Well, I've been attending two churches for a bit over two months now and I'm no closer to deciding whether I shall dump one. I suspect I'll continue to go to both. Church2 has a new minister so I've been waiting to see how things go there - it will take a while for him to settle in and for the church to settle in to him being there. His preaching is okay although not very meaty and he very obviously (to me, at least) holds back on some of the more controversial issues. I don't know whether this is because he doesn't want to make waves just yet, or because he takes a soft stance anyway. I suspect it's both, actually, which is a little disappointing but not surprising, given both the particular demonination and the city in which I live.
Church1, on the other hand, continues to have excellent teaching but is not overwhelming me with friendliness. I shall possibly (probably) be flatting with a friend next year - rather than boarding, which I'm doing now - so that may give me opportunities to demonstrate hospitality... perhaps they'll get the hint! Not that I can do too much of that since I'm a student and on a tight budget - plus I want to be fair to my housemate who may not want people over all the time - but a few invitations here and there might help to thaw out a few people. To be fair, 'thaw out' is not the correct term. They're very friendly when we're all at church; they're just not great at keeping in contact at other times, which means if I miss church no one bothers to see if I'm still alive or not. That kind of neglect can become rather soul-destroying after a while. I've lived here (and attended the same church) for just under three years and in that time I've been invited to the homes of three people... and apart from one lovely family, I've only been invited the once. I'm not expecting people to go all out for me but demonstrating a desire to know me as a person, outside the two hours or so they see me on a Sunday, would be nice.
Anyway... whinge whinge.
Uni update: wow, it's hectic. Classes have finished but I still have two essays to hand in and two exams to do - one with an essay and a literary criticism and the other is a Greek exam, so I'll need to put in lots of study for it. All in all, I'm very busy and feeling a little overwhelmed but fortunately I work fairly well under pressure so hopefully I'll get it all done without wanting to undertake a ritual suicide...
Church1, on the other hand, continues to have excellent teaching but is not overwhelming me with friendliness. I shall possibly (probably) be flatting with a friend next year - rather than boarding, which I'm doing now - so that may give me opportunities to demonstrate hospitality... perhaps they'll get the hint! Not that I can do too much of that since I'm a student and on a tight budget - plus I want to be fair to my housemate who may not want people over all the time - but a few invitations here and there might help to thaw out a few people. To be fair, 'thaw out' is not the correct term. They're very friendly when we're all at church; they're just not great at keeping in contact at other times, which means if I miss church no one bothers to see if I'm still alive or not. That kind of neglect can become rather soul-destroying after a while. I've lived here (and attended the same church) for just under three years and in that time I've been invited to the homes of three people... and apart from one lovely family, I've only been invited the once. I'm not expecting people to go all out for me but demonstrating a desire to know me as a person, outside the two hours or so they see me on a Sunday, would be nice.
Anyway... whinge whinge.
Uni update: wow, it's hectic. Classes have finished but I still have two essays to hand in and two exams to do - one with an essay and a literary criticism and the other is a Greek exam, so I'll need to put in lots of study for it. All in all, I'm very busy and feeling a little overwhelmed but fortunately I work fairly well under pressure so hopefully I'll get it all done without wanting to undertake a ritual suicide...
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