Pilgrimage

This was a very "upscale" conservative, congregation with more suits to the cubic inch than almost any church I had attended to date (except perhaps the Episcopalian Church beside the White House in D.C.). And that was in spite of the 90 degree summer_ temperatures, at a time when most churches in the area had cancelled PM services and declared "Casual" Sunday attire.

But these fine folks still boasted a 6 PM service and even the Ladies were formally decked out in their two piece suits!

Folks, I've got to tell you that this was one of the greatest church visits to date!

It was probably at least partially due to the patriotic nature of the event because it was SUNDAY, the Fourth of July, Independence Day.

But I doubt that any group could have celebrated it with more finesse. For one thing, this was a VERY beautiful church. There was so much stained glass, such a semi-classical exterior and such internal elegance -- plus what I can only term "Musical Restraint" -- that I thought for a moment I was in a Methodist environment. Honest-to-goodness, what with the chandeliers and the choir in their vestments, it was almost Episcopalian in ambiance!

It was only my second Sunday_Worship visit to The Abundant Life Church. I returned this Sunday because the fine congregation was celebrating their 34th. Anniversary and honoring the founders, Dr. & Mrs. Thorne!

The Thornes are a wonderful couple, both glowing with The Lord's personality, the Bishop smiling happily in spite of his major health challenges!

I'd like to take this opportunity to congratulate them both, their son Pastor Michael Thorne who is now in the premier leadership role, and all the incredible supportive parishioners who have been present and championing their endeavor for decades. Dr. Thomas Moraczewski a local Obstetrician (himself a parishioner for 21 years) and a number of others gave testimony at the microphone to their rich experiences at Abundant Life over the past three decades.

This morning I attended a church I'd passed hundreds of times going over the bridge at Cinco Bayou in FWB. The exterior of this lovely chapel is incredibly un-assuming. But what an interior! The moment I sat down in the deep comfortable seats and noticed the sloping floor, I realized I was in a converted movie theatre.

FATHERS" DAY MESSAGE: "'Honor your father and mother.' This is the first of the Ten Commandments that ends with a promise. And this is the promise: If you honor your father and mother, 'you will live a long life, full of blessing.' And now a word to you fathers. Don't make your children angry by the way you treat them. Rather bring them up with the discipline and instruction approved by the Lord. EPHESIANS 6:2-4."

It was children's day at the Fort Walton Beach, Florida Assembly of God Evangelistic Center and the kids scampered about the pews at one point taking up an extra offering. Senior Pastor David Beiler III who conducted the service, came around to say hello beforehand and at that point I had an opportunity to give him my hand-out envelope. (Thank you, sir).

There was a spirited spaghetti-social Fellowship which I was invited to join after the service. There I met other parishioners including a lady whom I knew from one of the local Tea-Party meetings.

This congregation was very patriotic and the fellowship area featured a display of photos of the military parishioners deployed abroad.

On my way to the Brevard Republican Picnic in Melbourne Fl, on 6/5/10 I passed this delightful Baptist Church and decided to return for Sunday Service the next day. I don't think I've been with a more friendly congregation. The music was awesome, not fully "Historical_traditional", but perhaps "Modern_traditional" (to coin a couple new phrases) ... as compared to today's "Complete Contemporary".

Apparently they have quite a vibrant Latino component; and there was much banter during the announcements between the Pastor and some "Spanish" Elements regarding anticipated food flavors at an upcoming Latino church_event. The consensus seemed to be that the Cubans had it over the Mexicans, with the Puerto Ricans a close culinary second.

We have some dear friends ~ Dr. & Mrs. Oliver Crawford ~ in Ozark, Alabama whom we visited this week-end. We attended Sunday service with them at their Church. The drive to the Dothan area from the Florida Panhandle was absolutely beautiful, the hospitality incredible and the community fellowship was awesome.

The 'Meet 'n Greet' was powerful; and mostly occurred before and after the service, or outside this lovely Methodist Church!

The motif was traditional, the hymns patriotic (in honor of the Memorial Day Week-End) and the environment very AH-men! ~ with vestments, candles & stained-glass to boot!

It was a bright, blue and very hot Pentecost Sunday morning in Fort Walton Beach, FL when I returned to the "Stash" of seven churches down around First Ave. which I had recently discovered. I had intended to visit the Methodist congregation and there it was ~ the very first edifice as I turned up from Hwy. 98.

The parking was filled, and a courteous usher guided me into an overflow slot across the street. I was cordially greeted and the parishioners whom I sat among quickly welcomed me. Before I knew it I was handing out campaign cards and people were wishing me "Good Luck" in the fight to put God Back In America!

Today was the Feast of the Ascension.

