He's been to church one other time a few weeks ago but that first time he and his little girlfriend (we went with friends) were pretty distracted and noisy so we had to take them out of the hall just as the worship began and the alternative viewing room for families was overfull so we missed out on the message. It was a good first try.
So this past Sunday I decided to try again closer to home. I did some advanced research on churches in town, on their beliefs, schedules, facilities, etc. and decided we'd visit a few before choosing our new church home. We got there early enough to get a strategic spot in the back next to the "overflow room" door since I suspected we'd end up there. Cooper LOVED the music and LOVED crawling and walking around so much that I did indeed need to bring him to the overflow room where you can bring noisy kids and still get to watch/hear the service. Cooper wasn't noisy - just NOSEY haha. He wanted to pick up all the cards, envelopes and pamphlets from the back of the chairs and hand them to whomever was closest. He also wanted to crawl up and down the rows and the aisles to display his dancing skills (which I let him do before the service began when the place was empty - hoping he'd tire himself out) . It really was cute how interested he was in what was going on around him - it was all smiles and connections with people. Anyway, in the overflow room there's glass windows so you can see into the main worship hall and also a big screen TV onto which the service is broadcast so you can see/hear the message clearly. We were among several other families with little ones in the room and Cooper was pretty good considering it was his first time experiencing such an environment. He tried to give his bottle to a 5 month old baby...and continued his distribution of cards/envelopes and pamphlets. Everyone was really sweet and understanding - since they were in the room for similar reasons - which was a relief. It was a great service and a wonderful facility.
After the service was complete, an announcement was made to invite people to meet and pray with some of the church elders for any special prayer needs. As soon as it was mentioned I got Cooper into his stroller and headed over there and was first in line to request healing prayers. I was anointed with oil and prayed over by a wonderful couple. Cooper was awesome - behaving great, being quiet and sweet. It was truly a great experience. I'm so glad we went and I'm looking forward to making it a regular part of our Sunday routine. I'm not certain if that particular church will become our church home - but it might. I'd like to visit a couple of other churches in town before deciding since it's really important to me that we choose the right one for us. I hope Cooper does as well, or better, each week. I'm so proud of him!
6 comments:
What a lovely experience :) I had to take Vi out last week before the offering because she kept trying to crawl around and kept 'singing' really loudly when there were speaking parts. It sounds like Cooper was a good boy!
Good job Cooper! Thats nice that they have that overflow room. Our church has a room where you can go and still hear, but you can't actually see the service at all. Good luck in your search. Finding the right church home is important.
Glad it went so well, Julie! We have a nursery at our church where Jonathan stays. It is downstairs from the sanctuary and according to the nursery staff, Jonathan points to the ceiling, laughing, when music is played upstairs. I like the idea of the additional viewing room bc then we could attend the service as a family still instead of bringing Jonathan downstairs. I'd much rather have him with us, but he's pretty busy and can be rather vocal, too. May another blessing from God in your life be finding the church home God wants for you...
That sounds so wonderful!!!! an overflow room sounds amazing!
Hi Julie! I'm so glad you had such a good experience. When I lived out there I went to Calvary Chapel. It's a non-denominational church headquartered in Costa Mesa, but they have churches all over the place. I highly recommend it. Most of them have a nursery or a "family" room if needed. I hope you are feeling okay!
I was thinking about your wandering and eating issue... is it still nice enough that he can eat on the patio? Maybe if he can walk around outside and eat he'll be more inclined for solids? It was just a thought... I know Jr went through a phase at the ranch if he couldn't be mobile while eating he wouldn't eat.
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