AUTHOR: Sandi TITLE: Both Sides Now DATE: 9/14/2009 09:12:00 PM ----- BODY:

So Sunday was quite interesting. My roomie and I decided to try an Anglican church that meets in the State Museum for morning service, my gps said it would take 12 minutes to get there so we left 20 mins before the service started. We were 15 mins late! I Love construction, its just like home! So we got there about half way through the message, it was really good, in Mark 8 about how Peter was at the top of his game, finally agknowledged Jesus as Christ and then totaly blew it when Jesus started talking about his death. Really applicable to life, great message. So then we all stood up and said the Nicean Creed, and then shook hands, quickly changed our 'how are you's to 'God's peace' and then did some more liturgy. We did this prayer thing that everyone said and then had a few minutes in between topics to pray on our own, had our little confession/absolution cross yourself moment and then did communion! ooooo fun. Sang something, maybe Chris Tomlin? the the doxology and offering, then the Sanctus benedictus thingy then we actually sang a bunch of songs from some old school Delerious? to Be Thou My Vision (which is quickly becoming level with Victory in Jesus and Come Thou Fount as my fav hymns)while communion itself happened. Everyone gets to go down to the front and get their bread and blessing from one guy and then their wine (yuck i'd forgotten how alcohol tastes like something spoiled to me) from the cup barer which is way awkward, he's trying to pour, you're trying to guide him, everyone else has just used the same cup. Just weird all the way around. But not necessarily bad. Some of the CIU people there were not people i would have placed in an Anglican church but I guess we get enough modern worship at school during the week so that Sundays liturgy isn't that bad. It was an interesting learning expirience to have. The same night we decided to try Midtown Fellowship, which ironically, meets in the same room as the Anglicans. This was like home! Just like Wednesday, good music, some BlueTree version of God of this City, some other k-love songs, goodness. People our age! The message was on Rom. 12:12-13 i think, they're doing a series through Romans 12, the pastor was a younger guy who really spoke on our level and made the verses totally apply to anyone's situation in everyday life which was cool, but it wasn't like one of those younger crowd messages that makes you feel good and avoids that whole sin is bad and God wants something from you thing which was really great to find in a younger church. They also kept using the word family instead of congregation it just really felt close knit in spite of the fact that they fill up the 250 seat room for 3 night services every sunday and one service at a bigger campus. I think that we will most deff be going back even if we pick a morning church to be our home while here. In non-church hunting news, anybody want to go to Chincoteague? I dunno what I was doing but I just had this thought the other day that I haven't been in forever and its so pretty and I'd really love to see Surfer Dude again (he's the pony I love, he's tall, blonde, has a great deep tan and he's 17, o yeah!) So some time when I'm home this Christmas someone needs to go up with me just to hit the wildlife Res. on Assateague for a day. Babe? Space? Gma? Dearest Aunt? Whos up for it?

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