Being Adults

Andrew and I joined Dixie Hills Baptist Church on Feb. 15th. That was exciting for several reasons. I have always attended church, but I haven't really been able to choose what church I would like to attend. As a small child my family attended Graham Heights Baptist Church in Memphis. It was a very small church. I have very fond memories of that place. As an adult now, it seems funny to me that my family would continue going to such a small church when Memphis is full of such amazing church. This particular church was in the ghetto. When my family moved to Dyersburg, we visiting a lot of churches. They finally decided on Hillcrest Baptist Church. I was not happy with that decision, but what say does a 9 year old have? I wanted to attend First Baptist which had a nice girl (Amy Dyer) and doughnuts on Sunday mornings. At Hillcrest, I hated attending it for probably about 4 years. I would fake having an upset stomach so I wouldn't have to go. The girls that were my age were mean and cruel because I wasn't one of them. I was baptized at Hillcrest by my grandfather (who also married me at Hillcrest). When I was in the youth group, I had no friends that attended the church and I decided to do something about it. By the time I graduated high school, most of my best friends attended Hillcrest. I believe that Hillcrest has a lot to do with falling in love with my husband. Through youth events, Andrew and I learned to pray together and nothing is sexier than watching the guy you love worship the God he loves. Hillcrest has a very special place in my heart and it will always be my home church. When I moved to Bolivar I was determined to find a great church. I would drive to Jackson or Memphis if I had to. I finally realized that I probably wouldn't be as diligent with going to church if I had to drive an hour. Billy Graham probably couldn't get me to church every Sunday. I visited First Baptist Bolivar a couple of times. Unfortunately, everyone at their church was over the age of 40. I needed someone to be my friend, not my substitute mom. When I decided to visit Dixie Hills Baptist, I walked into the classroom and there were so many younger couples. Most of the couples have already started their families, but they were all very nice and friendly. The community atmosphere was so refreshing. I felt that I had found my new home church as soon as I walked in the door. It had that home feeling like Hillcrest had, but smaller. I had to slow my horses and not count my chickens because Andrew hadn't had the chance to visit the church yet. I got involved with the Sunday School and Discipleship Training class. I can't remember the last time I was in an all women's group and was actually discussing the Bible. I actually started to cry during the closing prayer at Discipleship Training. I knew that God had brought me to Dixie Hills and I was going to make some good friends. After Andrew and I were married, I prayed that he would love the church as much as I did. Luckily, he loved it and hit it off with the music minister. While DHBC is not perfect, it's a great place for us to worship and to get involved in the community.