There’s a Place for Us…
We’ve been churchless for over a year now. Some times I feel like singing the theme song to “West Side Story.”
“There’s a place for us. Some where a place for us…” You get the picture.
Visiting church after church, Sunday after Sunday isn’t easy. But the kids have been good sports and living in church central USA, almost every church we have visited so far, we’ve known someone who attends.
So today we decide to visit a church down the street. I think the hardest part in choosing a church after having attended the same church for 12 plus years, is that we really don’t know what we want in a church. I’m beginning to figure that out.
I know I want a church that focuses their praise and worship on Jesus, not on “what Jesus can do for me or how much he needs to change me.”
I know I want a church where I can be myself. That means wearing trendy jeans (not of the low rise variety) or a more dressy dress.
I know I want a church where the pastor is real and engaging. I’m beginning to think I have selective ADD which rears it’s head during church and household chores.
I know I want a church that preaches a relevant message that I can take with me throughout the week. Like how to walk out my faith in the real world.
I know I want a church where my kids can learn and grow in the Lord. Some churches are all about the fun and games, and bells and whistles. My kids have fun there, but they don’t learn much. Then there are those churches that are dry and boring. No good for my kids either.
Some churches I know I’ll never visit again. This isn’t one of them. It seemed to have all of the above. After over a year of searching could this be the place for us?
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Please keep us updated on this. I admire your perserverance. Some people just give up and church sort of stops being a priority because it can be so frustrating to find the “right” one. Because of three moves (from state to state) and a couple of times when we felt called to move churches, we have been church shopping so many times, and yes, it is frustrating. One thing that happened to me when we had our first move was that God taught me, loudly and clearly, that sometimes what I think I want in a church is not what He wants me to have. Specifically, we left a wonderful young marrieds Sunday School department where we had friendships, growth, fun etc etc. So, we prayed to find a church in this new state quickly where we would have those friends to come alongside us. The short story is that isn’t what God wanted. We found good friends at a church which we only visited for a month or so before moving on, we found great friends and were able to serve in a church which we attended a year before moving on, and then we found the church that sort of had it all for us, but no real immediate connections. . . .
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