When we left North Carolina last summer we left many things dear to us, not the least of which was Cape Carteret Baptist Church. As much as we loved it when we left, we loved it even more each Sunday we tried and failed to find a new church in Virginia. I know our church shopping took us through a dozen different towns, pastors and sermons. There was always something missing; often a something that was hard to identify.
Several months ago we visited Mount Vernon Baptist Church. We left feeling like it might be the right place. Today we officially joined the church and regained the wonderful feeling of having a church home we feel comfortable in. I joked with Katie on the way home about just how easy it is to join the church – much easier than getting a library card and far easier than joining the gym. Essentially the pastor asks if anyone would like to join the church, you meet him at the front of the church, say yes, and you belong.
Many people across America today joined a church. Many were probably switching churches. A few may have switched religions altogether. It is a blessing I too often take for granted. In countries like China, Iran, Vietnam, Cuba, Saudi Arabia and countless others, prisons are full of people who chose to practice a religion not sanctioned by their country. As I walked down an aisle to join a new church someone was being tortured or killed for expressing their faith out loud. I have no idea why I have been blessed with greater freedoms than so many others in the world. But I do know they are freedoms that come with great responsibility.
Having been blessed with the freedom to choose my faith, I would hate to someday answer why I didn’t live it or share it. I would certainly hate to answer why I didn’t share it with my own children.
Speaking of children, make sure you check out Elliott’s experimentation with sunglasses this weekend. He couldn’t figure out which ones he like and when he did, he struggled to make them fit just the way he wanted.
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