A New Church Experience + Health Issues
Hi Friends (still not sure what to call you all yet),
I attended a Nigerian church on Sunday. I haven’t been to one in more than 5 years. I noticed it was really different from what I was used to in a church & I was visibly awkward. I would stand when others were sitting and would sit when others were standing. There was also a lot of dancing. Much more than I was used to. The service lasted for about 2 and half hours, which was unusual. Other church services I attended usually lasted for an hour. This church was a redeemed church, and there were 4 child dedications in addition to a thanksgiving service.
I know I mentioned in my newsletter last week that I had found a church which would most probably be my home church, but I decided to attend this Nigerian church because I wanted to connect to my roots. I live in the suburbs (as most of you know) and I hardly see Nigerians. I wanted to see my people, so I looked up Nigerian churches near me, and the closest was 25 minutes drive away. That led me to attend this RCCG church.
One thing that stood out is that my people are flashy. The cars, the outfits, the jewelry all screamed. “Look at me! I am successful and flamboyant.” The outfits looked like we were attending an event at a palace. At the parking lot after the service, I saw mostly Teslas and BMWs. It was no secret that my people loved to show off their wealth.
When I got home after service, I decided to list out the pros and cons of the church, to know if I would make this my home church. I was trying to choose between this RCCG church, and the non-denominational church I had attended two weeks ago. I decided to go with the latter. The redeemed church was 25 minutes away from my house as opposed to the non-denominational church that was 7 minutes away. Also, I felt more at home with the latter even though the former was a Nigerian church. I have also enrolled in a volunteer group in the second church and the leader has been very welcoming (I am yet to meet other volunteers).
I do feel some guilt, seeing that I decided not to make the RCCG church my home church. I feel like I am betraying my people but then again, I have to do what is best for me. This is not to say that I would never attend again. I am sure that once in a while, I would show up just to get the feel of home.
Health
Moving on, on Sunday Night, I felt a sharp pain behind my ear. This was below (and behind) the ear close to the depression. The pain was dull but intense, and felt like a toothache although it was not. I had not hit my head anywhere, and I was not sure what was going on. By Monday the pain intensified and I was unable to sleep. The same Monday night, I received news from my sister that my grandma had just suffered a stroke. When my sister called, I was shaken. I was numb, because I couldn’t reconcile my grandma having a stroke. She was always strong.
In addition to the bad news, I got sick from the pain I had behind my ear and by Tuesday I had to go to a hospital. My doctor thought it was Covid at first and she had me do a Covid test. The test came out negative, so the doctor said it was mostly a viral infection like flu. She prescribed NYquil and Steroids which she told me to take for a week. I informed my sister who is also a doctor and she forbade me from taking steroids. Reason being that it had more disadvantages than advantages.
Luckily, I was going to the chiropractor too. This would be my first time to visit one, as I had always pushed a visit to see one aside. The chiropractor was really nice and he managed my muscles well. I felt less pain than I did when I went, and I signed up to see the doctor for a month. As fate would have it, the chiropractor also forbade me from taking steroids. He cited the same reasons my sister gave and insisted it was better to try other approaches of healing that did not require pumping my body with medications. I will be going to see the doctor twice a week and my next visit is tomorrow. I honestly cannot wait, because my body feels so much better now than it was days ago.
There were other things that happened this week, but I guess I will save that for the next newsletter. If you want my newsletters to be more frequent please do reply this and let me know.
Dear friend, I honestly hope you enjoyed my story for this week and I am looking forward to writing my next newsletter for you. Thank you for reading, and please consider sharing this so that others can join the family!
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