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I was raised in the church. My Pre-K classes were actually at our church and throughout junior high and high school I attended the same one. Knowing the same congregation for years, it was easy to walk in to the sanctuary with confidence.
During my years at college, because I'm in a new city, it has been a struggle to find a church home. A lot of churches now a days are what we like to call "mega-churches" i.e. churches that use ATMs to tithe or ones that have name brand coffee chains built into them. The music is usually amazing at these churches, but that isn't the most important thing. Being fed by the word and leaving Sunday service feeling like I've learned something is the most important. My recommendations to make this process more comfortable is to invite a friend with you for the first visit! That is always more comforting. Also, if you are settled into a church don't be afraid to be the person to walk across the room and introduce yourself to the person who is standing by themselves during the "welcome." (And don't force the conversation!!! I had an experience one time where I went by myself to a service and during the welcome part, the guy standing next to me introduced himself and then looked pained as he was trying to come up with talking points... I was doing my best as well but it just wasn't flowing. I ended the conversation by saying "Nice to meet you" and then stood next to him in silence for the remaining 5 minutes) LOL that was an example of what NOT to do 😂 If you can't think of anything to say, some of my go to questions would be to ask how they heard of the church, what they do for a living or where had they previously been attending (if they say they haven't been to church in a while don't get the typical judgy look in your eyes but instead tell them you hope they enjoy the service enough to come back!) Rambling aside, walking into a new church can be a little intimidating when instead it should feel like you're walking into the safest place on Earth. It is the Lords bride. I've had to learn to enjoy that and get past the awkward conversations and when I did, I finally found my new church home! Have a wonderful Sunday!! xoxo A Nerd in Pearls
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The new age relationship can be an extremely difficult thing to navigate. Especially as a Christian. Today's relationship is centered around appearance or how someone can make you "feel" as opposed to the important characteristics of a person mattering.
I have personally struggled with relationships since I was 16 years old. I fell into the trap of the new age relationship and was always left feeling empty, unloved and unworthy. So, I recently began doing a lot of research on love and marriage to understand what I need to be looking for in a man and what I need to be as a woman for him. Thankfully a friend of mine sent me a Youtube series that changed my entire perspective on relationships. Pastor Voddie Baucham gives it to everyone straight and his content is so incredible I have created a list of the most important concepts from the entire four part series. (Youtube content linked HERE) - Love is an act of will accompanied by emotion - The purpose for marriage is to have babies and to raise them to be warriors in faith and to also be a living representation of Christ's marriage to the Church. - Marry a believer of God. - Babies are good!!! - The man should lead in love. - The man should lead in the Word. -The man should lead in righteousness. -The man should lead in selflessness. - The man should lead in intimacy. - The woman should be submissive to the Lord. - The woman should be submissive to her father. - The woman should be submissive to her husband. - The woman should submit to the biblical picture of marriage. I was in sync with Voddie up until he started discussing how a woman should be submissive. Of course it is easier to talk about all the things men do wrong but looking internally at myself I found that I am extremely unsubmissive. I like to lead, I like to control and I hate being told what to do. Now as I recognize this, I feel as if God is working on my spirit and pointing out to me what I need to change. Some scripture that explains that being submissive does not mean you need to lose your sparkle or your spunk is Proverbs 31:10-31. It just means that putting your husband above you and respecting his leadership is vital to a successful marriage. As, "anything with two heads is a monster." I'm sure I will address this topic again and again as I grow and learn more about relationships but for now I hope you all can watch that series and have a blessed week! xoxo A nerd in Pearls |
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