Nolan and I had some time to pass before a meeting with his new teacher a few weeks ago (So excited to start preschool!), so we spent it in this stunning sanctuary.
We talked about the hand-crafted stained glass windows and the story of Good News they tell.
We climbed the stairs to the balcony and sat in awe of the bigness of the space and our smallness in it, amplified by the echo of Nolan’s laughter.
The sound of children in a sanctuary or chapel or any place of worship, whether the laughter of squirmy toddlers or the coos and cries of babies or the lifted voices of youth, is a favorite of mine. It means their families and loved ones or they themselves chose to worship and fellowship and learn together with all of us imperfect people who need Jesus and need community, and that is no small thing.
When we’re all there and reach across the pews to welcome and encourage one another, that feeling of smallness and quiet reverence softens in an atmosphere of family and the overcoming presence of God’s love.
Nolan and I walked back down the stairs from the balcony and briefly talked about the symbol of baptism and the baptismal “pool” at the front of the room, about the cross and altar and organ pipes.
After a sudden burst of energy down the aisle on his part—gracious, to have even half of that energy—we reached the altar steps, and Nolan sang a prayer that may or may not have made me a little misty-eyed:
“God our Father, thank you for our blessings. Amen”
This beautiful church building holds so many fond memories for me:
- children’s and youth choir,
- praise team,
- Girls in Action,
- a dozen or more Vacation Bible Schools,
- Sunday School,
- worship services steeped in the Word,
- Wednesday night meals and fellowship,
- youth group,
- preparation for mission trips,
- life-long friendships,
- abundant prayers and praises,
- countless blessings—most life-altering among them my salvation, baptism, and wedding ceremony.
Friends, it’s NOT the beauty of the building that moved me to tears.
It’s the overwhelming beauty in the constant presence and provision and power of my Savior,
… the beauty in the faithfulness and love of my good Father and family and church family,
… the beautiful hearts of all of these servants and their joyfully welcoming us back into the fold after more than a decade away in a different city,
… the beauty in the grace and goodwill that extends to everyone here,
… the beauty in the need for larger Sunday School rooms and more chairs because so many people are coming to find Jesus and journey the Way together and invest in each other and in ministry within our community and throughout the world …
… and my two children now get to experience all of that beauty and agape love for themselves.
Tears of joy, friends.
That said, church (lower case, rather than the universal Church, upper case) is never perfect because people aren’t perfect. We make mistakes and get things wrong and struggle with a laundry list of sin individually and collectively and should be held accountable for such.
Thank goodness Jesus—love itself, friend of sinners, God with us—loves us too much to leave us that way!
This body of believers has been such a big part of the way He continues to change and grow my heart for Him and my heart for people.
Church isn’t simply a building or something to do on Sundays. We call places of communal worship churches, but it’s the people inside who are really the church, believers in Christ Jesus as our personal Savior and the Lord of our lives.
Church goes where we go—to all the world and a friend’s living room, to the shade under a neighbor’s oak tree and to secret meeting rooms in countries where Christianity is outlawed, to the most magnificent of cathedrals and to huts with dirt floors and leaky roofs—
because He and His Spirit go before us and with us and in us.
If you haven’t found a church home, one that enthusiastically dives into scripture and worship and outreach and sharing Christ’s message of hope and salvation, I want to encourage you to prayerfully consider doing so and to begin that process with a step of faith.
It may feel unfamiliar and awkward and very much outside of your comfort zone, but the community and encouragement and truth of His Word, the outlet for your own God-given gifts and the love you’ll find could be life-changing. It has been for me.
There are many other wonderful churches out there who too value people rather than perfection. I promise they’re there … just need to go looking for them.
