Church name: Iglesia del Pueblo (Wheaton Bible Church)
Church address: 27W500 North Ave, West Chicago, IL 60185
Date attended: September 20, 2015
Church category: Different racial/ethnic background
Describe the worship service you attended. How was it similar to or different from your regular context?
The structure of the worship service at Wheaton Bible Church was very similar to that of the church service I regularly attend at Restoration Community Church (in Naperville.) The praise team leader welcomed the congregation (children and adults together) and said a few words before leading us in worship. In between the praise songs, the leader asked for us to greet each other and we did so by shaking hands and saying "hello." After praise, the younger children were dismissed to their classes. This was followed by a time for offering/tithing in which the ushers would pass the offering plates aisle by aisle. Then the service transitioned into the sermon; the pastor came to the podium and preached, continuing his series on Jesus and the ten commandments. After the sermon, the praise band came up once again for the closing praise and the pastor led the congregation in a short time of confession before ending the service with the benediction. The only major difference that I could point out was the benediction. At Wheaton Bible Church, the pastor prayed the benediction over us while at Restoration Community Church, the pastor first sings the benediction (Numbers 6:24-26) a capella then the whole congregation sings it to one another.
What did you find most interesting or appealing about the worship service?
I found the time of praise most appealing. Most of the songs were new to me but I was able to sing along with the rest of the congregation. I love how energetic and passionate the praise band sounded. In addition, I really appreciated the intentionality of the church members. When we were greeting each other, a few members came to me first to firmly shake my hand with a smile; some were sitting either on the opposite side of the pew or were in a different aisle and had walked up to greet me.
What did you find most disorienting or challenging about the worship service?
Perhaps what was most challenging and disorienting about the worship service was that it was entirely in Spanish. It had urged me to take all of the Spanish that I had learned in middle and high school out of my memory to piece together what the praise team leader was saying, let alone figure out what I was singing. By the time I had mentally translated one sentence, there was another full paragraph of words that I had to decipher. Thankfully, a friend who is a member of the church and speaks Spanish was sitting next to me to translate the majority of the sermon.
What aspects of Scripture or theology did the worship service illuminate for you that you had not perceived clearly in your regular context?
A mental image of Acts 2:2-4 immediately popped into my head as I was singing; this had never happened before. ("Suddenly a sound like the blowing of a violent wind came from heaven and filled the whole house where they were sitting. They saw what seemed to be tongues of fire that separated and came to rest on each of them. All of them were filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak in other tongues as the Spirit enabled them.") Through this service, I was able to really feel the Holy Spirit kindling a spiritual fire within the congregation as people would sing their hearts out in a language I am not nearly as familiar with compared to my native languages, English and Korean. The service really showed me that the church is global yet unified.
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