In This Home

Today I popped over to one of my favorite blogs to see if there was a new post up.  An ad on the sidebar caught my eye.  While I don’t think I would put this on my wall, because it is not really my style, this is the first wall quote I have seen that really resonated with me.

In case you can’t read it, it says, “In this home we do second chances.  We do grace.  We do real.  We do mistakes.  We do I’m sorrys.  We do loud really well.  We do hugs.  We do family.  We do love.”

These are some of the things that I strive for in our family, and the things I would like Micah and Savannah to be able to say about our home when they are grown.

And yes, I just made a rhyme.

What kind of things do you hope your kids will say about growing up in your family?

Church Shopping

As a pastor’s wife, I have never really had the opportunity to go church “shopping.”  Most of you will know what I am talking about; the ability to visit lots of different churches trying to find just the right one for your family.  In fact, I have known some people who spend a year church shopping.  That smacks a little of being too picky to me, but to each his own.

For the first time in our 10 years of married life and ministry together, we are church “shopping.”  Don’t worry, that doesn’t mean that we are looking for a church other than Life180.  But right now there is no Life180.  So right now we go to a mega (mega) church in the area on Saturday nights so that the kids have consistency, and then pick a different church every Sunday.

I love it.

It is especially exciting to visit all these amazing churches when you are busy planning your own.  Every week Ben and I spend the car ride home (sometimes it is a long one) talking about what we liked, what didn’t like, how they had the children’s area set up, etc.  A lot of the churches we have been visiting are ones that still do not have buildings.  That is strategic since we really what to know how other churches run their programs in rented schools, movie theaters, and performing arts centers.

So far I have noticed how much Micah and Savannah’s initial reaction to the child care/Sunday School and how the staff handle their reaction matters to me as a mom.  As a mom, I would never go back to a church that my kids hated no matter how much I liked it.  Therefore, high quality children’s programming goes high up on the list.

Here is where you guys can help.  Why do you attend the church that you do?  What hooked you?  What do you love?  What do you wish you could change?  A lot of you probably go to Woodcrest, but your experience there was probably different than mine so I would love to hear what you think.  When you were out church shopping, what made you stop and find your church home?

Think of this as your chance to have a voice in the planting of Life180 Church.  Believe me, you will have influence.  I have a special in with the Executive Pastor.