I had to be in Orlando for a dinner meeting of the Family Council at The Rosen Centre Sat. night and then appear for an interview with The Orlando Sentinel Editorial Board Monday morning.

To get my wife to agree to come down with me I promised to take her to Disney World on Sunday and so this service had to be a quick one.

St. Mary's is located down around First St. and Coral Drive in Fort Walton Beach - on St. Mary's Ave., in fact; and, believe it or not: there are seven churches, almost back-to-back in that area of town! (I plan to concentrate on that geography shortly and visit the rest of the congregations). I certainly was not disappointed. The service was conducted by a high-ranking prelate: Rev. Msgr. Michael A. Cherup, the Pastor; and in typical RC fashion it was short and sweet and over in a mere fifty minutes. Nothing was lacking however: We had readings including the Gospel, hymns and chanting by the choir, a "collection", sermon, Communion and announcements. The priest wore vestments, and there was even a mini-processional at the end as the Pastor & acolytes exited!

This Sunday I attended the Covenant Community Church up by the fairgrounds in Fort Walton Beach, FL. The Church exterior is very unassuming, but the cheerful, evangelical congregation sing their loud praises in a sizeable interior with a single central video-screen right behind the preacher. It's "AA-men" and high energy! This church had a very international flavor with all the flags draped along the side-walls!

Today they were blessed to hear a visiting missionary, Ron Grey, whose experiences are impressive. His message was focused on expanding our horizons.

This was one LARGE church. It was slightly off the beaten path in Fort Walton Beach, but the perspicacious founder, 'The Bishop' Thorne had acquired a gigantic tract of ground and erected a cathedral sized edifice with internally removable walls for even extra capacity.

By all accounts it had been a near Mega-Church in it's heyday; but as with so many other worship centers, the congregation had dwindled. And in fact that was the topic of young Pastor Mike Thorne's sermon on this date. Despite all that, the church filled up somewhat compared to the shots below which were taken before the service. I am informed that there were ultimately about 120 people present; but the place could easily have held a thousand!

I felt a sense of "Belonging" when I entered the Assembly Church in Niceville 4/18/10. But "entered' is probably the wrong word. They had such a large, vibrant congregation streaming out of the earlier service that I could not find parking and had to "swim" upstream against the happy, cheerful crowd as I pushed my way into the church. Actually, the congregation had grown so big that a gigantic new church had been built right alongside the original smaller building (see photo above).

Pastor Charles Sansom shared that he was going to fill in for the local Salvation Army Chaplain, away in Miami on Haitian-relief activities. So I decided, on the spur of the moment, to go see the local Salvation Army Chapel which recently moved into this gigantic building in the Publix Plaza on Mary Esther Blvd., FWB. I have always had fond memories of the Salvation Army from my involvement with them in the New Orleans, Hurricane Katrina recovery. In fact, one of my best friends to this day is Army Chaplain John Price with whom I maintain constant contact; and I also keep up with Chaplain, Father Jim Hager in S. Carolina.

So I was excited to visit the church. And I was not disappointed!

The challenge today was not "The Word" but rather the interaction of the Black & White Christians at this Interdenominational/Interracial "Sunrise Service." Back at the Black Church for Fellowship I was politely greeted, given a hospitable plate and then I made sure to go and sit myself down among a group of entirely Black Christians. I introduced myself and handed out a couple of my cards identifying myself as a GOP candidate. Straight-away I was asked how could I present myself as a Christian AND a Republican in the same breath? My accuser said: "All you White People just want to get rid of President Obama." Another one of the ladies chimed in: "I've been abused because of him." I stood up, leaned forward and challenged: "Look into my eyes - do you see any hatred of Black People in there?" There was silence. How to get through this veil of misunderstanding and half truth to tell them what I really believe about Barack Obama: that he's a Marxist at best; possibly a radical Muslim bent on destroying America?

It was a satisfying Spiritual "Meal" with an "everyday" flavor just like Home-Cookin'; without any exotic spices (except that the soloist was very good!) One definitely felt a return to real-life after my visit to the D.C. "High-Church" of last week. But you know what? There was a more faithful Bible Message here than I heard last week!

I was just getting into the sense of "History" - both liturgical and National - engendered by this "Blast from the past" when the Sermon spoiled it all ... Basically it was a pro homosexual-Marriage (or as they call it "Gay Marriage") accolade, constituting sinful error on the part of the Reverend LeÓn. It was bad enough that he subscribed to this apostasy himself; but in preaching it to those in his care, from the pulpit itself, he is clearly guilty of grave error. I had momentarily forgotten the Episcopalian/Anglican relationship (and their pro Sex-Abomination stance) ...

