Church Tryout #2

Okay so we tried out church #2 yesterday. It's called New Community Church and we really liked it. We are planning to go again next Sunday, because this week was a youth led service. They had just gotten back from a mission trip in Boston and put together this great service. We were warmly welcomed and they had a "meet and greet" time before the service with coffee and donuts. We met the youth minister's husband. Yes, the Part-time youth minister is a woman, and she seemed really good. Pastor Bill would have LOVED the sanctuary. It was a multi-purpose room that served as a gym, sanctuary, and probably fellowship hall. The acoustics were really good for having a tile floor. They were kinda small, and only have one service. We're curious about their small group ministry. We like the idea of being in a smaller church, because we may have more opportunities to get plugged in and help. (Hey Adam may even get to preach there sometime.)

The prior week we went to Richland Creek Community Church. It was a very large church. They have three services and you could probably put Elvaton Church's entire building in the sanctuary. No one greeted us and we felt like we stuck out like a sore thumb. We participated in communion, but it was done differently then we had ever experienced. The "process" wasn't explained and we were unsure of what to do. There were 4 tables set up across the front. You walked up when the ushers let your row go, you took the communion elements, then prayed as a family at the alter. At least that's what everyone else did, so Adam prayed over our communion. It was kind of a cool concept, but since it wasn't really explained, we were kinda lost and confused. At least the Pastor did explain that the communion was meant for Christians. We had a friend visiting for the weekend, so it was the three of us at the alter. Afterward, the consensus was that if we weren't Christians walking into the church, we probably wouldn't go back.

This process of finding a church is so new to us. It's hard because we want to go about it with the right approach. A church isn't a building, so we shouldn't judge based on the size or color or whether it's new or it's old. We may not feel comfortable at first, but God doesn't call us to be comfortable all of the time. However, we know that the right church for us is about the people. Our original plan was to go to a bunch of churches and then "pick" if you will which one we would attend. We've been convicted that we just cannot find a church this way. We would be doing all of those things that we shouldn't...comparing based on wealth, size, what people do for us, etc. We'll continue to go to New Community. If we feel that there are "Theological" issues, or false teaching, then we won't continue. However, this may be our "Raleigh" church. Please pray for us as we seek God's plan for us during our time here in Wake Forest, just as we pray for Elvaton's Pastor search over the upcoming months.