Church

This weekend we went to church for the first time in...well....a long time. I haven't found a church in our town where I feel comfortable. Well, there is one that I sort of like but it doesn't have an active nursery and KK is not up for sitting through a service as much as I wish she was. I've taken her a few times and ended up sitting in the empty nursery with her by myself. It seemed a bit pointless.

Part of my issue is that I have been a member of the same congregation since I was 9 months old. Going to church anywhere else feels like I'm cheating. No other group of people compares to my home congregation and none ever will. They are my family. But it is more than a thousand miles away and, well, that is a long drive. It is important to me, though, to learn and grow in (and confront) my own faith issues, as well as give KK an opportunity to learn about faith and to build her own church family. So we tried another new church in a different town, only about five miles from our house.

This particular church is what I call a "behemoth church." It has parking lot attendants whereas the church I grew up in doesn't even have a parking lot. The building is more like a fancy high school gymnasium, whereas my home church really looks like a church (and the most beautiful one ever, as you can see here). Of course the actual building isn't the most important thing, but the churches in this area are all very different for me. They're just so...big. If you're not there early, you might not get a seat. This new church has an American Idol/rock concert feel to the music. (Which is a good thing - I'm a fan of both.) The message was good and definitely made me reflect and think about things. They have a huge children's program and KK went straight into her classroom (a whole classroom just for 15-24 month olds - and it had lots of kids in it!) without even glancing back at me. Apparently it took her almost an hour to realize that I wasn't there and she started crying a few minutes before I came to get her at the end of the service. And the very best part is that two of my very good friends go there on a regular basis and I didn't even know it! I sat with them during the service and then we went to lunch - it was fabulous.

So, while I liked it, I still have a lot of investigating to do. I am Lutheran and this church isn't Lutheran. Actually I don't even know what it is. After only one visit I don't have a feel for the 'policies or statements' of this congregation - and that will be important. I plan to visit again next Sunday and from there we'll see how it goes...