The International Space Station and A Pirate Ship

During college my friend Katy and I worked each Sunday Night at a house church.  We ended up falling in love with the families at the church and really enjoying our time there.  But, our time here began at a very different house church.

It’s difficult to compare the two churches- one felt very hip and cool, and while the people were very nice we never really felt that we were apart of the church.  The other house church felt like home.  The people were incredibly kind and treated us like family.

One of the main differences between the two churches was locale.  I’d have to compare the first to having church in a trendy art studio where all the artists meet together to have coffee and discuss ideas.  The second is comparable to sitting around the table at your cousins house, only with better food… and sometimes company.  I was clearly not meant for the trendy art scene.  And the owners of the home where our first house church met were literally art scene people.

The room where Katy and I would teach Sunday School housed their modern art collection.  It’s a once in a lifetime thing to say to a child “No honey, leave the chair where it belongs- on the wall.”  And by ‘once in a lifetime’ I mean weekly, because that is how often we had to tell the kids those exact words.  Our school room was also home to a maze of cardboard boxes which formed “The International Space Station”.  And I’m not talking about some crummy child’s project either.  When you crawled through the space station you could look out through the windows and it would show a distant picture of earth.  They had thought of everything.  So, on top of keeping a watchful eye on the artful (and I’m guessing expensive) chairs adorning the wall we would also have to holler out “kids, get out of the international space station, it’s time for our Bible lesson”.  It’s not fun to have to crush a child’s dream of conquering space.

The most amazing part of our first house was the pirate ship that sat in the backyard.  The parents had won a raffle and their prize was a huge pirate ship (mast not included).  Probably some of my fondest memories are making those kids walk the plank and swab the decks.

Now, I know what you’re thinking…. “how could you ever leave a place where there is modern art, the international space station AND a pirate ship, that’s a trifecta?!?”  My answer is simple.  On our first night at our “home” house church they sent us back to our dorm room with half a gallon of Blue Bell Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough Ice Cream and two spoons.  And even though all the ice cream was gone before we made it back to our dorm, the international space station just couldn’t deliver in quite the same way.