Church in Spain

I knew there was something important I wanted to write about, but it slipped from my mind until last night. I don't know how- after all, it is the very thing that brought me to Pamplona in the first place!

The "Parroquia Cristiana Evangelica" is different from Gator Christian Life in several ways, but I'm proud to report that the people here love me just as much as my beloved friends in Gainesville even when they barely knew me. I still miss my Gainesville friends dearly, but my Spanish friends make it more bearable.

I met this guy named JuanJo back in March. I mentioned him in my last post. He is a true man of God with a godly family as well. Dom, Christine, Allison, and I had the privilege of dining with his family during our mission trip. I sat next to him and talked to him for a couple hours. That was all my experience with him. He barely knew me when I arrived here, and he doesn't know me extremely well even now. Nevertheless, when he saw me for the first time at church (I don't know whether or not he knew I was coming), he was overjoyed- at least as thrilled as my parents when I reunite with them. He spouted questions faster than I could answer them "How are you?" "Are you studying here?" "How long will you be here?" The ecstatic expression on his face will be forever etched into my memory.

Dani, another friend I made in March, is four years older than me and works as a mechanic in a factory. I asked him about living in his apartment, but it was too expensive so I found another place and never told him about my decision. I still feel kind of bad about that. If that phased him, he has not shown it all. He very willingly picks me up from my apartment and drops me off. On my second Saturday night here, he and another friend Jonathon rung my apartment and asked me if I wanted to eat dinner with the youth group from the church. I wondered how they knew which apartment I live in. Actually, they didn't know; they rang four apartments before mine. I was really touched by that.

The church as whole feels much different from anywhere I've been before. Apparently the church's doctrine is Baptist, but the services are far more charismatic, like a Pentecostal church. The services are very worship-centered and about twice as long as GCL's. This is not in any way bad; it is just different. It has required some adjusting on my part. On my third Saturday here, the service ran over two hours and forty-five minutes. There was at least an additional half an hour of worship at the end. I felt like a dud in the midst of such passionate people, and I had a difficult time concentrating on God with this spectacle in front of me. There were people at the front of the room in every posture imaginable. There were a few lying on the floor. It reminded me of the services on TV.

They certainly display their passion for Christ during the worship services, but they funnel this passion into their daily lives as well. JuanJo is just one example, albeit a good one. Felix mentioned during spring break that the pastor's sons, Josué and Joel, are two young men who are really living for God. I've had the privilege of talking with both of them quite a bit over the past month. I'd really like to get to know them better. I already have some great role models in my life, but it never hurts to have a couple more.