Church Home.

We are pretty decisive people. That’s what has made the church search so painful. When we moved to Asheville, we already had a church picked out, and had all but joined. It was a perfect fit for us, parked in the space between Jacqueline’s home church and my penchant to be a bit of a theological neat-nick. We never even visited another church. We joined within a few months of moving.

So we got here, and though a lot has changed for both of us in what we look for in a church (how do you pronounce “childcare?”), we were skeptical as to what church could possibly live up to our experience at Grace. We were pretty spoiled by the gospel-centered teaching and the great community of folks there.

The first two churches we visited, though they seemed to be full of nice folks, just didn’t fit us.

Not finding an immediate fit was painful. I fully realize the luxury of living in America (in general) and the south (in particular) and near a larger city (to be down-right pinpoint accurate) in having not just a church on every corner, but some great, thriving, wonderful churches from which to choose. We are really so privileged in this part of the country to have access to such amazing communities of folks at such short distance from us.

Jacqueline and I have been acutely aware of the effect of being community-starved for the last few weeks. We have some great coworkers and friends here in the triangle that have softened the impact of moving, for sure. But coworkers can’t make up for church friends and church community. That’s a lesson I learned really early on in vocational ministry. Because ministry and church often “look” the same, it takes discipline to differentiate between “on the clock” and spiritual life. Healthy boundaries are a must.

The third church we visited looks and feels a lot more like a fit. It’s Christ The King Presbyterian in Raleigh. I learned yesterday that it’s one of only 3 churches in the world affiliated with both the Acts 29 network and the PCA denomination. What a perfect fit for us! We are excited to get plugged in, and to find some free babysitters community groups near us.