On a hunt

By Ida Smith-Williams

Planning a spring break vacation with the kids to the beach was somewhat more challenging when it became a mission to attend church on Easter Sunday morning. We were planning a fourteen hour drive from Louisville to Myrtle Beach, SC with the intent of finding a Christian non-denominational church along the way. Googling, I found three very interesting churches fitting our criteria: a church similar to the one we belong to and located about half-way, which would put us near Asheville, NC, by our calculations.

The next step was to check out the web sites of three churches of interest. The first church boasted of being a new church with about 40 members. The web site of a second church highlighted that it was a simple church and provided information on where to park, what to wear, and how long the service might last. It included pictures of staff including a person of color, which told me we would not be the only people of color if we showed up here. The web site stressed that what we wore did not matter, which was important to us since we would be coming in our traveling clothes. It let us know that all were welcome in the worship service including children over age five, with younger children cared for in the nursery. Our youngest is four, and while we would prefer a worship experience for her with kids her own age, we did not rule out this church. However, the physical address of the church proved difficult to find. There were references to the church being located in the "Orange Peel." As someone unfamiliar with the area, this didn't help me at all. I finally found the mailing address of the church, which I located on MapQuest. However, my frustration with trying to find the church's location decreased my interest in this church.

The last church we considered was a church with about 900 members. Their web site included a video showing a typical worship service. This was helpful to see how people dressed and the style of worship. The church seemed similar to our own church and offered separate services for children. The web site gave simple directions to find the church and even included a link to map the church from our house. The hunt was a successful one as we pulled into the parking lot of this third church 15 minutes prior to the worship service. We found the church very inviting and welcoming. Someone greeted us the minute we walked in and, as one person led my husband and teen boys to the sanctuary, another woman led me downstairs to the children's services. She stood with me, politely chatting, as we waited to go through the check-in station where I was given an identification number that would come across the screen in worship if they needed to reach me. She then took us to the classroom. My child was a little anxious about going off with strangers, but that was only momentary—when she was told that they would hunt for eggs, color, and play outside, off she went! I was then led upstairs to the sanctuary. We met and conversed with the pastor afterwards. We enjoyed our Easter Sunday worship experience, thanks to this church's web site and hospitality, and continued on our way.

Web sites are an important first step for many people. Try to imagine how a visitor might view your site.

Comments

[Reg Bruce]

What a wonderful adventure! It also goes to show how all of this new-fangled technology can play a meaningful role with worshipers. Thank you for sharing this story!