More changes
A little more than a year ago I started going to church again. I returned to the church I grew up in, the same church my wife attended, the church where we first met each other during kindergarten.
Our familiarity with the church brought a certain amount of comfort with it. It was filled with old friends eager to welcome us back, but it’s a very traditional church. That’s not a bad thing, but we think it may be an improper fit for our family.
We visited another church this morning. The difference was obvious when we walked in the door. The majority of the church was young. Most of those attending the church looked like they were under 40, and man of those looked younger than 25. I enjoy the messages prepared by the pastor of our childhood church, but the leader of the church we visited this morning delivers a more contemporary message.
Julie used to attend this church and our children studied there for a while when they were much younger. Our middle children really enjoyed the youth group.
I’m enjoying church and particularly studying the Bible. It’s a fascinating book that brings up a lot of questions for me as well as a lot of ideas I don’t necessarily agree with. That’s why I’m studying the book. My family bought me a wonderful study Bible for my 36th birthday and I look forward to carrying it to the group we are meeting with tonight—a group dedicated to learning how to study the Bible.
That’s a little bit like learning how to paint… everyone does it a little bit differently. That’s not to say that there aren’t good ways and bad ways… but the method you use will almost certainly determine the result you get. If you study with a doctrine-inspired hermeneutic, your results will conform to the doctrine. If you study using academic methods, you’ll spend the rest of your life chasing rabbit trails and often unable to discern what it means without a fair amount of speculation – but you’ll learn a lot of fantastic things about the book in the process. Good luck to you, know matter what approach you take!
Right. So now you’ve found Jesus, you God-bothering bastard. I preffered you when you had kahunas. Moses on a fucking mountain already. Newsflash. The world is fucked. Love to the missus and all, but.
That word “preffered” or course, should read preferred. Be a pal and see to it.