Saturday, December 12, 2015

Fairview First Assembly of God

     Three Sunday's ago (Oh gosh! Has it been that long? How is it time gets away from me so quickly?) our family visited the Fairview First Assembly of God Church here in Fairview, Oklahoma for our worship opportunity, and it was a truly heartwarming experience.  We were running a little bit late for the service which begins at 10:30, so we slipped as quietly as possible into a pew in the back and hoped maybe everyone was too busy singing praise songs to notice. 

     The music was led by the pastor (who plays the guitar) and his wife. They have beautiful voices, and it seemed like every song they chose was one of our favorites.  The worship music went on for quite a while which is absolutely perfect for me since I do my best worshiping and feel most connected with my heavenly Father through music.  Some of the members alternated sitting and standing during this time, and it appeared to be a very open and relaxed congregation who weren't tied down by any societal expectations or constraints. It was nice to feel as if I could sit or stand or raise up my hands in worship and no one would be bothered.


     After the music, a couple of congregational members came forward to make announcements. It was a relaxed and enjoyable time with some laughs intertwined with the business of the church.  I have found through the year, that I really appreciate churches that have a variety of congregational participation, and it was nice to have different people reading scripture and sharing the week's events.

    Tithes and offerings were taken in a different way than many of the churches we've attended.  A basket was placed at the front of the church, and worshipers were asked to come forward to present their offerings to Christ.  This took place at the same time as the greeting part of the service which gave everyone a chance to get out of their pews and make their way up and down the aisle and greet everyone in the process. We were greeted very enthusiastically with many of the members even hugging us in welcome.  I'm really not a "huggy" person, and I grew up in a church where hand-shaking is the norm, but I'm finding that hugs at church, even from strangers, really do make me feel loved and welcomed. 

After the tithing and greeting time, the pastor shared his message with us.  It was very well thought out and delivered and timely. I enjoyed his comparison between the ingredients in our Thanksgiving dinners and our relationship with Christ as he urged us to really go after the bread of life.  He encouraged us to make our relationship with Jesus good by spending time with him, so that we would begin to recognize God's voice and fall deeper in love with Christ.      

    The message was very good and would have completely the worship service well; however; what happened next, turned out to be the icing on the cake.  Pastor Charlie invited members forward for prayer time, we watched as a number of people of all ages moved to the front of the church to share prayer requests and pray together as a family.  We were able to witness a young lady accept Christ as she was surrounded by fellow believers praying for her and shedding tears on her behalf.  Several members asked for prayers for health concerns, and when one of my sweet students went forward to ask for healing from the seizures she's plagued with, I couldn't help but go forward to pray with her and weep my way through our humble petitions for God to do a miracle in her life.  It was a beautiful touching time together with the body of Christ and I could definitely feel the presence of the Lord in our midst.


   When the prayer time ended, the service did also, and we had the opportunity to visit with the pastor as well as a few other members before time to depart.  Pastor Charlie shared with me that they have recently completed a series called Launch, and that several of his members have been moved to begin ministry opportunities outside of the church building in the community and surrounding areas.  He declared that though the church was small and had been established for generations, it is a church that is changing and moving forward and listening to God's calling on their lives. A calling to reach out to others, a calling to join with other Christians and unite in Christ, and a calling to show the love of God to others by loving them ourselves. 

     We feel so grateful to have been present at the Fairview First Assembly of God Church on our Steeple Chase this year.  What a blessing to be a part of a community with so many Christ followers who truly love one another and care about the people of our community. It is incredible to think of all that we can accomplish for God when we unite in our faith and pour His love out on all we encounter.

Saturday, November 21, 2015

Harvest Fellowship: Leedey, America

    

It was 1996, I was entering my senior year in high school, Doc Martins and flannel shirts were all the rage, we were dancing the Macarena, and it was all coming back, coming back to Celine now.

     And Pastor Mark Haney received a vision from God.

     It was a vision with biblical backing coming from Matthew 9: 36-38 where Jesus' heart breaks and he has compassion on the crowds of people who are "so confused and aimless that they were like sheep with no shepherd," and he declares to his disciples, "What a huge harvest! What few workers! On your knees and pray for harvest hands!" (paraphrasing mine; direct quotes from The Message). 

    Pastor Mark received a vision, accepted his calling, and obeyed God's will to plant a New Testament Church in Leedey, Oklahoma that was "healthy in worship, ministry, evangelism, and discipleship" (taken from hfchurch.com).  He started out small in the year 2000 with a few people meeting in his garage, but within the year, they had grown and were in need of a larger meeting place.  They purchased a downtown storefront but quickly outgrew it as well, and it wasn't long before they were building a new church on the outskirts of town, and just after Christmas in 2008, they held the first service of what was christened Harvest Fellowship Church at it's new and current location. 

     It was at this simple yet lovely church that our family found ourselves worshiping this past Sunday morning, but to be completely honest, I wasn't thrilled to be going there. I know this sounds strange because I've been looking forward and planning to attend "that new church in Leedey" since our journey began, and we'd even headed that way a couple of times, only to have something come up that placed us at different churches altogether. However, this particular Sunday was hard because we'd been at my childhood church at Lenora the night before for their annual supper and auction and stayed the night at my parents' afterwards.  Once again it seems like I'm making no sense because staying with them made Leedey, Ok a much easier drive on a Sunday morning, but I found my decision wavering as I considered that my entire family was going to be at Lenora for church, AND they were having a guest speaker who I've been anxious to hear as well.  I very nearly called off the Steeple Chase and simply went where I wanted to go, but an easy (irritating, annoying) reminder from my husband redirected my thoughts to God's plan rather than my own, and we made the pilgrimage to Harvest Fellowship instead.

