"Back" to church... somewhere else

We had not attended a Sunday worship gathering for 3 full months. That is by far the longest stretch for us in many a' moon (or, decades, actually).

We didn't intend to take this long of a break. Even after deciding we maybe didn't want to go back to where we had been, we thought we would visit other places much sooner. It just hadn't worked out yet.

So, yesterday morning we decided to visit a place on the northeast side of town (https://nefw.org/). Interestingly enough, the pic on their website (above) is from the street where I work, which is not very close to their church building. I suppose there could be a couple reasons for that. Anyway...

Several years ago someone recommended that I/we might like this church. I also somewhat "know" one of the pastors. That's about all we knew about it. For some reason - maybe because we knew so little about it, compared to what we do know about so many other churches in town - it just seemed like the place to go today. It's also interesting that this was the first Sunday of Advent (the start of a new "Christian year").

As we parked the car and walked toward the building, we wondered if we would be ignored or swarmed when we walked inside. It wasn't bad. We were greeted at the door by a guy who gave us a bulletin and simply said "hi," and that was about it for interaction. We found a seat in the 'pew chairs' about 2/3 of the way back and on the outside aisle. Our safe spot. It seemed nice.

Some observations:

• It seemed we were two of the younger people there (although we were at the 11 am service, and there may be more older people - like us - at the 9:15 service). 
• I saw several people I recognized. Ironically, a guy I actually know came in and sat down right in front of us (without knowing it was us). Apparently all the guys in the band 'James and the Drifters' are part of this church.
• It seemed smaller than I expected. A small-ish entryway, with what appeared to be a kitchen-type space in the far corner. The "sanctuary" was pretty small too - maybe just a little larger than our old church where I used to pastor. 
• It was decorated very "home-y." Obviously, it's Christmas season, so there was a tree, and lots of Christmas lights hung throughout the sanctuary. Otherwise, it was very simple, yet tastefully done.
• The music was similar to the decorating. They had a band, but it wasn't "in-your-face" with the instruments. I really didn't even notice the acoustic guitar, bass, keyboard and drums. They were mere accompaniment to the voices... and voices of the PEOPLE IN THE PEWS! I liked that! The songs were very familiar to us, and incorporated some old hymns that were familiar to us. I hadn't realized (or maybe I had) just how much I missed this type and way of music/singing. It wasn't perfect, but it was "good"... in a good way.
• I was surprised that the speaker this morning was the guy I actually somewhat know. I didn't know he was the "preaching pastor" - and maybe he isn't, or maybe he is - I don't know. But he preached this morning and it seemed, at least in my mind, to be very much like I used to. He used a music stand and a manuscript, and spoke with his hands a lot. He also quoted some of my favorite people and used terminology and phrases I tend to like. It felt very "right" to me.
• They shared communion at the end, and then we closed with several more songs. The kicker was a spur-of-the-moment addition of "How Great Is Our God." I can't believe I'd forgotten one of my all-time favorite songs. They even threw in the "How Great Thou Art" chorus part.
• As far as people interaction, the only people that spoke to us were the guy who said "hi" and gave us a bulletin, the guy I knew that sat in front of us, and the guy who preached gave me a one-shoulder hug on my way back from getting communion.

 
So... it was an interesting morning. I/we didn't attend this church expecting it to be where we would continue going, and I can't imagine we will. It's like 20 minutes from our house. However, it felt kind of like home - to me at least. Reggie McNeal talks about the need to worship in your own "heart language." This felt like that. Although, it was one Sunday, and there are likely many other churches where it can happen too.

Anyway, I sat there fighting tears most of the morning. I don't know if it was because it had been so long since we'd attended a Sunday service, or because it seemed like one thing after another touched my heart somehow. Regardless of everything else, it was a nice morning of worship. On this first Sunday of Advent...