A little while back, Kylie wrote a post about the seven reasons she loves our church. It is actually one of our more popular posts. (You should go read it here). I thought that I might revisit that post and offer up my top reasons.
#1. The Community.
One of the things that has always impressed me about our faith community is the “community” aspect of it. There is so much love and care for one another. It is one of the reasons we have had some people stick around so long. Even with our crazy schedule, every time we come back we are always warmly welcomed and even when we are gone, people are checking up on us. It is really amazing.
#2. Obedience to the Spirit.
Our church has gone through some massive shifts and trials over the ten years we have been with them. However, each “bump in the road” has been approached with a real desire to follow God’s will and a sense of following where the Spirit leads.
#3. The Approach.
One of the biggest shifts that has taken place actually took place just over a year and a half ago. After years of trying to be a “big church” in a small church context (the lights, the big screen, the rock worship band, etc.), our leadership sensed a movement of the Spirit to try something different and to really focus on what we do well. To that end, we left our big theatre space and sold all our tech equipment and moved into homes for a short while. Coming out of that, we rented a long, narrow space in a strip center. We placed a long table in the middle of it and we started to base our Gatherings around meals. We also change our name from Crosspointe to The Table Dallas.
We now offer several meeting times that incorporate various forms of worship, communion, conversation and a meal!
#4. The Food.
“If you feed them, they will come.” Our pastor has said this for years and now we get to live that out. Each week at our Gatherings, we have food. I am not just talking PB&J sandwiches or a reheated meatloaf. I mean real meals! Usually our pastor cooks the meal (and he is a great chef). Sometimes other people offer to do it and it is always SO good! There is always plenty to go around too. 🙂
#5. The Open-handedness.
Speaking of the food, one of my current favorite things about our church is their open-handedness and sense of living out of abundance instead of scarcity. One of the tangible ways this is manifesting itself is through out interactions will a local man named Billy.*
Billy has started to come too our Saturday Night Table. He works at a local grocery store and seems to have some social disabilities. He comes in and kind of shuffles by himself. He usually just zips in, asks where the food is and starts eating. He almost always heads for seconds before others have gotten their first round. Then, as soon as he finishes eating, he leaves.
At first, this was a little surprising to most of us. However, we have now come to accept that this is simply what he does. Now, we all welcome him when he comes in. Each of us tries to engage him – he just isn’t quite there yet with most of us. We never try to stop him when he goes for more or when he leaves. We will just keep loving him without any strings attached.
#6. Uganda Shoe Trees.
Our church believes in giving locally as well as internationally. Our pastor has always had a heart for Uganda and so, we do a lot of work over there. If you have seen our show, you know that we often do an effect just to highlight the work over there and to raise money.
Uganda Shoe Trees is a ministry of The Table Dallas and Operation GoGreen in Kihihi, Uganda providing school shoes to needy children in the surrounding community. Each $20 donation provides a pair of shoes and socks as well as two fruit tree seedlings that the student will plant to help create a sustainable food and ecosystem for their campus.
#7. The Support.
We love our church, and our church loves us! From the moment we arrived, they have always had our back. When we have needed financial help – they were there. When we have needed help with our shows – they were there. When we have needed people sharing our social media posts – they were there!
It always brings a smile to my face when someone in our congregation asks when we are doing a local show again. I know they have seen the show more times than most people should. Yet, they want to see it again and they want to bring friends. They are always there for us!
For more information, go to our website – Â http://www.thetabledallas.com
*Not his real name