     We arrived a little before church started at 10:30 and parked in front of the metel framed, steepled structure and hurried to get inside out of the cold November wind.  The door was opened for us and we were given a bulliten as we entered into a cozy foyer with a small but inviting beverage cart in the corner.  The girls and I made our way to the restroom where we met the first of a number of friendly members who helped set us more at ease.  I had a good chat about the nice lotions in the restroom and left feeling a little more at home than when I first walked in the door. My husband waiting alone in the foyer, on the other hand, was beginning to get antsy think I'd gotten lost.

    
The sanctuary we entered was spacious and pretty and modern in concept.  With chairs instead of pews, a large open stage area with praise band tuning up, and strategically placed tithe and offering baskets instead of an official offering time during the service, it was a lot like many of the other newer, nondenominational fellowships we've attended.  Our girls were quickly spotted (they're a little hard to hide) and were greeted enthusiastically and invited to attend Children's Church later in the service by a beautiful lady who it turns out my husband had known "most of his life." In fact, she is married to Jason's high school baseball coach who was at the moment on stage warming up on his guitar.  He and his lovely wife are in charge of the youth at Harvest Fellowship as well as being involved in a number of other ministries.  Mark Ward has even written a number of books, and was kind enough to send those home with Jason and share his enthusiasm and passion for ministry with both of us after the service.

     The worship began with incredible music from the praise band.  The band calls themselves Unshakable, and if you ever get the chance to worship with them I highly recommend it.  They led us in songs like "The Voice of Truth", "I am Yours", and "Child of God". All songs with fantastic meaning that truly touched us and helped to open that door between our souls and our savior.


    During the music, rather than having a traditional passing of the offering plate or formal communion, the pastor and his wife, along with a number of other prayer leaders stationed around the room, offered a time of prayer for members of the congregation.  Men and women, young and old, made their way into the loving arms of fellow believers and shared a very powerful time of prayer.  It was different and touching and real and made me feel as if this congregation was truly a family that cared about and trusted one another and had absolute faith in the power of praying to a loving and powerful God. 

    The prayer and praise time was followed by a time with the children, and I was surprised at how many kids were present. We counted somewhere around 30 that were willing to go up front. They were shown a video about Operation Christmas Child.  My girls were very touched by the video and have mentioned several times since that we need to get our boxes done. (And now I'm realizing that I forgot to stop by and get any picked up, and I think I've waited too long. We do boxes every year. I'm feeling like a total failure right now! Boo!)



     After children's time, the kids rushed off to Children's Church, and Pastor Haney got started with an incredible message.  He started off with a bit of a public service announcement letting us know that this particular message wasn't going to be a feel-good message, but a very necessary "meat and potatoes" kind of sermon.  Taken primarily from Chapter 3 of the book of  Revelation, Pastor Haney reminded us that we as American Christians really have no idea what true persecution is all about. He proclaimed that we are in the midst of a holy war being disguised as a political war and that we better start preparing ourselves for living in a world where we are truly persecuted.  He pointed us to the early church and the teachings on persecution and the martyrdom of Stephen. (It was at this point that my husband leaned over and whispered, "We heard a sermon on this just the other day." To which I replied, "Uhm, yeah Babe, that was me." Insert laughing 'til you cry emoji here.) We were urged to quit caving into our "me, me" tendencies and give ourselves wholly to following Christ. We were reminded that to make a difference in the world we have to be different from the world.

     I particularly loved the story he shared of a man named Polycarp who was a prisoner and convert of John's on the island of Patmos who later became Bishop of the church at Smyrna.  As an old man, Polycarp was arrested by soldiers of Marcus Aurelius and dragged into the arena of the Roman Coliseum. He was told to denounce Jesus Christ and rather than do so, he not only refused saying that Jesus had never in 86 years done him wrong and he would not blaspheme his Savior and King, he went on to place himself in the pile of wood to be burned, and thanked God for judging him worthy of being martyred and allowing him to share the cup of Christ. Amazing!! It certainly made me wonder if my faith is strong enough and made me long for the kind of relationship with my King that would give me the strength to die so courageously for my faith in Him. 

     When the service was over, the congregation joined together to move in tables and chairs and prepare for a Harvest Feast of their own. We were invited to join, but had planned on joining family in Vici for Sunday Dinner, so we declined the meal, but stayed for a while afterwards while Jason caught up with his old (as in "in the past", not age) coach, and we shared how God has been moving in our lives and learned of all the He is doing in this fantastic little church on the edge of Bison Country.




     As we drove away, the little girls excitedly shared what they learned in their classes, our oldest belted out praise songs from the morning's worship, and everyone wished that we lived closer so we could come more often. I stated how glad I was that we had made the journey, and
 
Jason slyly grinned, "I guess it wasn't just me giving you a hard time this morning after all."  And he was right. God has truly blessed us in our Steeple Chase this year, and this Sunday at Harvest Fellowship, I learned just how blessed we can be when we listen and obey. 
 

 







 

 



 

Tuesday, November 17, 2015

Western Sunday: Watonga First Church of the Nazarene


     Many, many moons ago I went to school with a couple of boys by the names of Kris and Kason Oakes. Kris was in my class from preschool through graduation, and Kason was in my younger brother's class.  It was a small school in a small town and we all knew each other pretty well. From Ag trips to ballgames to youth group to class trips, we found ourselves in the same circles throughout our young lives; however, if you had told me that I would one day be sitting in a congregation with my family dressed up in their finest western wear while little brother Kason led his church in worship, I would have been pretty surprised.  I'm still a little surprised, but OH, so pleasantly surprised!

