Religion Tour #3, Grace Church

I had been curious about this one. It had the look of one of those mega-churches from the outside. And I had never been in a Baptist church before.

The church itself was an impressive structure. Two large screens had the lyrics for the songs and the Bible passages that were being read. The main church was two tiered and sloping downward towards the stage. I don't know what else to call it. It looked like a stage and performance was a big part of the service. There was a band, lots of singing etc... The congregants were more expressive than I am used to. Several, at various times, would reach one or both arms out towards the sky. Was this a sincere expression of faith and joy or an effort to seem like a sincere expression of faith and joy? I don't know the answer to that question, as it could depend on the person, but it did strike me as a bit strange.

The message was interesting, starting with a reading from the Bible, a parable about vines and branches and fruit. If I could summarize the basic message, it was that the branches, us, can not bear fruit independent of the vine, God/Jesus.

Not a bad experience overall. I talked with a few people that I knew. The sermon was interesting. I got the sense that this church is somewhat ahead of the game insofar as recruitment goes. It was big, lively, and I got the sense that they were probably employing professional marketing skills to the whole operation.