At age 23, I returned to St. Louis from Chattanooga for a year to help out one of my sisters. I decided not to attend my parents' church while I was here but to strike out on my own. I was particularly interested in finding a Presbyterian church, so I did what everyone did back in those technologically prehistoric times. I opened that bulky PRINTED-ON-PAPER volume we once knew as The Yellow Pages.
My fingers did the walking and for the subsequent month of Sundays, I landed myself in a different flavor of Presbyterianism, looking for the one that best suited my tastebuds. I can't reconstruct exactly what I was seeking back then, but I knew I would recognize it when I found it. I do know that it included a combination of theology, congregational size, music, and other distinctives that comprise the "personality" of a church. Whether or not that was the best approach, God knew the desires of my heart and was faithful in leading me to the place He wanted me to be.
On the fourth Sunday, I walked into the Masonic Lodge at the intersection of Eddie & Park and Sappington Roads. Let me tell you, there was nothing appealing about the building! It was small, without windows, and the "sanctuary" set-up was more than a little odd. In spite of that, this place struck a chord in my heart. I can't even say why, but I knew I belonged here. It wasn't a feeling...back then I never allowed myself feelings...so it must have been a rational evaluation of...well, everything.
22 years later, I am blessed to be in this same place. Much has changed. We have our very own church building...with windows to boot. We lost our beloved founding pastor to a tragic climbing accident and had to find someone to fill his shoes. Children who were just being born are in college or married. Several pillars of maturity have gone to be with the Lord. We have sent-out dozens of seminarians to minister around the world, and we've "lost" nearly a hundred of our own dear ones to 2 church plants.
But through all the changes, God has been faithful, and His people have continually blessed my life in ways innumerable and immeasurable. I have learned a vital lesson: the church belongs to Jesus Christ and He loves and guards her through many dangers, rough waters, unsettling changes, unexpected loss and grief. He will make His bride beautiful and He will keep her till the end.
I have been blessed by faithful teaching, by the perseverance of my sisters and brothers, by steady and faithful friendships, by wise leadership, by an abundance of physical, intellectual and Spiritual blessings that have been mine through this fallible and fallen gathering of saints.
Today I return thanks to God for His faithfulness as demonstrated to and through this local body of believers.
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