Sunday morning church is a small (200 or so souls) Baptist fellowship in our small town. Lots of new believers, young families etc Jamie leads worship there quite frequently and the rest of us sing/bash things in a vaguely rhythmic manner. It has lots of problems. Sometimes, I'm so frustrated with this church that I go home and weep.
Sunday evening church is an evangelical Anglican church in the nearby city of Oxford. It has 4 services and therefore, four congregations. Over a 1,000 people come through its doors each Sunday. 8.00 am is short and quite formal. 9.00 is bustling with babies and families. It's lively and family-orientated. 11.15 is packed with couples who like to lie in on a Sunday morning. There's a choir and communion and it has a more contemplative feel. But Sunday evening is our particular cup of tea. There's a band, the two worship leaders who rotate are both well-known song-writers in their own right. The music is always excellent. The service is relaxed and informal. The teaching is the best expository Bible teaching I've ever heard and I've been lucky enough to hear some excellent speakers (mostly out of the Anglican tradition, like John Stott for example.) Sigh...My heart sings when I've worshipped there.
Well, on Sunday we celebrated with this church its centenary. It has a very special and unusual foundation and is connected with Wycliffe Hall, a college of the University of Oxford. There were marquees on the lawn, a cricket match, a hog roast, two brilliant services, sermons by bishops, testimonies from former members...oh so encouraging and enriching. And Jesus, always present, always invited deep into the heart of every event at this church, always presiding, always cherished by this flock.
Next week, we're back to our morning church (the one that makes me weep) where I'll look for Jesus and probably won't find Him. Though He's there, of course. Believers everywhere are His church, He is its head, we are the body.
I'll pray He makes himself vibrantly present with us in the way He so clearly is in the Oxford church. And I'll pray we can figure out why on earth He wants us there, when life would be so much easier in Oxford. {g}
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7 comments:
You know, hog roasting is not on my short list of what I look for in a church. ::snort::
You should come to Dad's next week, he's been camped on "what the body should be" for years now. I think last night he read from 3 different WNee books - mostly Twelve Baskets Full (we had to read that WHOLE book - 96 pages).
We must assume that you are a part of the body in your Baptist church. And each part of the body is ESSENTIAL. It may be that God will use you there & release you to the other church where your heart sings. Or it may not be - you never can tell with Him. Thanks to God that you have both.
Well, I think looking around at our church on Sunday is going to have a whole new meaning - I wonder where we'd stick the hog pit LOL
Frustrations may abound, but the Baptist church definitely needs you - a rock of faith in a brand new church. May God be glorified by the work you're doing there, even if it's so hard for you.
But oh...the Evangelical Anglican church makes my heart sing, as well. Briefly, we were part of a Baptist church that had Anglican leanings, and I have to say, that has been the church where I've felt the presence of G-d in my heart more than any other church on an ongoing basis. It just 'fits' me, if that makes sense. It's entirely too far away for us to travel to now, and we do have our home church we're involved in. But goodness, Dorothy, your post makes me long for 'home'. It sounds lovely!
Hi Dorothy!
Just catching up on your blog tonight. Our summer travels have put a damper on my computer reading time. We leave again on Monday so I trying to catch up this weekend.
I wokeup this morning to the bomb scares in London. How scarey! Thank the good Lord that they were stopped before they could go off.
It was great cathing up with you tonight!!!!!
Dorothy - I love hearing your voice and thoughts. I can so clearly feel your frustrations and also your joys.
God is working! He IS present at both churches. He may be working more in you and your family than in the other people. Bless you for being faithful!
May both church homes be an ever greater blessing to you and your family. Given how much a blessing you are on the email list, I am sure your presence must be a help to both bodies in Christ though its probably not easy trying to be the salt & the light when things look like they are going wrong. Praying with you, especially for the young pastor whose wife is so injured.
I am very glad to hear there are more Evangelical Anglicans now. I was born Episcopal but never found a solid church here of that denomination, but I formally accepted Christ as a youngster after speaking to a visiting Evangelical Anglican- so I've always had hope!
Susan in Va (SHS)
Dorothy,
God bless you for your faithfulness to continue to serve even when you wonder why you're still there! I'm SO glad you have the opportunity to attend an evening service where you can be refreshed and filled. Isn't God GOOD to provide both opportunities for you! Imagine what it would be like if the one were the ONLY church close enough to attend.....
I know, guys.
It seems so obvious looking in from the outside that we need to stay at the Baptist church. But I have to tell you, when you find yourself running upstairs to fling yourself on the bed to cry after church because the service has been so awful, it's a very dispiriting thing.
We tell ourselves that if it starts to affect the kids in an adverse way, we will leave.
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