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bkmiller

- 2 years ago

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What has been your best/worst church experience?

My best church experience was going to a Christian summer camp when I was 15 where God became real to me for the first time. My worst church experience happened soon afterwards when I went on a high school church choir trip and got into a discussion about theology with the choir leader. We disagreed on a certain point, and he told me I could leave the church. Well, I DIDN'T leave the church, but HE did a short time later when he stepped down from his position as music leader.

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I was sitting in a church 2 weeks without the heroin that I had been using for a few years thinking about all the people who had died that I had known personally. Beautiful talented intelligent people. There had been periods of time where I had pursued my addiction full tilt, Hope to die style. I had gone from dipping my toes in the water to getting in there with a knife and mercilessly hunting sharks. I remember taking a half blood infused syringe that a prostitute had been juking into the hole caused by her flesh eating bacteria and ramming it into my jugular rather than waiting 20 minutes for the dealer to come back with more. Why Why was I still alive? All of the emotions that I hadn't felt in years Were drowning me. All of this was internal, it was what I was thinking.
From the pulpit the preacher announced that the elders knew that there was a person in the congregation who was wondering WHY they had survived. Would that person please come forward. I remained seated and silent.

Best: I remember being a teenager and absolutely nothing was going right in my world. The circle of friends I was with were complete jerks and I was ousted. I spent a few years alone, left to my own devices, and thought that I wasn't good enough, that I was socially inept. I was the kid who sat alone and talked to noone, which is very out of character in retrospect.

I met someone that befriended me and made me feel much better. In time, he asked me to go to church with him. I was about 15 at the time. Long story short, I attended and I found that the Lord could fill those voids in my heart. I found salvation in Jesus Christ. The first three people that I encountered that night would become my best friends, my crew, that I am still friends with today. I found hapiness and a reason to live. I think that's great, whether you're a spiritual person or not. That saved my life. In the end, we all joined the military and went our separate ways.

Worst: I joined the military and went out on my own. I found no solace. I no longer found peace in the Lord. I went out into the world, into the flesh. I attended church after church. I thought that I could only find the Lord in a church. I should've realized that it was up to me to pursue the face of God on my own. I remember attending a Bible study on the USS Kitty Hawk on what seemed like the longest six months of my life. The man that was running the Bible study was a Master Chief Petty Officer, and somehow he presided over the study because of his rank. He began telling his class wild things that were contradictory to the Bible, that women are evil because Eve tempted Adam in the garden and gave some long-winded rant, going off into the deep end and leading people astray. I left that class and gave up for about eight years.

I'm home now, and I'm finding peace with the Lord once again. My friends are home as well. We satisfied our service obligations. We attend the same church as we did when we were children, but it isn't the same. We've seen a touch more than we would have liked to. We're not the same physically or mentally. All of us having some sort psychological issues, and some health issues. I suppose it makes you appreciate how great it was when we were younger. I suppose it also breeds character.

In the end, whether it was the best or worst, I'm still very thankful that I have my friends. That's one promise that never changed. That's all I wanted to begin with. The Lord is faithful.

the best (out of many): receiving Christ
the worst: racial issues

Worst experience was when the cops were called on me for having a Bible in the church.

This is was a Christian church mind you...actually you guys might even know it..it's called Solid Rock Church and they had the gigantic touch down Jesus statue in front of it before it got struck down by lightinging.

My best church experience was when I felt like I could really express myself and be me. My worst was when I couldn't.

Best: My cousin got saved and professed his faith.
Worse: I farted pretty loud once and it was suuuuuper smelly. Additionally, my pastor asked a question to the congregation that employed basic multiplication. I got it wrong and said my wrong answer in front of the whole church. My worst moments are more like most embarrassing moments.

You know what, scratch what I said up there. My WORST church experience happened 2 years ago on March 8 when a gunman walked into my church and shot our pastor. He was a wonderful man. I'd only known him for a year before he died, but he practiced what he preached. He left behind a wife (Cindy Winters) and 2 girls. Cindy's an amazing lady... she forgave the guy RIGHT after it happened!!! It took me a LONG time to forgive him. She's even established Grace and Hope Ministries for those who are hurting and travels around doing guest speaking engagements. Her website is http://www.graceandhopeministries.org.

The worst was being in 2nd grade when the Cathoic kids took their first communion, but I wasn't allowed to eat the "Blood and Body of Christ" because I was a Methodist.

The best was going to church groups with my best friend only to find that neither of us truly believed in God.

my worst experience at church was when I had to pass out the collection, in my church they use a long stick with a basket at the end, and I hit my friends dad in the back of the head, luckily there was no blood, and luckily it was someone I knew.

Now I don't go to church anymore because I am scared they will pick me to pass the collection, and I don't want to hurt anyone else...

bkmiller

What has been your best/worst church experience?

NoddMonger

TheRobisaur

boyercollection

the best (out of many): receiving Christ
the worst: racial issues

schmidtface

kfishery

My best church experience was when I felt like I could really express myself and be me. My worst was when I couldn't.

NatetheBossman

bkmiller

livingthedream

The worst was being in 2nd grade when the Cathoic kids took their first communion, but I wasn't allowed to eat the "Blood and Body of Christ" because I was a Methodist.

The best was going to church groups with my best friend only to find that neither of us truly believed in God.

ferdonkers

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What has been your best/worst church experience?

the best (out of many): receiving Christthe worst: racial issues

My best church experience was when I felt like I could really express myself and be me. My worst was when I couldn't.

The worst was being in 2nd grade when the Cathoic kids took their first communion, but I wasn't allowed to eat the "Blood and Body of Christ" because I was a Methodist.The best was going to church groups with my best friend only to find that neither of us truly believed in God.

SoulPancake

hand–crafted in Atwater Village

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What's Next?

the best (out of many): receiving Christ
the worst: racial issues

The worst was being in 2nd grade when the Cathoic kids took their first communion, but I wasn't allowed to eat the "Blood and Body of Christ" because I was a Methodist.

The best was going to church groups with my best friend only to find that neither of us truly believed in God.