I think I’ve found my church.

I went down to Lee Street Memorial Baptist Church down near Federal Hill this morning for 11am service. Very hymn-y worship, I noticed; almost every other section of the service was marked by the singing of three or four stanzas from the Baptist Hymnal. Pastor’s sermon, on the denial of self and taking up of crosses, was intense and powerful. Congregation was mostly aged, and there weren’t too many members, but they were wonderfully warm and friendly, many of them even hugging each other — and me — during welcome.

I was also pleasantly surprised to find that the pianist there is an old acquaintance, a skilled Filipino concert pianist from Peabody, whom ******* and I had met at a classical recital in Manila two years before. He has since become Christian, married, and is now a member at LSMBC. Small world!

So far this is the best fit for me, it’s not a far walk from Little Italy, and I feel the Spirit prompting me strongly on this one. I’ll continue to pray for guidance, and go again next week. Sorry, Valerie! I guess I’m destined to stay Baptist by association after all. ;)

(UPDATE: I had to leave this church because I found out that the pastor was a Freemason. Sorry.)