Wednesday, May 11, 2011

The Old Church House

Do any of you ever think about the church you attended when you were a child?

I suppose that many of you may still attend the very same church that you grew up in...

Just this past weekend, I had the opportunity to visit my old church.  As a child, I attended a small country church that is only about 10 miles from where I live today..


Yes....I grew up in the Methodist Church....

Visiting the church brought back so many childhood memories for me....
I was terrified of Sunday School!  Go figure this.  Who knows why, but every time my mother left me in that big huge room, my heart would start to beat faster and faster.  It was the longest thirty minutes of my life.

I do think that I eventually grew out of this!

Another thing that I remember was the smell.....You know, the Methodist smell!
You've got the Baptist smell, the Assembly of God smell and what ever church you attend smell....Perhaps it was the old hymnals, the upright piano, or maybe the wooden floors.

Am I the only one that could/can differentiate the smell of old churches?



I remember the isle of the church....It seemed like it took forever to walk to the front of the church, when in fact, it was only about ten pews long.



And....... there were the pews at the front where the choir sat..
I could not wait to get old enough to sit up there.  When I finally was old enough, I remember how my cousin Molly and I would open those hymnals and sing our hearts out....



This is a picture of Molly and I at the family
reunion this past weekend.....We were always
best friends.




I wanted to show you the attendance board....I remember this board!
Of course, I do believe the attendance was much greater when I was young, cause I can remember all of the pews being completed filled.....
{I told you this was a small church!}




I cannot be positive that this is the same carved wooden piece of art that always hung on the wall at the front of the church, but it sure looks like it....I remember seeing one like this as a child...


I was not able to get a picture of the "Fellowship Hall" or the "Outhouse." Both of these will forever be in my memories.....I would say that the old fellowship hall/Sunday school room was the size of  a 18 X 20 room, but it sure seemed huge at the time.  What I remember about the meals served at the church gatherings was that there was always a LOT of good food and it was served in containers that we don't see much today! .....I'll always remember the watered down kool aid!

The old outhouse was {I'm sure} an upscale outhouse....There were two stalls for the women and I'm just not sure what was on the men's side..One thing was for sure, if it was raining....it was much easier to hold "IT" in, than it was to get wet...


In the Springtime, there was always Lunch on the grounds.  Sunday lunch was not actually on the ground, but there were waist high tables that held all the food and everyone brought there own blankets to sit on when it came time to eat...This was an event that no one wanted to miss....

These were the good days........however, I sure do like the air conditioning that we are blessed to have now!

Sam and I were married in a Methodist church and we were members of the Methodist church here in our town for many years.  It was when our girls were very little, that we felt a need for a deeper spiritual walk with the Lord.  We visited the Assembly of God church, and shortly after, became members.  After some twenty-five or so years, this is still our church today.  Both daughters and their families still attend the same church as well....

We absolutely love our home church, but I am also thankful for the memories that I have of growing up in the old country church...


Hoping your day is filled with special memories of times past...

Blessings,

Shug ~

7 comments:

  1. lovelt post today,, I do know what you mean,,by the smells,,, if I close my eyes I can still smell the little church we went to,,the old wood pews, the smell of cedar, the flowers, the smell brings me right back, thank you for that,,

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  2. Isn't it nice to reminisce(?) - Even though I didn't attend your church, I can imagine those old times and what fun they were - dinner on the ground always good!!!

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  3. Nice to go down the carefree childhood memory lane every now and then....better do it while we can still remember it, as well as share it with our children.

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  4. I loved the tour of your first church!!! Do they have indoor bathrooms yet? I know our church has to work continually to keep up with code regulations. I am surprised to see the flag up in the front!! One year,on Memorial Day, out ladies decorated the podium table by putting a flag over it like a tablecloth. It enraged one member so much that he walked out, left the church, and became a Quaker!! There was a bit of a dust up after that, some people liked it, others thought it was bad. It is sad to see the membership has dwindled to this, I always feel really sad when a church loses members! there is a book called "Comeback Churches" and professional groups that can help churches re-grow. The old church we went to when we were first married now has only about 30 members.

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  5. How I enjoyed this entry today, Shug. You are not alone with the ' smell ' memories. I remember the parsonage where we attended Sunday School Classes once we were in Catechism. We had classes in the basement and the musty smell still lingers at the thought of it. But the food, oh Gracious, the food that would come across the tables during any church festivity. Everyone would also bring a dish to pass and the lines were long. Today, there is still the enthusiasm, but not near the attendance. I regret to say that I, myself, have been away for awhile and desperately need to find my way back.
    Thanks for sharing your sweet memories. I enjoyed it and take it as a reminder to find my way Home again.
    BlessYourSweetHeart

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  6. Today most churches can say they used to be fuller. (Is that a word?) It is sad to hear that so many denominations are adopting such anti-biblical stances. The church is looking more like the world instead of influencing the world for Christ.
    I loved Sunday School and especially Bible school. Probably for the cookies! :D

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  7. HI Shug, I was born and raised a Methodist, went to a Methodist College and became a Minister of Christian Education in the Methodist Church.

    The church I grew up in and was married in (the first time) in my small town was a little larger than yours, but it was still a 'small' church. I remember those attendance boards.. Most every church had them...

    In college, I sang in the College Choir and we toured to Methodist Churches all over Tennessee --big ones and little ones. SO many wonderful memories...

    Thanks for sharing your childhood church... And YES---churches do have their own smell!!!!

    Hugs,
    Betsy

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Thank you for Blessing me today with your comments...

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