every song is a wonderfully produced experience of excitement. We need awkward pauses and awkward people. Why? Because that’s real life.

Two recent trends in the church require attention and consideration: the rise of Internet communities and the rise of the mega-churches. More and more Christians are seeking their community with other believers through blogs, facebook, twitter, web conferences, etc. At the same time, an ever-increasing percentage of Christians in America are attending mega-churches.

God uses churches of all sizes and shapes, for sure. But more Christians are choosing to attend very large churches. The very largest mega-churches account for .5% of churches in America but draw 10% of all church attendance. The largest 10% of churches in America draw 50% of church attendees. That leaves the other 50% to be spread across the remaining 90% of churches. (see more trends here)

At the same time, more Christians are seeking community online. Many people have commented on whether or not these virtual communities can be considered true communities. But even as people debate, more people go online to seek teaching, fellowship, encouragement and identity.

I have a deep concern over both mega-churches and virtual community. My concern goes back to my days in college and a course I took on travel writing. I remember reading an essay on “pseudo-places,” probably written by Paul Fussell. What makes a place a “pseudo-place”? It lacks authenticity. It was manufactured for a specific purpose, usually to attract and serve consumers.

The problem with pseudo-places is that they feel real without really being real. The attraction of a pseudo-place is that it is predictable and safe.

I remember sitting with Beth and my brother, eating lunch in the Market Square in Treir, Germany, one of the oldest cities in Europe. We were sitting in a square where people had bought and sold goods for over 2,500 years. Then I saw the McDonald’s and I thought, “Who would come to Trier’s Market Square and eat at McDonald’s?” The McDonalds was doing good business, though, because it was safe and predictable.

Real places and real community is messy and unpredictable. (Kind of like this blog.) You’re never exactly sure what you’re going to get. You might order something from the menu and not like it. You might have an awkward conversation with someone and get your feelings hurt.

Mega-churches and online communities are pseudo-places in our spiritual lives, or at least, they can be. Everything is designed, planned, programmed, predictable, safe, comfortable and attractive.

We need the real community of the church. We need the awkwardness of a worship service where not every song is a wonderfully produced experience of excitement. We need awkward pauses and awkward people. Why? Because that’s real life.

Online, people are often less reserved and more caustic because they know they can make comments without consequences. That’s not real. Comments are made toward real people and have real consequences. People can also control what others see and hear from them – posting only the best pictures, the most witty comments, the exciting experiences. That’s not real either. Reality is the 10 minutes of whining and fussing you had to endure to get that perfect snapshot of your family.

Jesus means for us to follow him in the reality of our daily lives. He is with us when life is flawed and not at all as we planned. We need the real community of the church because we need real people to live our Christian life with us. We need to be hurt so we can forgive. We need to see real needs, so we can pray and help. We need to be around people we don’t naturally like because we need to learn how to love.

Life is real. Jesus is real. Church needs to be real, too. Can a mega-church be real? Sure. But only if you commit to seeking authentic community within it. The “big show” on Sunday is just that – a “big show,” even if it has a transparent pastor and planned authenticity.

Reality has dirt under its fingernails. We need to get our hands dirty in the life-on-life reality of church if we’re serious about growing in the Lord.

Jason A. Van Bemmel is a teaching Elder in the Presbyterian Church in America and serves as pastor of Faith PCA in Cheraw, SC.  This article first appeared on his blog, Ponderings of a Pilgrim Pastor, and is used with permission.