On the first Sunday in December, God (and our friend Erica) led us to a little nondenominational church in Enid, Oklahoma called Covenant Life Worship Center. It's small and unobtrusive and even though it's located on a busy section of Van Buren. From what I've been told, the church once belonged to a Quaker congregation and the building reflects their simple way of life. I'm pretty sure I'd never noticed it before, and we certainly had a hard time noticing it on Sunday, which may or may not have made us a little late for church. (Probably should have just put the address in Maps in the first place.)
We walked into the little brown church and were surprised to find everyone huddled in the kitchen area trying to stay warm on this cold, winter morning. They had arrived that morning and found the heat had turned off in the sanctuary and it was bitter cold, but they were not to be stopped in their worship and simply moved into a warmer setting while a few of the men worked to get the furnace going again.
We were greeted warmly and seated around a table, and the girls were kindly given the last three donuts in the box. It was a small and diverse congregation that began singing praise hymns to the accompaniment of the pastor on his guitar and a pianist at an ancient upright piano by the door. For the most part we were familiar with all the songs and with a little help from google, easily found the lyrics and were able to sing along. In the midst of our singing, one of the parishioners began to feel unwell, and the music ended abruptly as the pastor and several others helped guide him outside to tend to his needs. The rest of us joined hands in prayer and addressed the very immediate need of the man outside.
Not long after, he began feeling better and the heat began to work, so we all made our way into the simple, yet beautiful sanctuary and once again began our worship service with music. Our friends sweet daughter sang a beautiful special with a voice pure and clear that brought to mind visions of angels. Afterwards, the pastor wiped tears as he proclaimed God's hand in the life of this young lady and asked members of the church to surround her and lay hands on her as they prayed for God's will to be done. We all wiped away tears as they made their way back to their seats. (Well, I wiped away tears anyway. I'm not sure who else did because, you know,...tears.)
The girls and their friends all got settled in with paper from my notebook and pens to draw with, and the pastor began his sermon. He spoke in a caring conversational tone and often spoke directly to or of members in the congregation. Pastor Paul Matthews was asked to pastor the church after their founding pastor, who started the congregation as a home church, was called to another state. The congregation has seen some hard times, but their heart is in showing the love of God to the people in Enid and they are believing in a rise in membership in the days ahead. Pastor Paul spoke of why they teach of grace and not of the law. He showed God's grace through the teaching of the old testament but mostly through the sacrifice of Jesus. He said, "If you are under a doctrine that puts fear in you then you're in the wrong place for God did not create us for a spirit of fear!" His sermon reminded me that I can't DO anything to prove myself worthy of God's love. God has already proved His love to me through the sacrifice of his son and it is because of that approval that I want to do right. And it is because of that love that I want to share His approval with others.
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