Abby Clark- Church Visit #1

Abby Clark- Church Visit #1

Name: Nueva Esperanza

Address: Wheaton, Illinois 

Date: 2/9/13

Category: Latino

Describe the worship service you attended. How was it similar to or different from your regular context? 

This was a service in a strictly Latin American context. Everything in the service was in Spanish.  The church population was around 120 people. There were many families and many small children. The church has a very laid back feel conducive to family life, which is similar to the church services I usually attend.  The service started with worship which was done by three female women singing, one man on the guitar, a girl on the piano and a little girl on the drums. After worship there was a scripture reading, then the sermon, and then the service was dismissed.

What did you find most interesting or appealing about the worship service?

I really enjoyed the charisma and passion of the pastor. He preached with such urgency and energy that was extremely captivating. It was clear that the congregation respected him and saw him as an authoritative figure. His sermon was relevant and it was easy to see that he was convicted about the message he was delivering.  I also really enjoyed the hospitality of the congregation. They were very welcoming and seemed excited to usher in visitors. I think this is a very important characteristic that every church needs to have.  Having a spirit of hospitality is a wonderful way to show Christ's love as a church. 

What did you find most disorienting or challenging about the worship service?

The sermon portion of the service was significantly longer than I am used to experiencing at my own church.  However, the pastor was very enthusiastic which helped keep the time engaging.  His sermon had various aspects and portions to it, which at times made it difficult to follow along or to see how everything connected.  He used various Scripture passages which enhanced the relevancy of the message, yet again it made it difficult to connect all of the concepts that he was presenting to the congregation.  

What aspects of Scripture or theology did the worship service illuminate for you that you had not perceived as clearly in your regular context?

The minister focused on the the concept of us all acknowledging and growing in our vocations.  He stressed the importance of our vocations not necessarily having to be something holy nominally, but that we can make them holy through our actions.