     A few weeks ago, Kason's mom tagged me in a post on Facebook which was a promotional video announcing the coming of Western Sunday at the Watonga Church of the Nazarene where Kason is pastor. The trailer video was cute and intriguing and definitely made me want to be a part of the fun, so November 1st, we put on our boots and belts and the youngest donned her hand-me-down pink cowboy hat, and we all headed off to church. 



     We arrived a little before the 10:45 worship service started and were greeted in the foyer by Pastor Kason himself, chaps and all.  After a quick visit, we were shown to the sanctuary which was appropriately decorated with hay bales and wagon wheels and found ourselves a seat.  A couple of members introduced themselves and welcomed us. One even sat down and visited for quite a while before the service began. 

    The service started with some fun western themed music. The church is gifted with a fantastic praise band, of which the pastor and his wife and father are all members, and the music was accompanied by guitars, drums, a banjo, and even trumpets, flutes, and a saxophone. The talent was extremely evident and definitely enhanced the worship experience.



     The entire service was very well done; however, I would have to say that the message by Pastor Kason was the highlight for us.  I told my husband that if every pastor in America was as fervent about seeking God's will for his church as Kason, that there would be a revival like no other.  We discovered during the message that the church has made a commitment in the past month to pray very intentionally every Monday at 10:02.  During this weekly prayer time, members present a trio of questions to God and wait in anticipation for His answers. The questions they are presenting have to do with saving the lost, raising up workers for the harvest, and what part they as individuals should have.  The message was taken primarily from the Book of Acts and pointed out how in the early church the Holy Spirit was stirring, working, speaking, calling and sending as the believers were worshiping, fasting, praying, and obeying.  Pastor Kason shared with the congregation several examples of how the Holy Spirit has been  moving within their church  since the intentional prayer time had been started three weeks before.  It is amazing how the Lord will move when His people are truly seeking and willing to listen and obey. It certainly sparked within me a desire to be more intentional in my prayer life and to seek the answer to specific questions while developing a closer relationship with my savior.



     When the service was over, we made our way back home, happy to have made the journey to Watonga.  We expected to have a good time. We expected to have some great western music and enjoy the western theme, but the effect our visit had on our spirits went beyond all expectations.  I'm so very glad we accepted the invitation and Chased the Steeple of the Watonga Church of the Nazarene, and we feel so very blessed that once upon a time a little boy named Kason grew up to be a man after God's own heart and share his heart with the body of Christ.
 
 

 

 

 

 

 

Thursday, November 12, 2015

First Church OKC

   

(Photo taken from First Church website.)


     This past Sunday, my husband and I had the opportunity to attend First Church in Oklahoma City.  Most likely, you're familiar with this beautiful Methodist church from the damage done to it during the bombing of the Alfred P Murrah Federal Building in 1995;however, it's history dates much, much further back than that. Think homesteaders and land runs and 1889. Think beginnings of a new city and the start of new places to worship in this new city, and think First Church. This particular church got its start the Sunday after the first Oklahoma Land Rush and is known to be the oldest church in Oklahoma City to have occupied the same corner on the same street since its origin so long ago.



    The original wood-framed church building was eventually replaced by the stately brick structure with gorgeous round stained glass windows that you remember from the news, and after the damage from the bombing, the congregation chose to convert the damaged sanctuary to a fellowship hall and build an addition housing a new sanctuary and chapel among other needed rooms.  It was into this addition that we first walked this past Sunday morning.

    It took us a little while to figure out exactly where to park, but eventually we found a parking lot in what appears to be the back of the church with some spaces marked specifically for visitors. One parking lot we had entered to begin with read Permit Only, and the spaces we eventually found were pretty hard to read due to peeling paint, so by the time we got out of our vehicles, we were a little frazzled and feeling a bit like this church didn't want us there. Boy were we wrong!

   As we walked timidly up to the door, unsure about whether or not we were at the right entrance, we were relieved to have the door opened by a smiling gentleman welcoming us to church. Several others shook our hands and visited with us a bit before directing us towards a visitors center in the middle of the foyer and even more welcoming, smiling faces.  In the center of the group, bringing life to all who crossed his path was the church historian who greeted us from his walker/perch and made us laugh and feel right at home before we were directed to the sanctuary.


     Once seated in the truly gorgeous sanctuary with windows echoing the original windows in the original santuary, several more members stopped by to say hello, and they explained that we had arrived just in time to enjoy Laity Sunday (where the regular folks would take over the service) and invited us to stay for their chili cook-off meal (which was extremely tempting... except that we were in the city, and how often do we get to eat out in the city....without kids....so, thanks so much, maybe next time).  We were a little surprised by how many people went out of their way to say hello and make us feel at home.  Within a few minutes, the sanctuary begin to fill up, but we couldn't help but noticed that there was room for many, many more to attend.


