Wait...there's only one sermon?

My very first Sunday in Ukraine was quite an overwhelming experience; a day and a half after arriving in Dnepropetrovsk, the Rays and I left their house at 6:45 am, drove 2 hours to a different city, and participated in a 5-hour church dedication service. I remember thinking that I would never adjust to church in Ukraine.

A normal service at my church in Poltava lasted for a little over 2 hours and usually had 2 sermons (one minor and one major). I used to get really antsy after 45 minutes and had to remind myself to act like a grown-up and not squirm. By my last Sunday, however, I remember thinking that the 2 hours and 15 minutes had FLOWN by. Had they perhaps cut out some part of the service?

Yesterday was my first Sunday service back as a full-fledged American resident. The singing part consisted of only about 4 songs (the choruses of which we did not sing 6 times) and the sermon was about 30 minutes long. AND it was was in English. Seriously? It seemed as though I blinked and it was over.

I was also taken aback by the orchestra, the announcements made via video, all of the available programs and ministries found on the pages of the tri-fold bulletin... It was rather overwhelming. I have to confess that my senses were so overwhelmed that I tried to be as inconspicuous as possible so that maybe people wouldn't notice me and I could just work on coping with the surroundings. That plan didn't go so well, but that's ok. It was nice to see friends.

I realized that I miss singing songs in Russian and that there's something about sweating to death in 90-something heat with no AC that makes your worship experience meaningful. On the flip side, I remembered how nice it is not to have to fight with your brain to understand the meaning of the message.

Such an experience.