Church?

We've been here for three Sundays now. Sunday 1 and 3 were spent at International Christian Fellowship (ICF), an English-speaking church that meets in the open-air chapel area at my school. Most of the folks there are American missionaries or expats, working in a variety of fields. Many teachers from NCA attend. Worship is very contemporary (as in we don't know many of the songs, though we felt as if First CRC was fairly contemporary!); lots of great kids programming for our three little ones. It is an elder-led, interdenominational church; there is no pastor on staff, and the four elders rotate through as teachers/preachers. Church is early--8:30--to give some folks the chance to attend Spanish-speaking churches, which generally start later.

Sunday 2 was spent at a Spanish-speaking Baptist church, planted by neighbors of ours a few years ago. Sunday school was at 9:00 until 10:00 for the kids, and then church was at 10:30-12:00. Worship was dynamic--we actually knew a few of the songs from Spanish chapel in college and mission trips. There was nursery for Charlotte. The church is mission-minded, in that many kids and some families are actually "bussed" there for worship from one of the poorer sections of Managua, so Sunday School was busy and full of life!

We're not yet to the point of making a definite decision about a church home yet, but it a big decision. I could play piano for ICF and teach Sunday School; Ruth could lead worship singing and help out with kid's programming, too. We can speak freely to those around us in a shared language. But at the same time, it is a bit "inside the bubble" for us, and that is something we'd struggle with if we attended there. A Spanish-speaking church would allow us to become closer with Nicaraguans, expose us and our kids to "real" life in Nicaragua, and help us develop our Spanish language. We wouldn't have much to offer the church except our presence, and that would be frustrating to me as someone who sees church not only as a place of worship but as something you "do" actively throughout the week. Our kids would have a harder time as well in Spanish church; Henry was disappointed that he didn't win any candy at Spanish-speaking Sunday School because he couldn't understand any of the questions! Ruth still harbors some resentment about her MK experience in that her family was committed to attending churches with other nationals in the Hausa or Amharic languages. . .while most of her friends got to have Sunday School and youth group and worship all in English at the English-speaking church.

We know that. God delights in worship in the English AND Spanish languages; we just have to figure out where we fit in here in terms of church. Your prayers are coveted in this area!