{"id":3314,"date":"2024-03-04T12:28:40","date_gmt":"2024-03-04T17:28:40","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/ichasesunsets\/?p=3314"},"modified":"2024-03-05T08:07:36","modified_gmt":"2024-03-05T13:07:36","slug":"the-smallest-church-in-america","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/ichasesunsets\/2024\/03\/the-smallest-church-in-america\/","title":{"rendered":"The Smallest Church in America"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<\/head>

The Smallest Church in America\/B. Green<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/p>

Christ\u2019s Chapel\u2013<\/em>The Smallest Church in America<\/h2>\n A couple years ago, my husband and I were traveling around coastal Georgia touring Revolutionary and Civil War forts. It was a fascinating trip and we saw and learned so much in that beautiful area of our country. It was on a lovely, sunny, spring afternoon that we drove down US Highway 17 near the South Newport River and the city of Darien,<\/a> when a sign caught our eyes: \u201cThe Smallest Church in America.\u201d Well, who could resist? We pulled over and got out of the car.<\/span><\/p>\n The Smallest Church in America\/ B. Green<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n* ** *We could see the tiny church set in the midst of a roughly landscaped garden. It almost looked like a child\u2019s playhouse with a little bell tower on the left side. The church\u2019s name is <\/span>Christ\u2019s Chapel <\/span><\/i>and it is set in <\/span>Memory Park.<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n The History of Christ\u2019s Chapel<\/strong><\/h2>\n*** ** ***The church was constructed in 1949, and represented a dream come true for Mrs. Anges Harper, a local grocer. She wanted the chapel to serve as a place of meditation and rest for weary travelers. The garden alone is a lovely, peaceful, place with a statue of Jesus keeping watch. Amazingly, the land is deeded to <\/span>Jesus Christ.<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n Statue in Memory Garden\/B. Green<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n Although small, the structure is not lacking in character and beauty with stained glass windows imported from England. Visitors may enter the 10\u2019x15\u2019 church that has seating for 12, a pulpit, and a book to sign. A rustic, wooden, shepherd\u2019s crook on which is carved John 3:17<\/a> (\u201cFor God did not send His son into the world to condemn the world, but that the world through Him might be saved\u201d) props almost carelessly in the corner.<\/span><\/p>\n The Smallest Church in America\/B. Green<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n***** ** *****It seems that local ministers still lead non-denominational worship there every third Sunday and the church is very popular for weddings. It remains one of the most unique structures along the Georgia Coast Scenic Byway.<\/span><\/p>\n An Attack on the Smallest Church in America<\/strong><\/h2>\n******* ** The smallest church in America appears the epitome of tranquility, but that was not always so. It seems that on November 28, 2015, the church was gutted by a fire. An arsonist attacked and attempted to destroy this small, benign oasis of hope and peace. Why? What harm in the world could this little church ever cause?\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n ** It would probably have been easy, maybe even logical, to just abandon the place, but within a few days after the fire, donations of cash and construction materials began to pour in.\u00a0 Christ\u2019s Chapel was rebuilt and reopened on April 8, 2017.<\/span><\/p>\n ** *******This is such a sweet place and an uplifting story, but it is also quite a metaphor.<\/span><\/p>\n Are You Like the Smallest Church?<\/h2>\n Do you ever feel like you are under attack? Do you ever feel like even though you are only one limited person, the spiritual fires from the enemy are trying to gut you? Do\u00a0 you feel like you are being destroyed when you really haven\u2019t done a thing wrong? Can you identify with the smallest church (or <\/span>temple of the Holy Spirit)<\/span><\/i><\/a> in America?<\/span><\/p>\n John 10:10<\/a> tells us first that <\/span>\u201cthe <\/span>thief<\/span><\/i> comes only to steal and kill and destroy.\u201d He doesn\u2019t only come to the big, obvious, imposing places (or people). After all, if the enemy can conquer the army soldier by soldier, he doesn\u2019t have to fight against the General (which failed utterly the last time he attempted it). The enemy attacks one man\u2019s testimony, one woman\u2019s peace, one family\u2019s security, one pastor\u2019s integrity. One by one the <\/span>arsonist <\/span><\/i>starts fires and attempts to gut the people of God. <\/span><\/p>\n The Assurance of the Word of God\u00a0<\/strong><\/h2>\n********* ** *********However, there is a second part to John 10:10. It assures us that \u201cI have come that they may have life, and have it to the full.\u201d In fact, we have many assurances throughout the scriptures that we can depend upon when our life\/temple is under attack. Here are a few:<\/span><\/p>\n Isaiah 54:17<\/a> \u2013 \u201c<\/span>No weapon that is fashioned against you shall succeed, and you shall refute every tongue that rises against you in judgment.\u201d<\/i><\/b><\/p>\n 2 Corinthians 10: 4<\/span><\/a> \u2013 <\/b>\u201cFor the weapons of our warfare are not carnal, but mighty through God to the pulling down of strong holds.