I was raised to go to church every Sunday from the time I was 11 until 20 when I finally moved out.  When I go home, we still go to church every Sunday, and the kids are expected to come as well.  My parents are not part of what I call the "God Squad"  rather they are more old school midwest - you do go to church every week, you pray, you give back to your community, the bible is a metaphor from which you draw analogies about today and your life.

 

I rely heavily on my faith and foundation it was built upon for many things in my life.  I understand death and dying and am not afraid of it.  I believe that there is a plan and that things happen for a reason.  I also think that the values taught in the types of church my family brought me up in :tolerance, compassion, hope are important ones for me and my family.

 

But church is something I haven't sought out since moving out of my folks place.  I'd go whenever we were home, feel very comfortable in that church, but haven't wanted to look for a new one.  Plus, I live in a red state where churches are a little different, there is less about inclusion and more about everyone else who is wrong.  Plus, truth be told, Sunday is my day of rest, and the idea of getting everyone out the door to pray, well, I can pray for more sleep and that would do me just as much good.  

 

But this Sunday I am goin to church.  I figure so much shit has happened this past year that I better get in there soon before I get smited.  I got a new house, I got a job, I am pregnant, I mean the blessings are fucking running out and over my cup.  If I don't get in there soon, the big man is going to teach me a lesson.  I told hubby my plan to start finding a church in our area and he seems on board.  We're both in agreement that it's something we want our kids invovled in, but given some of the god squaders around us I don't want to find my kid telling me that his friend Mohammed is going to hell because he's not a christian (and yes a little boy on my street did tell me that about his friend). 

 

So I'm going to start looking, and hopefully will find a place that lets our family be us - casually committed. If I have truly landed myself in an area that doesn't have a church for me, then I guess I'll declare us heathens and home church them.  It's tempting. Watching the lady's reaction down the street if I told her that our church was in our home and I was home churching because we believe that everyone's relgion is ok in god's eyes -  that would be fucking priceless.