   Soon the music started with a very traditional hymn sung to beautiful organ music. Unfortunately, I don't think this particular song was much of a tradition in this church as it reminded me greatly of times I attempted to lead the congregation in singing an older, mostly unknown hymn and failed miserably. It was so pitiful in fact that I almost got tickled and started laughing, and I have to think that God must get a little chuckle at our goof ups in worship. I also greatly appreciated the fact that the man who stepped up afterwards to make announcements and pray joked that by the final verse he felt like he almost had that song down. (I mean really, why not go ahead and name that elephant?, and he did, which really lightened the mood and set the stage for a fantastic rest of the service. )

    The music itself improved exponentially after that first song. The choir shared special music, and though they were small, they were definitely mighty. Their beautiful harmonies guided me into worship and soothed away any worldly worries I'd brought in with me.  There was only one gentleman in the group, but boy, oh, boy could he sing. In all, it was just perfectly perfect, and then the praise band came forward for a time of contemporary worship music that moved me to my very soul.  There were times that the presence of God so overwhelmed me that tears ran down my cheeks and I couldn't get the words to exit my throat.  Oh how I so appreciate the opportunity to truly worship my God through song, and I'm so grateful for this chance to do so on this particular Sunday.

    Because it was Laity Sunday, we got the chance to experience a variety of members participating in a variety of ways.  There was a touching and sincere prayer time, a testimony of God's faithfulness that could have served as a sermon in itself, a well-presented message that was just icing on the cake, and the adorable robed acolytes were the perfect bookends to a wonderful worship experience.

    Afterwards, members took the time to show us around, making certain that we were able to experience the chapel where the perfectly intact face of Jesus that was salvaged from the wreckage of blown out windows after the bombing has been inserted into a new window with 33 other pieces of salvaged stained glass surrounding. The room was gorgeous and serene and had a very healing feeling about it.

I really wish you could actually see this window.
Apparently, I'm no good at window pictures.


     We also were shown the fellowship hall which was converted from the original sanctuary and given a chance to visit with the very delightful church historian and to wander through the history nook with it's incredible displays of church artifacts and antiques.

This is part of the original sanctuary which is now the
fellowship hall.  So beautiful!
     All in all, we had a wonderful worship experience with the people of First Church and would be thrilled to visit again sometime. If you find yourself in the downtown OKC area on a Sunday morning, I highly recommend that you Chase this particular Steeple as well!


Fairview Church of the Nazerene

 
   In our journey this year chasing steeples Sunday after Sunday, we made the decision that in the midst of all the various churches we visit across the state, we want to be certain to visit all of our local churches as well. Truly this is no small feat in itself, as there are no less than 10 churches in the town of Fairview and several more within the surrounding community. So a couple weeks ago, we decided to check another off the list and see what God had in store for us at the Fairview Church of the Nazarene.

    We entered just as church was starting and were greeted at the door with friendly handshakes and exclamations of welcome.  To be completely honest, the entry was a bit confusing as it opened directly into a corridor with options to the left and right. After a moment of confusion, I exclaimed, "We have no idea where to go!", and our friend at the door happily pointed us in the right direction.  We walked into the sanctuary and seated ourselves near the back as announcements and the music being started and I suddenly wished I'd been a little more quiet at the door as I'm sure everyone heard my loud exclamations and knew we were coming before we even reached the sanctuary. (It's hard to be inconspicuous when you're naturally loud and awkward and travel with an equally loud and awkward entourage. Oh well...we are who we are. I'm sure this probably embarrasses my husband more often than it does me since it's rarely him making all the noise.)

   The music playing as we got settled in was a combination of piano and organ and was just lovely. It was very soothing and helped erase the craziness of a White house Sunday morning and usher in what we hoped would be a bit of peace in an hour of worship. The organist (or possibly pianist, I'm not certain now which was which.) was the pastor's wife who I had the privilege of teaching elementary school with when I was first getting started, and she and Pastor McKinney were called forward after the opening songs to be honored for their role in pastoring this congregation.  The pastor and his wife gave 37 years to this congregation before retiring, and then after a year or two were persuaded to come out of retirement to serve as interim pastor over the past year.  The congregation took the opportunity during Pastor Appreciation Month to express their gratitude and present a gift to the couple that morning. 

    Afterwards, we entered into worship with a combination of a praise chorus sung to recorded music and traditional hymns such as Beulah Land and Living for Jesus played on the piano and organ. We were extremely blessed to be present for the special music that morning which consisted of a trio of women (the two pianists and the song leader) lifting their voices up with the most beautiful harmony.   The congregational music was projected onto a screen at the front of the church which when lifted revealed a beautiful baptismal area with a wooden cross hanging above.  The entire sanctuary was just beautiful with a lovely high arched ceiling and lots of gleaming wood that made me feel as if I was in the ark itself. (Except that there weren't any animals...unless you count my children.)

     After the music, the congregation was encouraged to greet one another, and we were made to feel very welcome. We were even invited to have a potluck dinner with the congregation after church (Which you know always makes me feel uncomfortable when I haven't brought anything to contribute, but they used my children against me, joking about how hungry my growing girls must be and getting me to agree as they all grinned up at me nodding their heads and rubbing their empty bellies.)

    We very much enjoyed the sermon by Pastor McKinney who has a deep James Earl Jonesish voice that just drew us in and practically hypnotized us into listening. And how very glad we were that we did.  The sermon was taken from the first chapter of Romans and was entitled The Consequences of Unbelief.  It was a calling to turn from our sinful natures and our worshipping of ourselves and money and things, and to return to God and accept the peace and forgiveness that he offers us out of his unmerited love for us. Pastor McKinney's easy, "sit on a stool and talk to his children" style of delivery made me feel cared for and guided and loved. 

     When the sermon ended so did the service, and we were ushered into the fellowship hall where the tables were laden with an abundance amazing looking food and we were encouraged to start the line. We had such a lovely time eating and visiting and spending time with members of the congregation, that I completely forgot to take any pictures at all.  I didn't even think to grab my camera when the kids got a ball stuck in a tree and my husband lifted one of the boys up into the branches to get it. (Probably because I was too busy praying he didn't drop him!)

