It's Never Too Late...

To Visit a Church

This past Sunday, Michael and I visited a church most of our friends attend in Birmingham. It's a mega church, to say the least, called Church of the Highlands. I knew the church was a very contemporary non-denominational church with serveral campuses, yes I said campuses, in Birmingham, so I was a little scared how Michael would react. He is a simple man when it comes to churches. He is afraid of big rock bands and most of all powerpoints and big screens!

And that's exactly what Church of the Highlands has! So we walk into the main campus after filing in with the thousands also attending. The first thing I spot are the several coffee stations everywhere in the huge lobby with lines as long as a mile. Our friends Jamie and Eric take us on a tour before the service begins, and there is a cafe and bookstore, and a huge childrens' auditorium that requires your children to be scanned in before they enter and scanned out before they leave. Yes, children are recognized by barcodes here! Across from the auditorium is an indoor play area for children that puts any play area at McDonald's to shame! After our tour, we head into the main auditorium for the church service to begin.

And oh did it begin....with a resounding rock band of course. And with large screens behind the rock band. After the band sang its last praise and worship song, I quietly leaned over to Michael and said, "Aren't you waiting for Pastor Phil from Four Christmases to ascend onto the stage!" Instead Pastor Chris Hodges, the senior pastor, preached a great sermon about God's plan and accepting change in our lives. He was a wonderful preacher who was much more relatable than I expected. He also shared that his sermons in August will begin to focus on baggage! Boy I can't wait for that! I have lots of baggage!

I felt really good after we left church; in fact, I felt much better than I have in a long time.

I guess it's true...It's Never Too Late to Visit a Church!