Beth Yan--Church Visit #2

Church name: Lawndale Community Church

Church address: 3827 W Ogden, Chicago, IL 60623

Date attended: 11 October 2015
Church category: Lower Socioeconomic Demographic

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

I attended Sunday morning service at Lawndale Community Church. Many parts of the service were familiar to me. The beginning of the service included worshiping through song and reading of scripture. The worship style was different from what I have previously experienced, as it was very upbeat. It was a joy to watch and worship alongside the congregation. Additionally, there was both a worship band and a gospel choir. We then transitioned into a time of praise and prayer where members of the congregation were invited to share stories with the rest of the church. Another part of service that was unfamiliar to me was a short message directed to the children of the church. Coach called all the children up to the stage and used a simple metaphor to illustrate the larger theme of the sermon series. The sermon had some familiar elements to it such as references to scripture but made a very deliberate effort emphasize the practical application of the message. 

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

I really enjoyed the time of sharing. I greatly admired the vulnerability of those who shared praise and prayer and felt that the community was more tightly knit because of this experience. Due to the fact that people were sharing details from their lives--daily conflicts in parenting, health concerns, struggles with substance abuse--it felt like the entire community was being invited to participate in the day to day happenings of the particular individual's life. This created a very intimate sense of community, which was enhanced by the enthusiasm the congregation expressed after each individual spoke.

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

While this was not necessarily challenging, I was disoriented by the down-to-earth practicality of the message. Coach made a specific effort to galvanize people into action. The sermon discussed how to treat your physical body as the temple of God. He mentioned the harmfulness of actions such as living a sedentary lifestyle and smoking. He then offered ways to combat such issues: discounted rates to a gym associated with the church, encouraging testimonies from people in the congregation who had quit smoking or lost a drastic amount of weight. I think the churches I am used to tend take a more academic approach where the application is left to the individual. It was a very different experience to have concrete examples of how to further apply the message. 

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

Similarly to the response above, I think Lawndale Community Church really emphasized the importance of taking a message from the Scriptures and applying it to everyday life. I have found that it can be very easy to listen to a message on Sunday morning, agree with the message presented, and desire to change. However, this can die out by the time Monday rolls around and no distinct change is ever made. I think the structure of the sermon on LCC made it very easy to take steps toward change. For me, this illuminated the importance of applying the lessons learnt from scripture to daily life.