Observations On Being Home

Well it has definitely been an interesting trip home. I was extremely excited to see and finally try on my dress! I am so excited. Then after all the excitement of the day I was tired and decided to go to bed early. That was when I decided to have an allergic reaction to..well, something. So I freaked out and went to the er which is always so much fun. It was definitely something in the house because I felt so much better after leaving. Anyways, that was taken care of and fortunately didn't occur again.

Sunday proved to be another interesting day. I was expecting it to be so, but not to the extent that it was. To be blunt and honest I never look forward to going to church with my parents while at home and usually try to get out of it by going somewhere else. I don't like their church or agree with some of the things they do there. One eye opening experience on this trip is that I have realized how different I am from the rest of my family. I mean yeah there is a huge generation gap, but I was reminded how old people don't like to change and how they lack understanding of younger generations and how they are changing things.

Church was at least somewhat bareable this time. Although I sware the choir is following in the footsteps of Southeastern Singers because they all had a colored shirt and black pants and jackets on. They even sung the same songs we always sang at school. It was like a bad flashback to Southeastern chapel, well during worship at least. The no children under 2 in the sanctuary still bothers the tar out of me. I know why they do it, but it drives me crazy when churches do not consider the thoughts or feelings of first time visitors. If I have a small child and I am at a church for the first time I am not going to just drop them off in a nursery and most people wont. To most visitors that is just a sign that tells them they don't want to mess with children or a plug for their 'wonderful children's ministry.' Of which honestly, a first time visitor doesn't care about.

Even the pastor had crued and what he thought were funny jokes about the president. It totally turned me off. Of course everyone is going to have their own opinion and thats fine, but in a church service is not the place to voice it. I despise services that have nothing but a political agenda.

At home the conservation got even more interesting. For some reason even when I do not go to church with my parents when I am home they still have to discuss every detail over and after lunch. So of course everyone is just talking about how wonderful the service was and how much they love the church. Then they started discussing the children's ministry and how much they have done with the kids and how great it is. "They have an amazing two story playground for the kids to play on inside!" Oh how wonderful it is it is just so good. I fought to keep my mouth shut. It angered me so bad. Why does everyone think all we need for kids at church is a good playground? We don't teach our kids about the Bible but we still wonder why 'our kids are so disobedient and disrespectful these days.'

Then they continued on talking about some church that is building a gym on campus and how much money it will bring in and how good it is to encourage their leaders and church to be in shape and healthy. And oh its just going to be the next big thing that every church is going to do and have. Really? Do Christians not realize that most communities and society already has this? Why are we wasting our money on building big fancy gyms on church property when there are 2 across the street from your church? Why don't Christians use what is already in the community and appreciate it? Beacuse of our Christian pride that says oh yes they have one but we can make it better because we are Christians. Nothing pisses me off more. All we do is waste money and property and anything else we are given when we have decent places to go we just won't because they don't have Christ's name plastered everywhere. No wonder non Christians hate us.
I'm beginning to do the same. To make it even worse we do it with everything. Have you been to a church in the last 5 years that doesn't have a coffee shop or cafe? Probably not. What about a highly themed youth and children's area that looks something like chuckie cheese or monkey joes?

And a part of all of this that was also brought up by my own family is this whole, "it's not from America so we aren't buying it." Have you never noticed before that most of the fruit and other foods in most chain grocery stores are not from America, are you just now catching onto this? Now I don't think that everything should be sent to be done overseas, obvioulsy we need jobs here too, but I'm not going to go to such an extreme as they are. It's a little crazy to me. Just another difference between generations. They think on an American mindset and I think on a more global mindset. It's not all about America, there are other continents out there that are trying to survive too.

I am shocked at the extent of hate and horrible things that I have heard "conservative" Christians say about our president since I have been home. I don't know if it is just this area or if I am just not observing it at home but either way I am shocked and disgusted. I mean to hear on the radio a joke about how they wished the president would "have heart failure and drop to his knees and be cold before his head hit the floor." Wow! Seriously? I am horribly disgusted and ashamed that anyone would say this as a joke, much less people who claim to be Christians. And these are the same Christians that don't understand why their children are so violent. Really?

What is our problem, what is our issue? Why are we speaking and acting like this? I feel like everyone has gone crazy thinking the world is going to end and the economy is going to fail. Personally I don't think its that bad. You have depressions you have times of growth. I hope that we will eventually come out of it and things will get better, but at the same time I think it is time for people to become a little smarter about how and what they spend their money on. And ok what if it doesn't? What if America absolutely fails and crumbles what then? Why does everyone thing that America has to be the answer?