\u201d<\/i><\/b><\/p>\n Romans 8:31<\/a> \u2013 \u201c<\/span>What shall we say to these things? If God is for us, who can be against us?\u201d<\/i><\/b><\/p>\n 2 Thessalonians 3:3<\/a> \u2013 <\/span>\u201cBut the Lord is faithful. He will establish you and guard you against the evil one.\u201d<\/i><\/b><\/p>\n Provision for the Smallest Church in America\u2013Even If It\u2019s You<\/h2>\n*********** ** Every one of us is a temple to someone or something. If it\u2019s not a god, it\u2019s money, or possessions, or even self. If you make it known that you are a temple of the Holy Spirit, your enemy will set fires. It\u2019s a guarantee. It\u2019s also a guarantee that Jesus will provide all you need to be spared, repaired and rebuilt, \u201caccording to His riches in glory.\u201d\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n ** You see, just like the smallest church in America, when you accepted Jesus Christ as your Lord and Savior, you deeded yourself over to Him. You belong to Him, and He will take care of you! Guaranteed!<\/span><\/p>\n ** ** The Smallest Church in America\/B. Green<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n ** God bless you, and may He keep you always in His love and care.<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n<\/body><\/html>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" ** ***********Christ\u2019s Chapel\u2013The Smallest Church in America A couple years ago, my husband and I were traveling around coastal Georgia touring Revolutionary and Civil War forts. It was a fascinating trip and we saw and learned so much in that beautiful area of our country. It was on a lovely, sunny, spring afternoon that we drove […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":5055,"featured_media":3320,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[971,968,974,977],"class_list":["post-3314","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-uncategorized","tag-darien-ga","tag-smallest-church-in-america","tag-spiritual-attacks","tag-things-to-see-in-georgia"],"yoast_head":"\nThe Smallest Church in America<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"We were driving down US Highway 17 near Darien, Georgia when a sign caught our eyes: \u201cThe Smallest Church in America.\u201d Well, who could resist?\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/ichasesunsets\/2024\/03\/the-smallest-church-in-america\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"The Smallest Church in America\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"We were driving down US Highway 17 near Darien, Georgia when a sign caught our eyes: \u201cThe Smallest Church in America.\u201d Well, who could resist?\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/ichasesunsets\/2024\/03\/the-smallest-church-in-america\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"I Chase Sunsets\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2024-03-04T17:28:40+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2024-03-05T13:07:36+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/wp-media.patheos.com\/blogs\/sites\/1809\/2024\/03\/278393434_5997579846924349_3894328393204055389_n.jpg\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"720\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"960\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/jpeg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"Beverly R. Green\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"Beverly R. Green\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"6 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\/\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/ichasesunsets\/2024\/03\/the-smallest-church-in-america\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/ichasesunsets\/2024\/03\/the-smallest-church-in-america\/\",\"name\":\"The Smallest Church in America\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/ichasesunsets\/#website\"},\"datePublished\":\"2024-03-04T17:28:40+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2024-03-05T13:07:36+00:00\",\"author\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/ichasesunsets\/#\/schema\/person\/f641964771bb1bf0d1b5eb9f0922c4b3\"},\"description\":\"We were driving down US Highway 17 near Darien, Georgia when a sign caught our eyes: \u201cThe Smallest Church in America.\u201d Well, who could resist?\",\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/ichasesunsets\/2024\/03\/the-smallest-church-in-america\/#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/ichasesunsets\/2024\/03\/the-smallest-church-in-america\/\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/ichasesunsets\/2024\/03\/the-smallest-church-in-america\/#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"Home\",\"item\":\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/ichasesunsets\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"The Smallest Church in America\"}]},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/ichasesunsets\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/ichasesunsets\/\",\"name\":\"I Chase Sunsets\",\"description\":\"God reveals Himself to us daily in amazing and miraculous ways We just need to look for Him.