Twenty years ago if I could look into the future and see my life now I probably would have been skeptical about my church life. My 16-year-old know-it-all self would have said to me:
What the heck? You’re always volunteering at the church, you’re always there doing kid stuff, it seems like all your friends are church friends. You even sing from the hymnal. THE HYMNAL. Don’t you remember we think those songs are boring? Church church church church church church church…Phhhhhtttttt.
Now I’m a mom and we’re trying to raise a family in the best way we know how. We want a place where our children will get a Christian foundation while being encouraged to ask questions and discover for themselves what faith means. We want to meet adults who are like minded, who won’t look at me strange when I ask off-the-wall questions about my faith. We want a place of worship that challenges our minds as well as soothes our hearts.
We want a sense of community.
If I could tell that skeptical teenager why I participate in church I think I would tell her:
In 20 years you’re going to be a mom and I know you want to be a “super cool mom” but it’s not as easy as you think. Your kids are going to start asking questions about life and faith and God and you need to be prepared. You need friends to lean on who understand you and have similar beliefs. You need a place where you can continue learning because just because you’re “old” you don’t have all the answers. And the hymns…I know the music seems old-fashioned but you’ll be surprise at the meaning and depth of the words. You’ll get tired of the repetition and shallow lyrics of the stuff you like now.
You’ll want a community you can call your own.
brenda butcher
Right on, and at the end of life when you find your self at the finished line of this race, I want to hear my Lord say “Well done faithful servant come in and spend eternity with me”. You did not choose me but I chose you and gave you an assignment to go and bear fruit.
Mother’s Day and Baby Dedication « Hugs, Kisses and Snot
[…] past weekend, Mother’s Day weekend, was the semi-annual baby dedication at church. I’m pretty sure they orchestrate this event just to make me cry and start to think I want […]
Mother's Day and Baby Dedication | Hugs, Kisses and Snot
[…] past weekend, Mother’s Day weekend, was the semi-annual baby dedication at church. I’m pretty sure they orchestrate this event just to make me cry and start to think I want […]
Find Your Village | Hugs, Kisses and Snot
[…] and tantrums and feel validated. Being a part of a village gives us the sense of community that we […]
Edward Gray
What a joy to find this beautiful post!