Our new church held a game day on Saturday, and we played the (Still)
Newlywed Game. Mel and I volunteered to be contestants, and come to find
out, at 28 years of marriage, we had been together the shortest amount
of time. So here we were, competing against older couples who had a lot
more experience.

I’m not a competitive person, so I attended just to have fun and laugh.
I didn’t realize we’d be sitting in front of the rest of the church–we
had a great turnout–airing our marital secrets and weaknesses. Mel is
very competitive, but when we made third place out of three couples, he
laughed as hard as the rest of us.

The couple who had been married the longest won, of course, and that’s
as it should be. Those who’ve been married the longest know one another
the best.

Exposing our weaknesses–as I like to say, our underbellies–turned out
to be a wonderful way to grow closer to others in our group. We’ve only
been members for a few months, while many of the others have been active
in this church a majority of their adult lives. And yet they welcomed
us–and welcome us still–as if we are family. Which we are.

Our church is very old fashioned. We sing hymns, we have a choir, we
meet Sunday morning, Sunday night, Wednesday night, and the men have
coffee every Tuesday morning for a couple of hours. We greet each other
at every service, especially the visitors. In fact, this church is so
warm and friendly that it has grown significantly in the past year. I
fell in love the first time we walked through the doors and that love
continues to deepen. I prayed to find this very church for quite some
time, and this is an answer to prayer.

Do you have a church you love? I’d like to hear about it. What drew you
in the first place? Are you seeking a church home? What are you looking
for in a place of worship?