What a great question.................part one

What a great question Crusty asked..." How does Church make you feel afterwards? Is it routine and tradition that you're used to? Or does it give you different feelings? Always Crusty I have been pondering this since I read it. I think these questions are really great ones that I am sure the answers are as different as people are. I would be interested in knowing what other people think since spirituality is so different for people...I would be interested in what you see as " church' is for you if it is a church family or involved at a temple or if your spirituality is between just yourself and a higher power or nature...so please for those who read this blog I am really interested what your thoughts and feelings are. I think for me this will be a long post and might end up being a few posts. I might even go on a tangent or two to explain some thoughts....
I think for myself it depends what is going on when I am in fellowship with other people who love Jesus and desire to be more like him. The church group that I am involved with has few traditions though some routines so I will share what a typical Sunday looks like from my view and the feelings that go along with this on most Sundays. I know that the word "Church" means different things to people for right now I will be using the word Church as a group of people who love Jesus and desire to know Jesus more and show others the love of Jesus.
C.V. right now does not have a building of our own. The begining of the plant (which is when a group divides off from a church and starts their own for lack of a better word branch of that church which in this case are Vineyard churches. The plant is because the growth of the church and not because there were disagreements and such) the people met at a home and then a park and then moved to a school and now we are at another school. So on a Sunday morning when I arrive early to get the children's table set up and ready there are already people there for about two hours before the first service to get the sound equipment in the building...for the worship band to get set up....for chairs to be put out...for coffee to be made...for all of the toys and art supplies and such all the equipment brought from the storage garage to the building to set it up. The thoughts and feelings that I have at that time is that I am thankful for all the people who give so much of their time and energy. I am thankful that I go to a place where there are things that I can do to serve such as the check in table for the children and that there are places for everyone to be able to serve no matter who he or she is. One thing that has always been in my life is a special place for children. I delight in that this group of people follow Jesus's lead and delight in children....one might seee that care in a classsroom or the children being in service perhaps a young baby with a parent or perhaps a young tot crawling in the back of the service and hearing the sweet voices perhaps of a baby babbling on a child singing along in worship...another way one might see this is for a dedication for a baby...praying for a couple who is going overseas to meet their daughter for the first time....it might be wanting to make sure that every child gets his or her needs met and perhaps finding an aide for that child in the classroom. I get exited when I see the church growing and that it is full of such a variety of people....people who are not sure if they believe in God...people who are not sure what they believe....people who are struggling with lifes hard issues which could be a marriage not working out....someone who is using drugs or sex or spending too many hours at work or ??? whatever people might use to numb the pain that they are experiencing. I am not exited about peoples pain yet I am exited about a church a group of people where people can be real with what is going on even when it is messy. i like knowing that i do not have to put on a smile if things are hard....Worship is something that fills me with gratitude and awe and sometimes sadness and a variety of feelings to realize that this group of people are worshiping God the one and only God who sent His only son to die for us and die for me....so this might involve being quiet when others are singing or standing and raising my hands or dancing and not having to worry if one looks silly because we are not there to impress each other with how we worhip hopefully....and i really enjoy the comtemporary music we worship with and am thankful and feel blessed to have so many talented people on the worship teams. I also am blown away at times knowing that there are such a variety of people in this one room...married and single and various cultures and some handicapped and some hippies some perhaps a woman who has a permit to carry a concealed weapon and some really poor and some really rich people who have such a variety of thinking about various world and political issues. It is important to me to be part of a body of believers who serve people and love Jesus like Jesus would such as going to a nursing/rehab center where to be there you are homeless and life is hard and to be able to have the priviledge to go there and talk with someone and let them know that there are people who do know that life is hard and care....and also people care about a group of orphans overseas and make sure that the children and staff have what they need or want and to let them know that someone cares and loves them and how much God loves them! The other thing I delight in on a Sunday morning is the chance to get to meet someone or know someone and catch up with what is going on with him or her during the time between services with a cup of coffee and a muffin. The group that I am involved with has small groups during the week and during those groups I also experience such a great variety of feelings....time to share joy and sadness and pray for each other and talk about the hard issues and also have some great social times full of joy and laughter and the opportunity to serve others in the community with that group of people. The groups are another way to be real with people and for others who are again not sure what they believe or if they do to be welcomed and cared about. So.....as far as traditions go I do not see that myself but I know I do see some routine things that go on and that those routine things are not routine or typical in many of the churches here in the United States. One other thing that I want to add is that I am almost every Sunday challanged by the teaching or a conversation on how I can be a better person with letting Jesus more into a certain area of my life or a way I can give more of time or talent or such. So after a service on Sunday I am full of lots and lots of feelings and even when life is hard and I am convicted by a teaching and have been encouraged to be more real in a conversation and would not change any of it. I think this is a subject that I will most likely write a few posts about. I think I will write later on tonight or tomorrow to tell people more about Vineyard churches and what they are about and such. Again I would really like to know how others would answer these questions.
lj's so far today.....a really good meeting with pat my case manager...listening to some oldies on the radio (feeling a bit old when the 80's music are on the oldies stations)....having a great cup of coffee at borders bookstore....crusty asking such great questions that have really sparked some thinking..,having a great conversation last evening with my friend john...getting to go to the e.d. group tonight...............