\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/ichasesunsets\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":\"required name=search_term_string\"}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"Person\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/ichasesunsets\/#\/schema\/person\/f641964771bb1bf0d1b5eb9f0922c4b3\",\"name\":\"Beverly R. Green\",\"description\":\"Beverly Green is a life-long disciple of Christ. She has a BS in Secondary Education\/Language Arts and an MA in English from Jacksonville State University in Alabama. Currently, she teaches high school English in St Clairsville, Ohio where she lives with her husband Martin. Beverly has published devotionals, Christian fiction, and short stories.\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/ichasesunsets\/author\/bgreen\/\"}]}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"The Smallest Church in America","description":"We were driving down US Highway 17 near Darien, Georgia when a sign caught our eyes: \u201cThe Smallest Church in America.\u201d Well, who could resist?","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/ichasesunsets\/2024\/03\/the-smallest-church-in-america\/","og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_title":"The Smallest Church in America","og_description":"We were driving down US Highway 17 near Darien, Georgia when a sign caught our eyes: \u201cThe Smallest Church in America.\u201d Well, who could resist?","og_url":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/ichasesunsets\/2024\/03\/the-smallest-church-in-america\/","og_site_name":"I Chase Sunsets","article_published_time":"2024-03-04T17:28:40+00:00","article_modified_time":"2024-03-05T13:07:36+00:00","og_image":[{"width":720,"height":960,"url":"https:\/\/wp-media.patheos.com\/blogs\/sites\/1809\/2024\/03\/278393434_5997579846924349_3894328393204055389_n.jpg","type":"image\/jpeg"}],"author":"Beverly R. Green","twitter_card":"summary_large_image","twitter_misc":{"Written by":"Beverly R. Green","Est. reading time":"6 minutes"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/ichasesunsets\/2024\/03\/the-smallest-church-in-america\/","url":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/ichasesunsets\/2024\/03\/the-smallest-church-in-america\/","name":"The Smallest Church in America","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/ichasesunsets\/#website"},"datePublished":"2024-03-04T17:28:40+00:00","dateModified":"2024-03-05T13:07:36+00:00","author":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/ichasesunsets\/#\/schema\/person\/f641964771bb1bf0d1b5eb9f0922c4b3"},"description":"We were driving down US Highway 17 near Darien, Georgia when a sign caught our eyes: \u201cThe Smallest Church in America.\u201d Well, who could resist?","breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/ichasesunsets\/2024\/03\/the-smallest-church-in-america\/#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/ichasesunsets\/2024\/03\/the-smallest-church-in-america\/"]}]},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/ichasesunsets\/2024\/03\/the-smallest-church-in-america\/#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/ichasesunsets\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"The Smallest Church in America"}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/ichasesunsets\/#website","url":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/ichasesunsets\/","name":"I Chase Sunsets","description":"God reveals Himself to us daily in amazing and miraculous ways We just need to look for Him.","potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/ichasesunsets\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":"required name=search_term_string"}],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/ichasesunsets\/#\/schema\/person\/f641964771bb1bf0d1b5eb9f0922c4b3","name":"Beverly R. Green","description":"Beverly Green is a life-long disciple of Christ. She has a BS in Secondary Education\/Language Arts and an MA in English from Jacksonville State University in Alabama. Currently, she teaches high school English in St Clairsville, Ohio where she lives with her husband Martin. Beverly has published devotionals, Christian fiction, and short stories.","url":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/ichasesunsets\/author\/bgreen\/"}]}},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/ichasesunsets\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3314","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/ichasesunsets\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/ichasesunsets\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/ichasesunsets\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/5055"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/ichasesunsets\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=3314"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/ichasesunsets\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3314\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/ichasesunsets\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/3320"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/ichasesunsets\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=3314"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/ichasesunsets\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=3314"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/ichasesunsets\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=3314"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}