     We had a fantastic morning worshiping with the Fairview Church of the Nazarene and are so fortunate that our Steeple Chase includes so many wonderful bodies of Christ right here in our own community.  Thank God for the faithfulness of his believers! And thank God for the chance we've had to get to know so many this year!

   

Thursday, October 15, 2015

Vici United Methodist Church: Youth Sunday

    

     A few weeks ago, I received a call from an old friend from the Vici United Methodist Church in the small but dear town of Vici, Oklahoma. While I didn't recognize the number, I immediately recognized the voice that graciously invited me to visit their church on October 11th and present the message during their annual Youth Sunday. I quickly agreed to do so and was thrilled to be returning to this church that is so dear to my heart.


     I cannot remember a time when the Vici Church (as we often refer to it) wasn't a part of my life. This small town church has been a dual parish (meaning we share pastors and financial obligations) with my little home church of Lenora for well....at least 35 years or so.  I began to become familiar with the people of the Vici Church as a little girl during church meetings and when my mom would fill the pulpit at their church and bring me along to sing a special. From the beginning, they always made me feel so welcomed and loved. Little did I know at the time, that my own true love was being raised right there in that church with those same beautiful, loving people as a little boy sitting in the pews right there between his mom and grandma.  Years later (well not that many years actually, since we were only 20 years old), we walked down the aisle of their newly completed sanctuary to say our vows before God and our joint church family and friends.  Then this very same church continued to bless us as they provided me with both college scholarships and my very first ministry opportunity as an extremely young and foolish youth pastor with a desire to serve. This church has been such a huge part of our lives, so of course when they asked us to return, I said yes (even though we'd actually been saving Vici church until Christmas.)

     As time grew closer, we received another call requesting that our daughters provide some special music for the service as well, and I also discovered that the youth and their leader were hoping that I could provide a message having something to do with bullying, which honestly made my job just a little harder as I attempted to tackle a very difficult subject and ask God what He would have me say about it.  I thought and prayed and read and thought and prayed and read and by Oh, approximately 7:30 that morning, I had put together what I thought was an acceptable message to present.

     We spent the night before with my husband's family there in Vici after celebrating his grandfather's 90th birthday, so we only had a few blocks to travel to get to church on time.  The Vici service begins at 11:00 which gives the current pastor, Rev. Don Whitman time to drive from his 9:30 service at Lenora to Vici each Sunday morning. We were greeted warmly as always from all our congregational friends and even met a few new faces as well.  The youth members were busy with last minute preparations, and it was fun to hear their nervous laughter as they got ready to lead each and every part of the service that morning (minus the message and special music, of course.)

      I have to admit that my heart saddened a bit as I took note of the absence of long-time members and leaders in the church Chub and Joy Shaw who have both passed away in the past few years, and I truly missed seeing Joy in her usual position as song leader and Chub grinning at me from the sound booth. Oh how fabulous it will be to someday reunite with them in glory! 


Preparing for the service to begin. The youth are early and at the front!

     The beautiful sanctuary began to fill up, and the service started with a hymn and a prayer. I loved he prayer of the brave young man who prayed, "Dear God, I just hope this goes okay." I fully understood his sentiments! Other young ladies and gentlemen led announcements and prayer requests, announced hymns and took up the tithes and offerings. My daughters sang their version of I'll Fly Away, and before I knew it, it was my turn at the pulpit. 

Children's Message led by the youth.
 

     The message God laid on my heart went something like this: Steeple Chasing is an amazing learning experience, the churches have been very welcoming, the world is NOT welcoming, there Will be Bullies, there have always been bullies, Satan is a bully, Satan has dominion over Earth. I love the church, Paul loved the church, Paul was a bully, Paul got saved, Paul was bullied! We can learn from Paul. Don't be a victim, grow in spiritual maturity, realize that not everything is worth being offended by. Be anti- Bullying,  don't be anti- Bully. God loves the bully and we need to also. We have to work as a church to find ways to love the bully through their bullying ways. And the church must stop being a bully itself. We must love everyone and find a way to keep our youth in church past graduation. It will take openness and honesty and a willingness to work at relationships and accept change.  It won't always be easy but it will be worth it and it is what we've been called to be! (Read Colossians Chapters 2 and 3, The Message version if you want to know the rest.) It took me quite a bit longer to get all that out, but that's the basic message in a nutshell.

    Afterwards, my girls sang again. This time it was a song that our 9 year old wrote herself and we all worked together to make adjustments to and fit it into a vocal trio.  I was very proud of her work for the Lord and all of them for sharing it with the Vici Church that morning.  Her song is entitled Runnin', and she explained to me that it was about running away from God but never being able to get away because He never let's us go and is always running beside us. Sometimes the spiritual insight of our middle daughter is a very humbling thing. Praise be to Jesus!

Selfie taken by Middle Daughter in the new fellowship hall.
 
    The service ended with some final words from Pastor Don, a time to give our tithes and offerings, and a final hymn and prayer. The entire service was a blessing to me, and I am so very happy that we were able to take part in this inspiring Youth Sunday with a church family we love and feel so much at home with.  There was nothing intimidating or scary or out of our element in our Steeple Chase this week. Instead it was very much like coming home. Thank you all so much for having us! Be blessed!


(P.S. Please forgive my lack of good pictures of this beautiful church. I sent my phone with my younger two girls to take pictures and got home with 500 selfies of them against unrecognizable backgrounds. Insert eye-roll here!)

