In the midst of all the chaos...

...I found time to go to church. I found, as I sat back in the service and listened, that I had peace. And I realized, no matter how crazy it got, that God would always be my rock. And that he would always be there to life me up when I fell. It was good. I felt all the cares and worries and stresses of the week fall away; it was like being away for a long time and finally coming home. I felt like I belonged there. I've been searching for so long for a church that I felt like I belonged in... and it felt like home, yesterday.

No one cared that I wore pants; even the women in the choir had pants on. No one said, "this is how you have to be if you want to be a part of this church." It was pretty cool to finally find that there really are churches that care more about people than rules. Don't get me wrong - they still care about doing what's right, but there's none of the church made standards that aren't found anywhere in the Bible that the people are expected to follow.

For years, I never felt like I belonged anywhere -- in a church; I never fit in, because I didn't fit the image. The church I visited this Sunday -- I didn't feel that way.

For those friends from the church I've been going to, don't get me wrong. It's hard to explain, because the church I've been going to - some of the people were friendly enough, and there are some people I really care about there. But its the leadership that really sets the attitude... and that is where I had felt most unwelcome.