Washington, DC

I arrived in Washington on Saturday 3rd November to stay with the Fletchers. Graham and Lorraine are on a 3 year posting here with the Australian Government and have been blessed with a lovely home, which they share with their dog, Saffi, as well as many Australians passing through. During my stay they also had their niece staying and another travelling Aussie, Emma Bishell.

I stayed on the third floor with Emma, in a lovely bedroom overlooking the gorgeous garden, our own bathroom and tv room. It was such a restful place to stay, a home-away-from-home. I managed many long sleep-ins and early nights, which I needed as Washington DC is a walkable town if you have the endurance!

Capitol Hill Baptist Church

On Sunday I caught the metro to Capitol Hill Baptist Church. This church was a vision in 1867, founded in 1878 has had real periods of growth and decline over the last 50 years, but is now a strong, thriving, leading church led by Mark Dever.

The church demographic is young, with a sunday service attendance between 900 and 1,000 people, and around 200+ visitors each week. Their website asks that you be bold and introduce yourself, in a church this size, there is no way they can know you are new!

Sunday mornings start at 9:30am, with Core Seminar programs, where people can learn about God’s Word and its application to all areas of life. There were about five options to choose from. I attended a Seminar Course titled 'Christians and Government'. The course runs for six weeks and they were asking the question 'What is justice?' the week I attended. I joined in the back of the group, there were about 100 people in the seminar, and listened in on a topic I had never even considered before. I left after an hour, with so much to think about, and process. What a brilliant start to a Sunday!!

There was then a seamless transition into the church service that started at 10:30am. I found a new seat and settled in to listen to a sermon by one of the church Elders, Timeless Questions: Does True Love Exist? Looking at Ephesians 1:1-6. To listen in check out this page http://www.capitolhillbaptist.org/2012/11/does-true-love-exist-ephesians-11-6/

After church I went on my (now customary) search for a cup of tea! I instead found some amazing cupcakes. I was bold and said hello to a girl I met at the cupcakes. She was just grabbing cupcakes and running, but gave me directions to tea. I returned upstairs and located the hot drinks area. I discovered a queue for coffee and a urn looking lonely. Unable to work the urn, I asked for help, and was given assistance. Mission completed, I had my cup of tea, but was still struggling to find fellowship! I looked around and saw an elderly woman, was bold, and introduced myself to Zena. She has been attending CHBC since WWII. We had a lovely chat and shared stories of life. I finished up my cup of tea, and left...not sure if I had been bold enough or found fellowship... More definitions to consider. But I did leave feeling that I had visited a faithful bible teaching church, encouraging and training its members to lead missional lives in DC. Oh and they have great cupcakes in the basement... If you can find them!

Restoration Church

On Sunday night I attended church with the Fletchers. This is a new church plant, with support from CHBC and has a congregation of about 100 people. They are working through a sermon series 'Christ the King' and looked at Christ as the all-sufficient King working through Colossians 2:6-10.

The sermon was powerful, and I have attached a link if you are keen to be challenged by the Word.

http://www.restorationchurchdc.com/resources/sermon/

The smaller church meant I left feeling welcome and known. I didn't get a cup if tea however! I would recommend this church, their warmth and fellowship was evident throughout the service and they have rock solid teaching.

I did attend one of their community groups on the Wednesday night. This is always a privilege and joy, to share lives with brothers and sisters from another country. I was warmly welcomed by Laura, whose apartment we met in. The girls and guys also split up at the end of every night for 'accountability', this is such a good opportunity to share deeper and be held accountable. I did get an offer of green tea here... Getting closer :-)

Presidential Election 2012
I was in DC for the election!! Emma and I watched the results unfold in a bar in DuPont Circle and then later at a private Republican swishy party that we crashed! This was a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity and we soaked it all up! Ooh the characters we met, the people watching we did...too much to tell on a blog...but fascinating stuff!!

Sightseeing
I did the usual sightseeing in DC. Lorraine had organised for us to do a tour of the White House the day after the election. What a privilege to see the inside of this building and to stand in the rooms where many important decisions are made.
We also did a tour of the Capitol Building, checked out a couple of Smithsonians, Memorials and ate bagels and pumpkin pie.

I love DC, no I really mean it!! It is such a liveable city, beautiful streets, stimulating discussions and feels like home. A huge thank you to the Fletchers for your hospitality and inside peek into life in DC.