If I weren’t already pastor of a church and I were searching for a church home, what would I look for in a church? People choose their church home for all kinds of reasons: its theology, how inviting and inclusive they perceive it to be, quality of preaching, childcare, its commitment to mission and ministry, size of the church, location.

If I were church shopping, I would look for a church that welcomed people in the same fashion that Jesus invited people to faith. Jesus liked children around him, “red, yellow, black and white, all are precious in his sight.”

Jesus also had a heart for people who were lost (and it didn’t matter what they were lost to) and he invited them to join him at a banquet where they would discover that they weren’t lost anymore. God had set a place at his table for the least and lost, so my preference would be for a church that welcomed the stranger and the pilgrim to Christ’s table. Jesus called people to discipleship who didn’t seem well equipped to be leaders in the church—for example, a hot-headed fisherman, a woman possessed by demons, and a persecutor of Christians.  I’d like my church to reflect that same inclusiveness and to welcome the diversity of gifts that sometimes remain hidden from human view but Jesus sees so clearly. There are many gifts but one Spirit, so I’d like my church to be that unified body of Christ in the world. Jesus was a man of faith. He prayed regularly and encouraged others to join in the worship of God through faith practice—the spiritual discipline of Sabbath worship but also the life of service that grows out of vital worship. And so I’d like my church to offer a Spirit-filled worship experience and opportunities to be in ministry and mission to a hurting world.

If I were church shopping, I would likely end up at the North Decatur United Methodist Church. This congregation loves children. This congregation loves everybody. It welcomes the stranger and the pilgrim on their way to find God or get found by God. This congregation values God’s spiritual gifts that we all have and will help find a way to utilize those gifts in the service of the kingdom. This church celebrates its life, our life, in Christ every time we worship. And this congregation is involved in all kinds of ways in mission to the local community and to the global community.

On behalf of the congregation, I invite you to come worship, work, play, serve, and grow in this faith community. We need you and you need us and we all need the love of Christ.

Lee Fullerton
Senior Pastor
North Decatur United Methodist Church