We visited Danube International Church (www.danubechurch.org) for the second Sunday this morning. Our new friends, Keesha & Lee and also Hillary & Matt attend Danube. Neither of them were there last week, so it was nice to see their familiar faces this morning. The church is an English-speaking non-denominational church pastored by Ronnie Stevens, a native of Atlanta, Georgia. We have enjoyed Pastor Stevens' messages for the past two weeks. Caden is able to take part in a Sunday School program that he has enjoyed and while there is a nursery for Reese, I have not found the courage to take her there yet. Maybe next week...
Being raised in a traditional Methodist church where I easily memorized the Affirmation of Faith at a young age, sang from a hymnal, and prayed the Lord's Prayer with the rest of the congregation, the modern expression of worship employed at Danube International is a little different for me. While I know that many Methodist churches are themselves moving to more modern forms of worship, I have continued to uphold the traditional service and its ritualistic offerings as my worship method of choice. However, as I sat in the service today, not hearing the traditional Lord's Prayer or repeating the Call to Worship, but instead listening to the "free form" prayers of the congregation who were invited to speak out if they felt inclined to do so, it made me feel like maybe I had been taking the easy road. In the structure and routine of traditional services we had been attending, I may have lost sight of the purpose for being there. While a traditional service gives one the opportunity to "participate" in a non-threatening way, participation here would be quite public. I took my first stab at this by standing to introduce ourselves when asked if there were first-time visitors. From being present now 2 Sundays in a row, there seem to be visitors each week and all are eager to stand and speak when I was a little bit more reluctant. Worship at this church is not about just being present, its about taking part. I think we may learn something from experiencing worship like this.
So, while it may take me a little while to get used to singing praise songs from a projector screen and the absence of scripted prayer, I will continue to approach these new worship experiences thoughtfully and humbly. Perhaps I'll find my voice when invited to pray out loud sometime within the next 2 years :)
Being raised in a traditional Methodist church where I easily memorized the Affirmation of Faith at a young age, sang from a hymnal, and prayed the Lord's Prayer with the rest of the congregation, the modern expression of worship employed at Danube International is a little different for me. While I know that many Methodist churches are themselves moving to more modern forms of worship, I have continued to uphold the traditional service and its ritualistic offerings as my worship method of choice. However, as I sat in the service today, not hearing the traditional Lord's Prayer or repeating the Call to Worship, but instead listening to the "free form" prayers of the congregation who were invited to speak out if they felt inclined to do so, it made me feel like maybe I had been taking the easy road. In the structure and routine of traditional services we had been attending, I may have lost sight of the purpose for being there. While a traditional service gives one the opportunity to "participate" in a non-threatening way, participation here would be quite public. I took my first stab at this by standing to introduce ourselves when asked if there were first-time visitors. From being present now 2 Sundays in a row, there seem to be visitors each week and all are eager to stand and speak when I was a little bit more reluctant. Worship at this church is not about just being present, its about taking part. I think we may learn something from experiencing worship like this.
So, while it may take me a little while to get used to singing praise songs from a projector screen and the absence of scripted prayer, I will continue to approach these new worship experiences thoughtfully and humbly. Perhaps I'll find my voice when invited to pray out loud sometime within the next 2 years :)
Reese & Caden getting ready for church last Sunday
3 comments:
I'm proud of you Meredith!!
I'm glad that you have found a place where you can grow and challenge yourself spiritually! I do understand about being wary of leaving Reese in the nursery until you are more comfortable though. You mom and Bebe came over Sunday and we showed Bebe the videos of Reese and Caden. Hugs and kisses to the kids,
Cathy
that is wonderful.. I too was raised in a more traditional, ritualistic denomination and completely understand what you are saying.. It takes a lot of courage to change from what you are used to.. believe me! The most important thing is to build a relationship with Christ, where ever you can do that is the right place to be. and on a side note.. I just love church childcare, don't you?!
Post a Comment