Cross wall in the gorgeous new fellowship hall.

  

Beautiful Conference at Victory Church

  

     The blogs are getting backed up once again, so I, the oldest daughter, am going to write about the Beautiful Conference. It was a Wednesday  evening when my mother said that we would be going to Beautiful on Friday. I had heard her talk about how fun it was before, so I was  very exited, especially when she told me that my best friend Cati, who I met about 11 and a half years ago, would also be going with her mother and friend.


    We left at about 2:30pm ( I was happy to get out of school early) and stopped at the house to grab our belongings. We then headed to Enid to get Jordan (the bonus daughter as mom likes to call her) and then head to OKC for the Conference. After being in the car a while, we all decided that we were very (and I mean very) hungry. We stopped at McDonald's to grab a bite to eat (I got a 10 piece chicken nuggets, thinking I couldn't eat it all and could share, but I devoured them in 5 minutes flat) and got on the road again.


    After our very long (almost 3hr. ) drive we finally arrived at Beautiful! We went inside and saw some very fun decorations(including which was a dress made out of news paper, which I could definitely wear to prom!) and booths with clothes, jewelry, and a coffee bar (which Jordan took advantage of, she loves coffee). We went inside the sanctuary and found our seats next to our friends (thank goodness).

 
   Then the music started, it was quite amazing, with flashing lights, a full band, and amazing singers. To make it better there were dancers of all ages ,starting with the youngest and ending with the oldest. Then a few speakers spoke. The speakers this year were Laura Story, Wendy Treat, Jon Chasteen, and Barb Swanson. They were really, really good. After a couple speakers, we went with everyone else outside to get our free bracelets (which were BEAUTIFUL) and eat snacks and have a party( which we didn't stay for, I was a little disappointed ).We then went to my mom's friends house to stay the night (we stayed up late talking) and got up early the next morning to head for Beautiful once again.


    When we arrived I forgot my lanyard in the car ( I ran back and got it ) and then we went inside again.We sat down and the music started(it was amazing as always) and the speakers spoke. They played a few videos (Pinterest parody, and You're Beautiful parody, I recommend watching them on youtube) and then it was time to eat lunch. We ate at  Charleston's with the whole crew, and it was very good. We headed back and I forgot my lanyard once a-gin ( as my youngest sis would say ) and had to run and get it a-gin! We sang a little more music, heard a few more speakers and headed home.


    It was a really great experience. I hope I get to go back next year, and I think it was a great place to Steeple Chase with my mom.
 

 

 

 

Willow View UMC- Enid, OK



       On September 27th, we loaded up the family vehicle and headed back to Enid to visit Willow View United Methodist Church. We picked up our bonus daughter, who is 20 and lives in Enid, and arrived in time for the 11:00 service which is known as Oasis. According to the church's excellently informational website, the early service at 9:00 is known as the Blend and is a bit more traditional than the later service. We decided to check out the praise band and more "high-energy" experience because.....well, because we live 45 minutes away and didn't want to get up early enough to be there by 9:00. (Sorry if you were hoping for some deeper, more spiritual reason.)

     This beautiful church is located on the north end of Enid in what appears to the casual observer as a rather affluent part of the city. The building is fairly knew, the sanctuary having been completed in 2004, but the church body itself is more than 110 years old and has a long and interesting history. According to their website, the congregation began in 1902 with 30 members who met in the Garfield County Court Room as charter members of The Enid United Brethren Church. Through the years, they continued to meet together as a church family to worship, learn, serve, and love, even as they underwent denomination changes, new church homes, and even devastating fires. And the gorgeous church building and wonderful welcome we walked into Sunday speaks of a church who will continue to serve Christ for generations to come. (For more information on the history of this congregation, go to http://willowview.org/?page_id=35.)


This double-sided fireplace made for a very cozy entry.
 
      The pastor of this fellowship is Reverend Lesley Broadbent who grew up just down the road from both my husband and I  in the small Dewey County town of Leedey, Oklahoma. His church members say he often references his years growing up and playing ball as a Leedey Bison in his sermons.  He made no such references on this particular Sunday; however, his message was very interesting and enlightening. He speaks in a conversational teaching manner that is very engaging, and even my children were tuned in and able to discuss the message on the drive home. We were all especially intrigued by the extensiveness of the Jewish laws and how caught up in following them to the letter the Pharisees were.

I think perhaps we were a surprise!

     The service started with worship music lead by a talented praise band which helped sooth away the worries of the world and help me focus on giving glory to God. I loved how the service was divided up among a variety of congregation members who took part by praying, reading scripture, doing the children's message, etc. It's always good to see a congregation willing to serve, and a church willing to allow them to take part. We were so fortunate to be there on a very special Sunday and witness the baptism/dedication of a sweet baby girl named Eliana. This was especially enjoyable to our youngest whose middle name is also Ellyana, just with a different spelling. In addition, there were several new members joining the church that morning, and it was such a joy to be there as the congregation welcomed them into their family.

The kids loved the Frozen reference during the kid's message.
   


     While the church has been in existence for a number of years, and Pastor Broadbent has been in ministry there for the past eleven, the church has the feeling of one that is young and up and coming. The majority of those worshiping at the Oasis service appeared to be young couples, many with children. They have wonderful challenges like outgrowing their children's Sunday School space and the need for plenty of volunteers for the variety of ministries taking place. There are several Sunday School opportunities provided for people of all ages, mid-week activities, and several ministry and service opportunities in the church as well as the community. The people were welcoming and made us feel right at home, and I'm sure if you have the desire to Steeple Chase at Willow View one Sunday or make this lovely congregation your permanent church family, they'll welcome you with open arms as well.


