The Church Hopper

As I arrived at Union Presbyterian Church, I noticed that their congregation was about what I expected it to be; smaller and older than DRC. I walked inside and the man at the door greeted me and pointed to the sanctuary. As I sat down and absorbed the color of the stained glass, the large globe lighting, and the color of the carpet/pews I felt like I had walked back in time to the 1970s. (Which is kinda funny when you find out about the sermon theme.) 

It was Memorial Day weekend, so their pastor and organist were both out of town, but they had guests filling in. The worship leader was a female member of the church. She led the service with much grace, and kept things going smoothly. This was my first visit to a Presybrterian church and it was as if a Baptist and a Methodist church had a baby. (I’ll explain) The organ playing and the types of hymns felt very traditional Baptist to me. However, the liturgy and order of worship felt very Methodist. I do feel that this denomination is a very “peaceful” group of people. This service was just a few days after the school shooting in Texas, and they called for the congregation to be in prayer for this situation and not protest, which I found to be interesting. 

The sermon was about -remembering back when- even though I am not sure of the exact title since they had no bulletins. He talked about how his buddies at work like to see who can remember the most about the things that are no longer in the Danville area… For example: the fountain at the mall, when memorial drive was a dirt road, when there were boat tours on the Dan River etc. He said they can spend hours thinking back on the things that used to be, He also mentioned that the more that you would sit and think back on the more you would remember. He connected this to when we are going through seasons of doubt, sickness, hopelessness that we then too should look back on what God has already done for us. Remembering what God has already done can give us strength during our trials and during seasons of waiting.   

During the last hymn, the older lady that was behind me leaned over and thanked me for coming. She truly seemed happy to have me visit. I left after the service was over without anyone really speaking to me. The congregation had about 14 people in total, they all seemed very close, like they had all probably been members there forever. 

What I walked away with from my two church visits that week are these things:

1. You can be in a church with a lot of people and a church with a few and go unnoticed by the majority in both. 

2. You can feel just as moved by a sermon on a big stage by a pastor as you can by a guest speaker at a podium.

3. Authentic “Welcome” and “Thank you for visiting with us” sayings really do go a long way.

4. You can never get a true feeling of a church with one visit, but first impressions do stick with you.

I enjoyed both visits and think that both churches would be great fits for different people. I am so thankful that we serve a God that is for all of us, even when churches aren’t.