Quest Church

January 26, 2025

“Quest Church today is the child of two previous churches. Grace United Methodist Church (UMC) began in 1899 as an outreach effort of First Methodist Episcopal Church of Urbana, while Quest UMC began around 2004 as an outreach effort of New Horizon UMC of Champaign. After several years of sharing ministry space, the two congregations became one in 2016. The new United Methodist congregation was named Quest Church: A Community of Grace (or Quest Church CU for short).”

This is the "our story" blip from the Quest website. I chose that church today because of its early start time, 8:45 for the traditional service. The first thing I appreciated was their numbered doors. Believe it or not, it's been hard to find the best way in to several of the buildings I've visited. Guests are less likely to come in if they have to search to find the correct door, sometimes even to find an unlocked door! Here the door closest to the parking lot was clearly marked #2, so I kept walking around to #1. :-]

A friendly woman further down the row welcomed me as I took off my coat. The service began with singing all the verses of a version of Francis of Assisi's Canticle of Brother Sun. A few announcements followed, then prayer, the Doxology, and another song. A congregant read today's scripture:  Genesis 11:27-30. Listening, I wondered how anyone could pull an interesting message from those scant verses about the travel of Abraham's father Terah. Terry Austria, today's guest preacher from Stone Creek Church, rose to the challenge.

Pastor Terry told us he'd calculated that since 1987 he has driven I-57 between Chicago and Champaign-Urbana about 888 times! In the course of all that, he learned which exit has dependably clean restrooms (308), which has a good inexpensive shoe store (315), and which has a Jimmy John's (322). But he does not choose to linger at these places, nor certainly not at any of the corn or bean fields in between. Terah, however, was only halfway to his destination of Canaan when he stopped at Haran. The busy city had the same name as that of his deceased son, so perhaps it offered some comfort or meaning to him. At any rate, he delayed there several years, and in fact he died there in the comfort and confusion of that halfway city of Haran. Our speaker went on to say more about the power of names and to share related Bible passages. Significantly, he asked, "In what ways are we settling down into comfort when we haven't yet arrived at our land of promise, the place where God has called us?"

After the message and a prayer of confession was the Lord's supper, which is offered here every week as people leave their seats to receive from the officiants up front. About twenty people participated in this first service today in their attractive sanctuary which could seat several times that many. High wooden slat ceilings; a row of stained glass at the walls' very top. Although our instrumentation was an organ, a drum set and guitars were on the stage ready for the second service. As I left, more people were arriving including families with kids who participate in Kids Quest. This church has recently called a new pastor who begins next week.