    Our God is so good, and He loves His church so much. May we strive to love Him and his Bride just as beautifully in return!

    
 

Monday, September 21, 2015

Fairview Missionary Baptist: A life-changing experience!


       Oh my goodness! Wow! I can hardly get over the experience we had at church this morning. It was truly like no experience I've ever had before, and I'm pretty sure I'll never look at welcoming church visitors the same again.

      We got up this morning and prepared to leave Fairview for Fairview; Fairview Missionary Baptist Church, that is.  FMBC is located just off of Martin Luther King Jr. Avenue in OKC and  is a predominantly African American congregation with lovely connections to our town of Fairview. I'm not entirely certain how it all got started, but a few years back, our own FMBC (Fairview Mennonite Brethren Church) began to journey once a year with their youth group to share in Sunday worship with the people of Fairview Missionary Baptist, and a reputation began to take form in the town of Fairview. Rumors got around about this amazing church in the city where the people are friendlier than you can imagine and the Lord is worshiped and the Word is taught in a way that makes you want to return again and again.

     We heard the rumors and we wanted to go! But to be honest, we were a little nervous. It's one thing to try something new with a crowd of friends around you, but something else entirely to strike out and walk in on your own, so when my friend Amanda, who has attended FMBC before, said she wanted to meet us there, we jumped at a chance to have an ally by our sides. You see, my husband and I both grew up in tiny little Northwest, Oklahoma towns where the African American populations consist of approximately one percent, and we have never in all of our 36 years been the minority race in a room full of people. I have to admit the thought was a little bit intimidating, but let me tell you, the actual experience was phenomenal!


     We have NEVER felt so welcomed to any place in our entire lives! This congregation embraced us (Literally! Again and Again! Jason said he'd never had so many hugs!) into their fold as if we were long lost friends or family or celebrities who had finally come back home. 

    As we walked through the parking lot towards the building with nervousness trailing closely on our heels, we encountered what would be the first of so, so many people who would put our minds at ease and place a soft spot in our hearts for the people of this congregation. A lady stopped right there in the rain to shake our hands and welcome us to church. She spoke to our children and with love and delight in her voice and her radiant smile made us immediately feel that everything was going to be just fine. As we passed through the doors and into the foyer, this same scenario was repeated again and again as both men and women welcomed us with hugs and handshakes and sincere joy in their eyes and voices as they exclaimed their pleasure at having us in the House of God with them this morning.  I felt like the Grinch whose heart grew three sizes that day. Love and thanksgiving just continued to swell within me at the beautiful welcome we received. 


     We entered the sanctuary as the choir, clothed in beautiful purple robes, began to sing praises to the Lord! This too was far different than the majority of churches we've attended. The lead singer belted out phrases in a gorgeous, soulful, powerful voice as the choir backed her up, and we stumbled around finding our own rhythm and where and when and how to sing. There was no holding back here, however. For one thing the music, with drums and organ, piano, guitar and tamberines galore was so loud it covered our voices entirely and made us feel like we could shriek to the rafters with no fear that anyone but God would hear. The entire service was so loud, in fact, that our children often covered their ears and said they wished they had brought ear plugs. I'll have to admit, there were a few times that the volume was actually physically painful, but what we heard was JUST SO GOOD, that it just didn't matter one bit, as we clapped and sang and worshipped our God with the good people of this great church. There were two special music numbers by members of the church with the choir and a saxophone joining in, and I loved every single moment as they sang the words to songs entitled, "I got it!" and "I need you Lord". What an absolute pleasure to have been there to experience this talent being used to glorify the Lord!



     The pastor of the FMBC is Dr. J. A. Reed, Jr.  He has been senior pastor of this church since 1969, and it is easy to see why.  He is a man who obviously loves and cares for his people and a leader who isn't afraid to tell it like it is.  His message was powerful both in volume and content and there wasn't a moment in the three hour service (which we were assured is not the norm) that I felt myself drifting or bored or uncomfortable. He was funny and encouraging and motivating, and he brought the TRUTH! Being in the midst of a month dedicated to families, the message was on Why Society is Out of Order and the scripture taken from Genesis chapter 2, and I literally have 10 pages of notes!  From the responsibilities of men to be the leaders of their homes, for women to submit to their husbands, and for young men to be in the Word, find Work, and develop some Wealth before they even think about a Woman, Pastor Reed held absolutely nothing back. He told the TRUTH and he told it AGAIN, and even my quiet husband was clapping his hands and standing in agreement.  He showed us how when the Genesis principles are broken, you end up with a broken society, and the only way to return to order in society is to return to God's perfect plan in the Word.  I could seriously go on and on about all I learned today, and I wish every one of you could have heard the sermon we were blessed with this Sunday.  God is such an awesome God, and the Fairview Missionary Baptist Church is a church truly blessed by God!

     Towards the end of the service, Pastor Reed called all the young people down front so he could have a special talk with them.  We discovered that sometime in the past few days they had lost one of their youth to a terrible tragedy, and the pastor took the time to talk with these grieving young people as a father to his children.  He encouraged them not to ask Why? but to realize the answer is Why Not?, and he encouraged them to praise God for the life of their friend, no matter how short. In addition, he called them out, urging the entire congregation to reevaluate their lives and see that they are living day by day in a Godly manner. He asked for children who were in Sunday School to raise their hands and then pointed out those whose hands weren't raised and asked them why they weren't there. He explained the purpose and importance of learning and understanding God's word in order to live Godly lives.  It was a poignant and meaningful moment, and even though it caused the service to go well over it's regular ending time, the Holy Spirit was moving and it was well worth the wait. 
   

