#23 From Christmas to Easter in One Week!

WHERE I WENT AND WHY:
New Year's Day found me at our newly named mountain house, Park's Peak.  Dozens of small clapboard Baptist churches dot the NC mountains.  I have always been curious about them.This one, Bald Mountain Baptist Church is about a mile from our house. Bald Mountain is the closest peak we view from Shumont Mountain (aka Park's Peak).

WHAT TO KNOW IF YOU WANT TO GO:
Bald Mountain Baptist does not have a web site (not to be confused with the Bald Head Mountain Baptist in West Jefferson who does), so I had to rely on the sign out front that promised worship on Sunday at 11 am.  It is located on Bald Head Mountain Road, but is visible from Shumont Road off Highway 9 near Bat Cave (and is the closest church to Park's Peak!)  Parking was very plentiful and while dress was casual, all of the women (except me!) had on skirts.  No one said anything, and I hope I didn't offend anyone.

REFLECTIONS ON WORSHIP

MOOD:
The mood of this church was its biggest asset. With only 15 folks attending today (including 4 children), I met everyone!  As the service continued, it became obvious that while small this is a very caring community, quick to recognize parishioners efforts and pray and care for each other.  There was no bulletin, only a prayer list on about every other pew.  Obviously, the community contains many more folks.

Prayer list

After an opening prayer, the pastor recognized that Eli, a 5 year old sitting in front of me was present and he said, "I know its no longer Christmas and Advent, but Eli did not get a chance to light the candles.  Eli, would you like to come up and light them?"  He was then encouraged to sing, "May the Circle be Unbroken" and "Zachaeus".    During the prayers (opening, offertory, and ending), the pastor would ask for concerns and then ask parishioners to offer up their own prayers, which they willingly did.  This is obviously a common practice and was a indication to me of their genuine concern and caring for each other in their faith community.   They also decided not to hold hands during prayer as is their custom, because too many folks had potential colds.

MUSIC:
Two hymns were sung a Capella.  We were led by Louise, the Pastor's wife.  There was a piano present and 2 large speakers, so there is accompaniment sometime.  The first was unfamiliar to me, but used an easy to sing old melody.  We ended the service with "Blest Be the Tie that Binds", a song very fitting to the community. 

MESSAGE:

Pastor Paul Rape delivered his sermon from braille notes which sometimes gave him a halting delivery, though it was evident he had command of the material.  I was surprised by the text:  Luke 24: 1-12, the women finding the empty tomb.  It was as if we had jumped from Christmas to Easter in just one week!   But Christians should celebrate Christmas and Easter everyday!  The congregation was obviously in a sermon series on Luke and this was the next text for study!  (They are doing Joel next).  As he went through the text he brought it alive to the congregation by looking at the events from various points of view.  The one I liked best was his musing about what the angels were doing and thinking as they waited for someone (the women) to show up.  Being from Heaven, were they curious about tombs and death?  But the nugget that I took away was from the very beginning when he talked about how the women knew that there would be obstacles at the tomb (rolling the heavy stone away, etc.) but they went anyway with determination to do what they felt like they had to do.  He charged us all to be like that.  So often we get a little pebble in our way and back off, rather than let God help us remove the obstacle.  We need the women's determination and faith.

Rev. Rape's colloquialisms were often charming.  Once he suggested that had we been in the Apostles' position we would be "lost as a goose in a hail storm."  And another time when talking about the Apostles resistance to believe the women he equated it to teenagers rebelling and said, "How many of had to be hit over the head with a 2 by 4, before we came to our senses?!"

OBSERVATIONS AND OUTREACH

My neighbors on Park's Peak or Shumont Mountain

• No formal programs of outreach were highlighted in the announcements, but the way they talked about folks in the congregation, helping the sick, thanking those who had served at Christmas was so sincere, I felt their "outreach" was in caring for each other.
• In introducing myself I mentioned our vacation house a mile away.  They said they often refer to us as "summer people", but gave me credit for being there in January!  
• My preconceived notion of a very conservative, "fire and brimstone" atmosphere was mostly ill conceived.  While I think it is a very conservative community, I was very welcome, and impressed with their gentle, caring nature.  I encountered no "fire and brimstone"... in fact just the opposite.
• I did encounter one curious point of theology.  The pastor said in passing that the women were not "adorned by the Holy Spirit" when it came.  That is not exactly my understanding, but it made me think, and I'll have to study more on that. (addendum:  I asked my pastor-friend Nancy about it, pointing out that even in Joel, whom Peter refers to at Pentecost,  the Spirit is predicted to come to slaves, men and women. And your "sons and daughters shall prophesy." Her reply was how about Mary, the mother of Jesus?  You don't get much more "adorned" than that! Either I'm researching different passages or we'll have to agree to disagree on this one!)
• Two brothers sat in front of me with their children, one (Andrew?) said he could see my front porch from his house and I kept disagreeing with him.  We can't see any houses from our front porch.  Later at home I realized that he is seeing our "back" deck, which is where our mountain view is, and from his perspective would look like a front porch.  Its all in your point of view (and having leaves off the trees!)

THIS WEEK'S FUNNY:

Speaking of the Angels' point of view....

No bulletin this week...