I get so excited when Sunday comes around. I can't wait to find our church. I have such high expectations - that's where I found my closest friends in NH so I want to pick a church and join a community group and a Bible Study and start making friends! (did I really just say that? Must be something that just came out during my stream-of-consciousness typing)...
Looking for a church is FRUSTRATING too b/c it's not like a home search where you can look at 5-10 homes in a day... I can only go to ONE A WEEK. That's not fun! I want it NOW! But it keeps up the excitement/anticipation. :))
We've looked at three churches so far:
1) A denomination I've never been a part of, that frankly made me nervous b/c I was expecting that the focus wouldn't be on God or the Bible. It was recommended to us by one of Bob's work colleagues who's been looking for a church FOR A YEAR. Wonderful. I get to look at 49 more churches.
Anyway, I was pleasantly surprised by the sermon topic - it was about true conversion, what it should look like and how America would be changed if we all experienced it. I liked what he was talking about, I just felt he touched on the surface too much. I wanted him to explain things more deeply, even his personal stories he was telling about changing the oil in his car. The music leader was very engaged and I liked this singing, but it was LOUDLOUDLOUD and I didn't know any of the songs. That was frustrating b/c I wanted to sing! William loved all of the musical instruments. The kids church part was really small - the facilities were large but there were only two kids in Lauren's class and maybe 8 total in the boys (combined K-3). And they showed a video to the kids as their lesson. I would say "I'm not sure how I feel about that" but I know how I feel - I don't like it. Maybe if I ask them about it their explanation will make sense. I don't even remember if they had community groups. We also talked about how we "think" we want to go to church closer to home (it was a 20+ minute drive) so that we can feel like we're connecting with our community.
Overall, we didn't feel this was the church for us.
On to #2. A small country church recommended by a friend of a friend. Bob and William couldn't go (W was sick) so we'll probably have to re-visit as a family. It was far. At least it seemed that way. And it was definitely small. But the music was great - the main female singer had the most ethereal voice - and I knew the songs! There was a guest speaker, so we didn't get a feel for the real pastor. The sermon was about Evangelism- how we are all scared of it but that's b/c we feel like we have to attack people/convert them. But it's about sharing the Good News. That's it. No pressure (except prayer). I liked it. Not sure about the kids group - seemed small like church #1. And I think they played a video for the kids that taught the lesson, also like church #1. And they don't have community groups. They meet once a week as a church and do a Bible study all together. I think I'd prefer CG's.
Overall, though, this church is a contender.
#3. Megachurch. Seems like everyone in Athens goes here. The music was like a rock concert. Seriously - there was special lighting and smoke machines. The singers were AMAZING but I still didn't know the songs! The sermon is a satellite feed from another big church in Atlanta. So that was kind of weird but they do have a local pastor so it's not like it's just you and a robot. Bob said he felt the sermon was "Bible-lite" but I pointed out to him all the Scripture references he made and how it tied in to his four points and retold him the story he told and repeated the main theme of the sermon and..... wait. Did you just get all that?? I REMEMBERED IT. And I didn't even write anything down. There's something to be said about that!
Sooooooo the kids' area. Might as well call it a circus. Not in terms of craziness - it was actually very organized. More in terms of the decor. And the clown passing out lollipops. Really. Have you been to New York, New York in Las Vegas? The kids area looked almost exactly like that - a city street with buildings and the street signs on the buildings indicated the grades/classrooms. The classrooms themselves were pretty normal looking. The helpers were super-nice and there were several per class. The boys loved their lessons and they each left with (a lollipop) and a sweatband for their wrists.
Overall, it was pretty theatrical. The goal of the church is to reach out to unchurched people. We felt like we wanted something a little bit more low-key, but the message was solid and I like the mission. A possible contender. I wouldn't be disappointed if we ended up here but we do like the "we know (almost) everyone" feel of our old church.
SUMMARY TO-DATE
We know we will never find "the perfect church". There will always be something we don't like/prefer to have done differently. None of the churches we've gone to in Dallas, Dripping Springs or Hanover have been perfect. One was so big it seemed impersonal and the people a tad snooty but offered tons of Bible studies. Another was so small and didn't really have CG's and didn't have a church building but we loved the message and the people. One was the perfect size but didn't have a church building but did have CGs and the people were awesome, etcetcetc. So we're being nitpicky in what we're noting above but we know we're not likely to check all of our boxes. We haven't felt the "this is it" stirrings in our heart as an indicator from God that that's where He wants us.
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