   When the service finally came to a close, we were once again enveloped in the arms of this incredible congregation as we made our way out the door and back to our own Fairview again.  I truly believe we will never forget this experience and will be forever changed by it.  If God sent us out on this Steeple Chase for no other reason than to have us in church worshiping with the body of Christ at Fairview Missionary Baptist on this particular Sunday in September, then it has all been worthwhile. Praise the Lord, Praise the Lord! What a blessing! Praise the Lord!

My oldest is just sure that her Grandmother SueEllen will look just like the lady in pink in a few years! I sure hope so!

Friday, September 18, 2015

Worshiping with Women: Beth Moore @ Wichita

     Last weekend, I attended worship with some 8,500 women from all walks of life, and IT WAS AMAZING!
I bought the book. Loving it so far!

     Sometime in the spring, a sweet friend of mine asked me and another friend if we would be interested in going with her to Wichita, Kansas in September to a Beth Moore Conference, and being a huge fan of Beth Moore's bible studies, I immediately said yes; however, months later when the time arrived, and I found myself exhausted from a week of teaching school and chasing kids and just life in general, I have to admit, I teetered on the edge of backing out and spending the weekend at home. I'm SO glad I didn't.

     The conference was a full day event on Saturday, so we drove up Friday night and stayed in a hotel. I had originally planned to bunk with my friends, but after a week of waking up to my husband glaring at me with a pillow held menacingly near my face due to a bad case of allergy induced snoring, I decided to maintain my friendships and obtain my own room. I enjoyed a fabulous night's rest with no fear of being murdered in my sleep, and woke up refreshed and ready to get into God's Word.


    We arrived at the downtown arena and with a wave of other women, and found our way to our seats.  Now let me just say, if you have never attended a large conference of Christian women, you really absolutely MUST sometime before you die. (Unless of course you are a man, and then you really might feel a little bit out of place, so I recommend you attend a large men's conference. Although having never been to one, I'm really not sure what that's like, so you need to attend one and report back to me, Mr. President. (Which for those of you who are not familiar is an FFA Opening Ceremonies reference, and it's suddenly becoming apparent that perhaps I should not be writing this at 12:53 am as I seem to be falling a bit away from my original topic.)) ANYWAY, there is just nothing quite like thousands of like minded women meeting in one place to worship and learn about Jesus.  Yes it is crowded, but there is so much kindness, so much love. Yes it is long, but you find yourself just wanting more. 
Schedule: Full and Fabulous!

    The musical worship alone would be enough to justify the drive.  I can hardly describe the connection with Christ that I encountered there in the midst of all those women as we sang praises to the Lord.  I think that being one of so many somehow allows you to be even more yourself and alone with God.  The songs were old and new, joyous and solemn, fast and slow, touching and heartfelt. There was something for everyone and everything for me.  I laughed and cried and praised with all that I had and felt God pour blessing after blessing upon me as I gave my all simply to pour my love out to Him. 

    I thought that it couldn't get any better and then my best friend Beth came out on the stage. (Now, just to clarify, we've never actually met, but she's lead me in so many biblical discoveries and personal reflections and repentances throughout the years, that I've been calling her my best friend for years, and whenever I consider that question about if you could spend one day with anyone in the world who would it be, I'm pretty sure it would be Beth....we're that close.)  Anyway, friends, if you've never done any of her bible studies or read any of her books, I highly recommend you do so. Here is a woman who has given her absolute all to Jesus, and because of her faith and obedience and LOVE of Christ, He has blessed her with the ability to abundantly bless the world. And what a blessing she brought to us in Wichita!

     The theme of the conference was Audacious, and Beth spent the day (broken into 3 sessions) teaching us about what it means to live audaciously for Jesus. She reminded us that these crazy times we live in are not the days for wimps, but that we must live with audacity, and have the guts to give God the glory! We are called to be MIGHTY women of God and it is time to Wake Up! In a world where fear is bound to go viral and manifest itself in a variety of ways, including violence, anger, insecurities, and doubt, we Christians must show ourselves to be different with courage, calmness, love, and peace in order to bring those in need of our Savior to the Jesus who loves them. She challenged us with these 6 Mighty Makers:
                           
                       1.  Have the audacity to make an unseen Savior the supreme romance of your life.
                       2.  Have the audacity to live in the tension that comes with loving in TRUTH.
                       3.  Have the audacity to pray for astonishing works of the Holy Spirit.
                       4.  Have the audacity to forgive and live forgiven.
                       5.  Have the audacity to hold tight with all your might to Romans 8:18. (Look it up!)
                       6.  Have the audacity to walk in humility.


     By the time the conference was over, I was wrung out, filled up, renewed, and revived.  I had been touched by the Lord and once again ready to face the world with God on my side. In a world that seems so scary sometimes, I can find true joy because I know that I was made for such a time and place as this and that I was not made to live in a spirit of fear. I am so grateful to have had the opportunity to experience once again the teachings of Beth Moore, and I'm so thankful that she doesn't sugar-coat or back down from touchy topics but challenges me to be who God created me to be and to truly KNOW the one I worship.

     What a trip!  I'm so thankful for the invitation from my friend and that God didn't let me back out when I wanted to.  This is definitely one Steeple Chase I will forever be blessed by.
 
    
Couldn't resist sharing:
This is what happens when an arena fills with women. The unused men's restrooms get converted. LOL!