Christina Calderon- Church Visit 1

Lawndale Christian Community Church

9/18

Lower Socioeconomic

1. The worship service at Lawndale was definitely different from what I usually attended, especially back at home. Though both churches are considered “non-denominational”, the styles of worship were different styles of music. At home, the style of music has a bit of rock when singing contemporary christian songs. However, at Lawndale, the songs were very soulful and hand more of a gospel feel. I also did not know many of the songs sung at Lawndale unlike my church back at home which plays more Chris Tomlin-like songs. However, I enjoyed the songs at Lawndale and reminded myself that these songs though they are not well-known to me, are perhaps more well-known to this specific community. Therefore, I do not like to use the phrase “popular songs” when referring to songs at my hometown church because while they may be popular to me, they perhaps would not be popular to this church community.
2. My favorite part about Lawndale's worship was how they had so much fun with worship. I also liked how Lawndale's worship gave time for what seemed to be almost like reflection as soloists would sing slower songs while the audience sat and listened. It was nice just to sit and listen to the words and feel connected with God through the lyrics. I also loved how much fun people had with worship. People clapped and danced along to the choir while one woman simply started fearlessly dancing on stage. The church community is not afraid to show their excitement and love for God through worship and that really stood out. This really stood out to me mostly because growing up in baptist churches at an early age, one would rarely find someone dancing onstage. In fact, if someone did dance, they would unfortunately perhaps be given a strange look. However, at Lawndale, I loved how open everyone was with worship and how they were not afraid to glorify God through any means.
3. Perhaps the most challenging thing about the worship service for me personally was listening to the hardships that African American men faced in the community because they felt their lives did not matter. The message was about knowing our lives mattered because we are created by God, but oftentimes this can be discouraged by the amount of hate and hopelessness we may feel from the world. In the video that played during service, a couple of African American men explained how they felt their lives did not always matter due to the amount of stereotyping and danger they felt everyday. It was tragic to hear, but was also extremely relevant to the community. I really liked how the church know their community and knows who they are preaching to as this is key in helping people continue going to church and bringing others into the church community.
4. I really appreciated how the message was so prevalent towards racial issues the community faced. I thought it was interesting how the preacher was not afraid to wear a “Black Lives Matters” t-shirt. At my church at home I would never expect my preacher to wear such a t-shirt due to the political conflicts the statement causes. However, at Lawndale, it was not just the preacher that wore the t-shirt but also many people within the church. I realized how important it is for this community to support each other through the political turmoil and police brutality through church service and worship. Therefore, when it comes to relevant topics such as “black lives matters” and racial discrimination, Lawndale is not afraid to address these issues and show their support, which I really appreciated. Yet, I would also never find such open support at my church at home either.