It was a beautiful "Blue Skies" early spring day in the Florida Panhandle, with just a hint of summer in the air after an exceedingly cold winter with temperatures down in the twenties and even teens (no doubt a stinging refutation of the "Global Warming" alarmists) when I rounded a gentle curve in the road just east of Choctawhatchee bay and there it was: The cutest, most perfect, almost "Doll's House", classical little church!

One just knew that it would contain at least one stained glass window, a traditional altar and an organ!

Well, actually I'm 'cheating' just a little here ~ because I had been invited by my good friend Neil Godfriaux, himself the organist!

This was a very uplifting Sunday which exposed me to a number of new experiences. First, this non-denominational church was sited slap in the middle of a shopping plaza. The rather understated exterior belied a gigantic internal worship space with the largest entry foyer I'd visited to date. The "Altar" had the band-entertainment accoutrements typical of these newer evangelical congregations, and while there were no kneelers in front of the individual "office chairs" arranged in rows for the parishioners, there was a cross-motif at the front on the pastor's lectern. The music was modern, but included a recognizable rendition of "Amazing Grace" and Communion was passed around as Bread & Wine on "silver trays." No offering was taken up and I forgot to look for the basket in the foyer upon my exit. Folks were friendly during the "Meet 'n Greet" segment and the Pastor was animated, personable, down-to-earth, humorous and obviously a quick study.

There was no steeple ...

2/28/10: Today I visited The Family of Faith Community Church in Fort Walton Beach, FL, where I heard an uplifting sermon by Senior Pastor Charles Sansom, Jr. on "The Kingdom of God."

At the outset Pastor Sansom reminded us that we cannot take anything material with us from this Earth at the end of our lives. Therefore when we die, what matters most is our relationship with Jesus Christ. And that relationship is worth more than all the silver and gold one can accumulate. To be prepared, we need to be like Paul who runs the race (Hebrews 12:1-2) and is ready. We must preach The Gospel of The Kingdom (Matt. 4:23) and then the end of time will come. What ushers in the end of the age is not the Rapture - important though that may be - but rather the proclamation of The Gospel: "And this Gospel of The Kingdom will be preached in the whole world as a testimony to all nations, and then the end will come." (Matt. 24:14).

The Pastor then asked: "What does 'The Kingdom of God' mean? More than most of us realize."

2/21/10: Today I visited the Cinco Baptist Church in Fort Walton Beach, FL., where I was privileged to hear Pastor Dr. Mickey Lane Hawkins and two of his Deacons give moving testimony about their recent visit to Haiti. Also featured was a visual presentation of the carnage. This is an incredible catastrophe, with scenes that remind me of the time I spent in Louisiana after the Katrina-Rita disaster; only the Haitian tragedy is much worse. Records indicate that just less than two thousand people died from the combined effects of hurricanes Katrina & Rita. No-one really knows for sure about Haiti, but it seems likely that there were probably a quarter of a million deaths!

2/14/10 ~ Valentine's Day! And a beautiful bright one it was in Fort Walton Beach when I visited Trinity United Methodist Church, just a few doors down from my office. I hadn't realized what a large compound it was and got thoroughly lost in back somewhere between the Fellowship Hall and the classrooms. But a kind parishioner (Thank you, Madam!) showed me through to the worship area where I heard a great sermon by The Rev. Robert G. Ellisor, Chief Pastor, on "Love that Lasts a Lifetime." Pastor Ellisor took inspiration from 1 Corinthians 13:4-8 ("Love suffers long and is kind ...") and introduced the acronym "L-O-V-E" to summarize the attributes of one who embarks on a deliberate choice to love.

Update 2/7/10 ~ Today I did an unusual thing on my pilgrimage: I returned to a church that I had visited only recently; the Fort Walton Beach, Grace Covenant, Non-Denominational. I wanted to listen to Author-Lecturer Dennis Avi Lipkin, a Jewish-American speaker who lives part time in Jerusalem and who served in the IDF. He gave a tremendous presentation outlining the current Islamic threat to Israel, America and indeed all of Western Civilization. So make sure to visit Avi Lipkin's site for more information!

Update 1/31/10: The Shalimar Presbyterian Church Sunday service is at 11AM. There I met Elders Linda & George Shealy & their awesome congregation as well as visiting Chaplain George Castillo & his wife Muriel; heard an uplifting sermon on "Living by [and Walking in] the Spirit" with focus on Galatians Chapter 5, emphasizing the special notion of "Christian Liberty" whereby Christians are freed from enslavement to "The Law", but are none-the-less restrained by other considerations. For not only must we resist the lure of "The Flesh" [Materialism], but we are also obligated to demonstrate the Fruit Of The Spirit outside of Church; and commit to Love and service of neighbor. Following this I stayed for Fellowship ~ Thank you all!.