Background Check (part 1)

This is about my background as a Christian.  

I was raised in a southern baptist church. In fact, my dad's side was a lineage of many generations of baptist preachers.  On my mom's side, my lineage was straight up Pentecostal and Assemblies of God/eventual Methodists.  I went to vacation bible school, Sunday school, and was a member of kids choir and G. A.'s all of my younger years. 

During the time I was in elementary school, my parents were heavily involved with the baptist church even inviting a couple of Japanese Christian women to come and stay with us for a while (one of my favorite memories).  

My baptist church was the picture of ultimate church perfection, pastel dresses, suits and ties, hymnals, offering plates, attendance posted on the little plaque up front, pot luck dinners, lots of trips and activities and an occasional week long "revival".

Thinking back to actual Sunday morning services, I had mixed feelings.  On one hand I had a bunch of people who loved me and knew me. I liked the kids stuff ok.  But I still hated sitting in "big church".  I was to sit still and listen because I was too old for the nursery.  Church equaled uncomfortable clothing, polite smiles, and the drudgery of old hymns, rambling sermons and sitting quietly still next to my parents. ( I usually failed at sitting still during church.)

Then a pastor named Jim Way and a youth leader named Keith Davis brought a wave of new energy into our little baptist church. During this time, the church was remodeled and a vigorous youth choir named "His Kids" began. The church suddenly had a lot more members and I loved choir. I learned more about God by singing about Him than sitting in a classroom.  Truths were planted that would not come to the surface until much much later.

About this time, a few individuals had broken away from the baptist church and started a new house church.  These individuals gathered for bible studies held in homes.   That's when they veered off the "good old baptist" path.

These good baptists got involved with teachings about the Holy Spirit, prophesy and (shocker) the raising of hands in worship.  They found themselves going a different direction and finally split to form what would become Believer's Chapel.  

My sweet grandmother was a Methodist but found her way to these home meetings.  Before long she was experiencing the power of the Holy Spirit.  She often shared these things with me when I stayed with her.  It seemed mysterious and exciting.  Sometimes my parents would let me go to church with her.  I preferred the chapel over the baptist church because it was less formal.  People were allowed to share and speak during the service.  The music was new and more sweetly personal than the hymns I had known before.  Before the age of 8, I had already chosen which "flavor" of church fitted me best. 

I was baptized at 8 at both churches.   Long story short,  revival preacher at the Baptist Church scared the HELL out of me.  I went forward and was dunked (Yay, church membership.)  I could now eat the crackers and sip the cute cups of grape juice with all the grown-ups.

But, my Papaw and Uncle were getting baptized at the chapel on the first Sunday service in the new building.  Of course, I would be too! I had dual citizenship by now. I was double-dunked.  But, I still don't really think I knew the magnitude of what was being done.

I didn't know that my "ticket to heaven" was not the whole picture of true conversion.

I still didn't know that something crucial was missing.

Then came junior high, boys, we stopped going to church as regularly, the surge of energy at the baptist church had waned as the popular pastors moved on.  

Then one of the boys about my age who attended Believer's Chapel (former baptists) invited me to go with his family to hear some famous  evangelist coming to Abilene.  It was a "date" of sorts.  I was too young to have a boyfriend but my parents allowed me to go because it was a churchy thing and we would be chaperoned.

The speaker was Dave Roever

The guy who literally had his face blown off in Vietnam.

His traveling ministry was a hot ticket back then.  He had a reputation as a wise-crack and had an amazing testimony.  His messages were rumored to be light-hearted and funny according to David's parents.....

However, it was not "funny" night when David, the boy I was with, his little sister, his  parents and I arrived at Abilene Civic Center.  

(to be continued...)