church, love, and Nescafe

As I sit here in my charming, little flat room, drinking a hot cup of Nescafe and chatting over the internet with friends who are all over the world right now, my heart is full.

I had a lot of fears coming over here. The fear of making no friends, the fear of coming all this way and hating it, the fear of cold weather...but the one thing that gave me the most comfort was the knowledge that, regardless of whatever else happened, I would have the Church.

I'm well aware that the Church (or perversion of it) has been an instrument for much bad in this world, but I also know that those things that have the potential to do the most harm also have the potential to do the most good. I've known both (as have many people), and somehow God has taken it all and helped me to see his goodness throughout. I love the Church because it is the body of Christ ... tangible ... present ... alive ... and beautiful.

I think that as I prepared for this journey, God put that deep trust and hope in the Church into my heart for a reason, as an expectation of what was to come. Because there was much to expect...

In the church here, there is an amazing spirit. It is fresh, and warm, and good.

It's something I've never experienced to quite the degree of fullness before, but something I have yearned for for quite some time. Back in the days of my frustrations with American church culture, I used the phrase "collecting coffee cups" to describe my experience visiting a million different churches, being handed a new souvenir coffee cup with the new church's logo on it each time.

Refreshingly, I haven't scored any new coffee cups yet here in England. I have, however, been served quite a few cups of Nescafe. That is, an English version of instant coffee that people here drink instead of real coffee. I haven't seen a real coffee maker since I was in Houston, but everyone knows Americans love coffee, so they try to give me a Nescafe everywhere I go.

It isn't the fanciest thing in the world (or the tastiest), but I kind of love drinking it because it makes me feel a part of the culture. You know, English. Like I belong here or something.

What has really made me feel like I belong here more than anything else, though, are some of the people I've met. People who have pretty much defined Church for me these past few days. I went to the University's Christian Union this past week, and I met some new friends. They were basically like, "You're American...new here? Okay well we're going to be friends then. Friday night dinner is at 6:00- we'll pick you up!"

So I went to dinner, and I saw the way that these people loved each other. The way that they are like a family. And the way that they can simultaneously be amazingly close knit and also amazingly welcoming to an outsider like me.

"Do you need anything? Can we take you anywhere?"
"If you feel homesick, please come to me. I know how it feels."
"You should come home with me one weekend and see my part of the country."
"Do you want to cook us American food?"
"Can we meet your parents?"
"We like you, too."

They literally just exude love.

I've been invited to everyone's churches, too. And I've gone to a couple, and the churches of Chester, England seem to possess the same kind of wonderful spirit that is so clearly displayed in these people who have been the Church to me- regardless of what day of the week it is or where we are at the moment.

In addition to getting a lot of Nescafe, the church members I've met have not only gone through the rituals of introduction, conversations about the weather, and inquiries about my week, but there is something distinctively remarkable that happens every single time.

They tell me to go to other churches.

They tell me my English experience will be fuller if I go to the church across the street, too. They tell me that if I really want to understand church in Chester, I have to go to many churches. They tell me I should really attend the monthly gathering where all the churches get together for worship. They ask me if I'll be in town during the summer when they all get together to put on an event to celebrate community in Chester.

One elder even said, "There is only one church in Chester. We are simply one expression of it."

They not only love their own congregations, their own friends and Sunday school classes, but they genuinely and passionately love the other expressions of Christ's Church in this ancient, little town.

And because I'm a Christian, that means they love me, too. And that means I belong.

So I guess I'll go on using my 99 pence coffee cup from TESCO, because it doesn't look like I'll be getting another free one anytime soon. Because it's not the coffee cup that matters, it's what's in it. And it's not the church building, or the church logo, or the church activities, or the church service that matter...

It's just the Church. Christ's body on this earth. It is love.

"By this all men will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another."
-Jesus in John 13:35