The Sunday Scene

We have settled on a church in Kuala Lumpur and are enjoying the fellowship of worshiping with others. It is always hard to leave our wonderful church community from Indianapolis, and it is too easy to compare beloved places that are so much of our hearts.

But we are enjoying meeting at St. Andrew's Presbyterian Church. It is a colonial building that is about ready to celebrate its 90th anniversary. A throwback to the colonial era, it appears as an anachronism -- a remnant of the past while much of Kuala Lumpur has exploded around it.

It has beautiful, lush gardens on its property, but is surrounded by high rise buildings not far from the heart of downtown. Often, after church, our kids enjoy playing on the equipment that sits in the shadow of the KL tower.

The pastor, a kiwi (from New Zealand), is relatively new and it has been wonderful to sit under his teaching. We've been enjoying the beginning of his sermon series on The Lord's Prayer. The Sunday school program is also excellent, and was a big drawing point. Gabi has enthusiastically played the part of Queen Ester during the past two weeks, telling us the stories while showing off her crown and other crafts that she has made.

Another big plus (we thought) was the wonderful nursery staff where Rania could enjoy playing. Unfortunately, the nursery is right off the sanctuary, and Rania has decided that the nursery is only fun if one of her parents remains with her. Her screaming is quite evident throughout the small, adjacent sanctuary, so we've had to take turns missing much of the worship service.

Since Rania largely has one-on-one (two-on-one if a parent stays) attention during the early service, we are hoping that she will grow accustomed to playing by herself in the nursery, but that has not been the case the past few months.

Sigh. . .