Love God More (Visiting Church #39) Today we attend our final church service of the year. With it falling between Christmas and New Year’s Day, I expect a light turnout. We are greeted by friendly faces and hearty handshakes. The sanctuary seats...
A Fresh Sunday Experience (Visiting Church #38) The church meets in the all-purpose room of a local school. The atmosphere is casual, with people milling about, talking, sipping coffee, and munching snacks. With all ages represented, we see many...
A Family That Likes to Sing (Visiting Church #37) Including us, twenty-one people have gathered. Up front, a rugged wooden cross has a purple cloth draped over it and a white dove perched on the crosspiece. The bird seems out of place until my...
Church Happens Anyway (Visiting Church #36) We arrive at church to find an empty lobby. Hearing an amplified voice, we head towards the sound. We find a large sanctuary with 162 chairs and 20 people. Like last week, we slink into a back row. A...
Confusing Signals but with a Good Result (Visiting Church #35) Two weeks ago we stumbled upon this church. They are new to us, not coming up in any of our research. Once we know their name, my wife finds them on Facebook, confirming their...
The Holy Spirit Grows the Church (Visiting Church #34) Today’s destination is a tiny country church. Their pastor resigned a couple months ago and some families left as well. Another church from their denomination (some forty miles away) has come...
Be Thankful (Visiting Church #33) We only recently learned of today’s congregation, discovering them in a printed directory of churches. Their rural location seems further removed from us than our 8.8 mile drive. Their scripture for today is...
A Simple Gesture (Visiting Church #32) We ascend the steps of the church, and a gregarious woman approaches. She’s wearing a white vestment, and I spy a clerical collar underneath. We’ve never been received so cordially. She thanks us for...
A Traditional Yet Modern Service (Visiting Church #31) It’s Saturday, and we head to church, a Seventh Day Adventist gathering. The focal point of the sanctuary is a large stained glass array. Modern and abstract it portrays an arm reaching up...
Enthusiastic Faith (Visiting Church #30) As people drift in, excitement mounts. Anticipation surrounds us. The church seats about 150, with perhaps seventy present, although their milling about makes it seem fuller. Most of the men wear coats and...
