Twenty years ago there were probably a few other churches held in school cafeterias and store fronts. But to drive down the streets in Rocklin, there weren’t many churches to be seen. Not many in the neighboring towns either.
With a limited choice within our geographical range, our family began attending the closest church to our house—making it easier to gather everyone together and allowing fewer reasons to skip corporate worship.
We attended that church for seven years and watched the congregation grow to three overly-crowded services each weekend. Then, at almost exactly the same time that our church relocated into a 5000-seat location, a new church began construction on the other side of our back fence.
It didn’t take us long to figure out that if God planted a church in our back yard, we should probably see what it was all about. As soon as we walked in the door, we felt like we had come home.
Today, the streets of Rocklin are lined with sturdy church buildings. New churches continue to sprout up in the same school cafeterias and store fronts that sprouted churches 20 years ago. Fledglings become mega churches and thousands of believers continue each week to worship God and seek His face.
We humans marvel as a town grows from a few buildings and several hundred residents to a sprawling suburban city. Hopefully God has the better view though as he watches the gathering of His people, joining together to build lives based on His truth and promises.
PRAYER: Heavenly Father, thank you for bringing together your body of believers and helping us form communities so that we can worship and grow together in you. Keep our churches strong. Keep them filled with your teachings. Keep them praising and glorifying you. Amen.
WHAT ABOUT YOU? How have the churches in your area changed in the last 20 years?
2 comments:
Thanks for the old church picture, I love going into them, it seems like you can feel the history and presence in many of them.
Change? some do... and some will remain just the same... but they're all good and do God's work.
Thanks Carol, enjoyed this post!!
@ Chris - you're right--it's all good.
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