Sunday is my favorite day of the week. One reason is because I LOVE church. I have all my life and still do! It is not a chore for me to get up on Sunday morning and pretty up and get to church! Today we decided, since Denny didn't have to preach somewhere, to go visit a church near us. Just to see what is happening around the Phillie area.
I pulled up the church list from the district website and I also pulled up the church list from the HQ website. Just wanted to see what was 30 miles or less from Phoenixville. I found a Grace Chapel in Greenlane. The website said 14.5 miles from Phoenixville. I couldn't find service times so I called the number listed and when the voice mail came on, the voice said, "Hi, this is Nicole, sorry you missed me, leave your number and I'll get back to you." It didn't seem like a church voice mail so I hung up and we decided to leave the house to arrive at church at 10. Seemed logical to me, if the service was at 10 we were right on. If it was at 10:30, we had time to get a coffee!
We arrived at the church at 10:15 and there was not a car in sight. Well there were cars but they looked like they were parked for some houses nearby. The sign said worship service, 10:30. We were pleased, at least we wouldn't walk in late so we decided to drive back to a mini mart we saw and grab a drink. We arrived back at the church at 10:30 and lo and behold, no cars, only 2 people on the grounds with leaf blowers!
Wait, it's Sunday, could it be a work day at the church? or what is going on. I jumped out of the car and one of the leafblowers stopped his machine and walked toward me. I said, "what time is church?" He said, "Oh there isn't a church here anymore, my wife (the other leafblower) and I bought the property a couple of months ago and excitedly he said, and the house there came with it!! I didn't want to burst his bubble and say, oh yes that's called a parsonage! I just listened to his story and asked, "well, where did the "church" go? He yelled to his leafblowing wife, "HEY WHERE'D THE CHURCH GO?" She screamed back, "I DON'T KNOW, MAYBE DOWN 563."
The man said to me, "Do you know where that is?" I didn't. Renee and Den were sitting in the car, probably wondering what in the world we were talking about, never dreaming that the church was closed!
I remember one time in Jamaica we left early one Sunday morning to visit a church quite a distance from our home and when we arrived it was closed tighter than a drum, found out from the neighbors it was closed because of the rain. Since many Jamaicans walk to their destinations, it is impossible sometimes for a congregation to get to the meeting house.
This morning we left the church and drove down 563 and didn't find a church. Disappointed, Yes. The clock determined that it was too late to come back to Phoenixville for church so we missed it. Somehow I feel like it's another day other than Sunday.
I am puzzled though, are we the only ones who have shown up to church and found it closed? Did no one think to put up a sign that says SOLD, or WE HAVE MOVED? What in the world is up with that? don't know...and another question, why aren't the websites current!!
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