Looking for a church home

As Easter comes tomorrow, I am looking forward to spending time with some good friends throughout the weekend.  It is good for my soul to have the company of people that I love and cherish. But I am also reflecting on my desire for a church home.  I have attended several churches over the past decade and really did enjoy them both.  But neither of them checked all of my boxes.  I know it is probably wrong to have boxes to check when seeking out a church, but at this age I want what I want, and I will not settle for less than that in any area of my life...church included. 

The main thing, truly, that I want from a church is a place that feels like home.  Everything else is on the negotiating table.  Growing up at First Baptist Church in Monroe, NC, I felt like it was home.  While we did have our share of problems that I do not want to get into here and I had my own personal problems with certain aspects of the church, still, it was home to me. The members of that church were and still are an important part of my life. That's the kind of welcoming feeling that I want in a church.  To feel like, as a sinner, I am still accepted.  Both of the churches I have attended in Greensboro did that to a degree. Something was just missing though. 

I know that many people have a problem with organized religion these days and I understand why.  People say one thing and then do the complete opposite.  I will say that the two churches I have been to here are filled with people who followed the teachings of Jesus and lived like Him.  So, I know that they are out there and that there are more places filled with such people. 

So, one of my goals this year is to find a church home.  I may revisit the churches I have been to, but I also think I may step outside the Baptist denomination.  There is a Methodist church here in town that I have some friends that attend.  They have both contemporary and traditional services. Of course, I more on the traditional side...big shocker I know.  But I have looked over their website and they have a lot going on.  There are lots of opportunities for worship and for participation.  And, they have an active handbell program!  Plus, they have their own radio station which is my all-time favorite station to listen to!  

We shall see how it goes.  I have a lot on my mind right now, as we all do, and I will get myself there eventually.  Taking life one day at a time and the search for a church home is no different.