As a child we did not have veggie tales, there truly was not a whole lot of cartoons aimed at the Christian community. Most of the things I experienced as a young under ten-year-old boy would have been a children’s church. An opportunity to color pictures rendered from the Bible in a more child-friendly manner. This would have been at a Four Square Church in Salem. It is still there to this day off of Cordon Road and has a regular worship service times, you can feel free to look them up any time. I remember the rooms for the children. One wing leads to the older children, this would be around my age group, and another wing led down to the young children and toddlers.
I cannot declare I remember church before the age I was going to this place, I do not remember any kind of Church before I was five, maybe seven. This had to do with home life, of which I can say was not wholesome. Many of us can remember violent arguments between parents. The smashing of plates or the potpourri of expletives. This means when I remember going to Church it had to be when I was around 8 or 9, this would put the timeline right around 1990-1992 because this was the time my mother needed someone to watch my siblings and me over the weekends. This was a Sunday ritual that involved sleeping over at the Grandparent’s house on Saturday and going home on Sunday. The reason for that has never been explained to me, then again, I have never asked. However, from about that time to when I was around fifteen or sixteen, so eight years, my brother, my sister, and I were regular small children attendees at whatever church my grandparents might have been members of on any given Sunday.
Like I said, being young at that particular Four Square Church put my understanding of it very low. After all one does not teach specific sacerdotal teachings to an eight-year-old, he is not likely going to get such catchphrases of eternal security or Scripture Alone. Stick to the Bible, color the images of David killing Goliath, or of Jesus rising from the tomb. Simple Bible stories are pretty much the extent of my experience at Four Square church. That and their music team. Electric guitar, bass, thousand piece drum kits, three backup singers, and an assortment of things that made church a concert and a performance. Music groups like Petra, Resurrection Band, and Newsboys colored much of the Christian Praise and Worship I would experience. Which meant rocking out, singing aloud, and raising your hands could be defined at that time as the worship I gave to God from my heart. To this day I still listen to these groups, I grew up with them and I love singing while I drive.

Lastly, as I conclude this simple chapter of years from 8 to 10, I believe it would be fair to tell of the times I lived in. The world was seeing a huge development in culture. Times were definitely changing and we all knew the end of the millennium was coming quickly. We saw the rise of MTV (Music Television), the development of Hip-Hop, and Grunge music. The Berlin Wall fell in 1989, and there was renewed hope in democracy again. America fought in the Gulf War from late 1990 to early 1991. I remember watching coverage of this on TV during the News. I think during this time I gained more influence from The Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, Vanilla Ice, and the Mighty Morphing Power Rangers than I did at the children’s church. All in all those times, as in the times today, were interesting and I am glad to have lived in them.