A Place Called Home
By Paula Friedrichsen
It was Easter morning. Stained glass windows, cathedral ceilings, polished wood pews, and possibly the most majestic crucifix I’ve ever laid eyes on, greeted us as we arrived for the service at a beautiful church in an affluent Los Angeles community. The expansive altar was encircled by dozens of fragrant Easter lilies, and the sanctuary hosted hundreds of flickering white candles. What a magnificent scene it was!
As I sat there taking it all in, I couldn’t help but think about my own little mountain church nestled snug in the High Sierra Mountains. In fact, I chuckled a little as I compared these two places of worship. One was extravagant, sparkling, rich, and exceedingly lovely. It was the kind of place in which you walked a bit slower and spoke a bit quieter. The Easter service was conducted with reserve and dignity—rich in tradition and ritual, and yet also rich with the presence of God.
My little mountain church was also decked out for Easter with an impressive display of flowers and decorations—but that’s where the similarities stopped. Church on the Mountain is a noisy, crowded, rambunctious kind of place where children are seldom hushed—and the people can be seen and heard talking, laughing, hugging, and generally enjoying each other before, during, and after service. It’s the kind of place where the singing is loud, the sermons stirring, and the services long (about 2 hours). It’s the kind of church were people stand up and share what God is doing in their lives in the middle of the Sunday morning service; the kind of place where you might see people praying for each other; and the kind of church where folks linger long after the service is over just to visit. There’s no mad-dash to the parking lot to see who can get out first. No race to be the first on the wait list at Jacks Waffle Shop—but rather a people who are connected to each other and to their God. (although I might add that the cheeseburgers and fries at Jacks are definitely worth waiting for!)
Now don’t get me wrong, I thoroughly enjoyed and delighted in the Easter service at that majestic church in L.A. It was different, and interesting, and quite exquisite. But oh for the joy of a simple little church full of down to earth people! A church building that isn’t too fancy to host potlucks and summer barbecues; weddings, birthday parties, women’s retreats, school functions. Church grounds that host volleyball games on warm Sunday afternoons played on a ratty net in the parking lot. A church where “come as you are” is taken literally, and a place where being who you really are is valued and encouraged.
When it all comes down to it, the truth is that a church is about so much more than a building. It’s about knowing God and knowing each other. It’s about community, and togetherness, and celebration. And sometimes it’s about getting messy, spilling coffee on the sanctuary carpet, and having a grassy area that’s more dirt that grass because there’s always some fun activity happening on it. I guess the saying really does prove correct that “home is where the heart is”. And my heart is definitely in that rambling, unpretentious, much used, much loved building in Crowley Lake, known as Church on the Mountain.
Paula Friedrichsen is a member of Church on the Mountain, a vibrant community of believers in Crowley Lake. We meet at 9:30 Sunday mornings. Call for more information: 935-4272 or www.ChurchOnTheMountain.org
It was Easter morning. Stained glass windows, cathedral ceilings, polished wood pews, and possibly the most majestic crucifix I’ve ever laid eyes on, greeted us as we arrived for the service at a beautiful church in an affluent Los Angeles community. The expansive altar was encircled by dozens of fragrant Easter lilies, and the sanctuary hosted hundreds of flickering white candles. What a magnificent scene it was!
As I sat there taking it all in, I couldn’t help but think about my own little mountain church nestled snug in the High Sierra Mountains. In fact, I chuckled a little as I compared these two places of worship. One was extravagant, sparkling, rich, and exceedingly lovely. It was the kind of place in which you walked a bit slower and spoke a bit quieter. The Easter service was conducted with reserve and dignity—rich in tradition and ritual, and yet also rich with the presence of God.
My little mountain church was also decked out for Easter with an impressive display of flowers and decorations—but that’s where the similarities stopped. Church on the Mountain is a noisy, crowded, rambunctious kind of place where children are seldom hushed—and the people can be seen and heard talking, laughing, hugging, and generally enjoying each other before, during, and after service. It’s the kind of place where the singing is loud, the sermons stirring, and the services long (about 2 hours). It’s the kind of church were people stand up and share what God is doing in their lives in the middle of the Sunday morning service; the kind of place where you might see people praying for each other; and the kind of church where folks linger long after the service is over just to visit. There’s no mad-dash to the parking lot to see who can get out first. No race to be the first on the wait list at Jacks Waffle Shop—but rather a people who are connected to each other and to their God. (although I might add that the cheeseburgers and fries at Jacks are definitely worth waiting for!)
Now don’t get me wrong, I thoroughly enjoyed and delighted in the Easter service at that majestic church in L.A. It was different, and interesting, and quite exquisite. But oh for the joy of a simple little church full of down to earth people! A church building that isn’t too fancy to host potlucks and summer barbecues; weddings, birthday parties, women’s retreats, school functions. Church grounds that host volleyball games on warm Sunday afternoons played on a ratty net in the parking lot. A church where “come as you are” is taken literally, and a place where being who you really are is valued and encouraged.
When it all comes down to it, the truth is that a church is about so much more than a building. It’s about knowing God and knowing each other. It’s about community, and togetherness, and celebration. And sometimes it’s about getting messy, spilling coffee on the sanctuary carpet, and having a grassy area that’s more dirt that grass because there’s always some fun activity happening on it. I guess the saying really does prove correct that “home is where the heart is”. And my heart is definitely in that rambling, unpretentious, much used, much loved building in Crowley Lake, known as Church on the Mountain.
Paula Friedrichsen is a member of Church on the Mountain, a vibrant community of believers in Crowley Lake. We meet at 9:30 Sunday mornings. Call for more information: 935-4272 or www.ChurchOnTheMountain.org
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