The pastors previously lived in Myanmar, but are American, and the church is supported by Brentwood Baptist church in Tennessee. They have 4 biological kids, and just adopted a precious newborn girl from here. The story is really amazing..
The adoption agency called them on Easter and said they had a baby for them, and they picked her up that evening. I can't imagine what they must have been feeling. We had over 175 people at church that day (barely enough chairs!), and a huge lunch afterwards. So they spent most of the day there, then raced home to change and drop off the kids with a friend, then went to pick up the baby. Their world must have been spinning! The baby's mother didn't want anything to do with the baby, in fact she hid the entire pregnancy (how is that even possible??!) so all she wanted to do was have the baby and forget about her (in the mother's words). I saw the baby one week later and I was astonished. She was the smallest child I've ever seen - born under 5 lbs! She just didn't look real - flawless dark skin, a ton of black hair, fingers so skinny they looked like blades of grass.
(on a side note..
I'm told the adoption process here is not at all what we are used to in America. For instance, the adoption agencies will tell you during the first visit with them to get physically/emotionally/mentally prepared, because they could call within the next few days to give you a baby. On average, the quickest adoptions happen in a few days, and the longest waiting time is 6 months, although that is rare. Unbelievable!)
We just had a baby shower for the family this past Sunday after church. The ladies were asked to cook something, and when I asked the pastor's wife what she wanted she said MEXICAN! .. being a fellow American and all, haha. I combed every grocery story and market for the "right" ingredients, and ended up making fajitas because it was impossible to find cilantro. I assumed just the women would stay after church for the lunch & shower, but no - the entire church came to the lunch and I started to get a little worried there wasn't going to be enough food. The fajitas were gone in a flash! I hope that means they were good... or maybe everyone wanted to try them because it was such a peculiar dish. I never thought I'd have to explain to so many people how you assemble and wrap up a fajita - hilarious! It was a really fun afternoon, and the baby was showered with lovely gifts and tons of love.
For being such a young church (they had their first service in Nov 2011), IC@MK has done a great job of establishing programs/support/activities/etc.. for every age group. I attend a women's Bible study on Tuesdays, which I'm really enjoying, and making new friends in the process. Ryan goes to men's breakfasts once a month on Saturday mornings. There are also various home groups throughout the week; we attend the Thursday night group near our house. Since Ryan is never in town on Thursdays I have been "adopted" by my Japanese friend and her husband (smile), so they pick Mads & I up and we all ride together. Mainly because they don't want me driving alone at night with the baby, and although I'm very independent this is not the place to be too proud to accept a friend's generosity.
I have to say though.. my favorite aspect of this church is the emphasis on children. I'm not exaggerating when I tell you nearly HALF the congregation is kids! It's so funny when the pastor excuses the kids after worship to go back to their sunday school classes, and the entire place feels like it empties out, ha! There is a family vibe here that I've definitely been missing at our church in TX .. kids are just welcome .. everyone holds everyone else's baby, the babies can makes noises without being told shhhh constantly or put in a glass room to watch the service, and kids are encouraged to be involved with the aspects of the service like music and ushering, etc..
The children performed a song in front of the church on Mother's Day, and Madison was right in the middle near the front. She was singing along for a few minutes then decided she didn't want to be up there anymore, and crawled her way out of the pack and down the stage. Everyone was doubled over in laughter. I was standing at the back holding my friend's baby, while Ryan snapped a few shots of her "getaway" on his phone. (I'll add the pics to this post when I get them from him this weekend)
The children performed a song in front of the church on Mother's Day, and Madison was right in the middle near the front. She was singing along for a few minutes then decided she didn't want to be up there anymore, and crawled her way out of the pack and down the stage. Everyone was doubled over in laughter. I was standing at the back holding my friend's baby, while Ryan snapped a few shots of her "getaway" on his phone. (I'll add the pics to this post when I get them from him this weekend)
I remember when Ryan called me and said he knew that he had just found our church. I was still in TX packing up our things and so excited to hear about it. There are a few Nigerian men in the church, and of course Ryan gravitated toward them (growing up in South Africa and all!). They took Ryan to lunch at McDonalds after church. They probably thought that's the only thing he would like since he just arrived from America :) LOL!
Here's the FB page for IC@MK if you want to check it out:
http://www.facebook.com/ICatMK
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