ERIC AND CHELSEA COX
How did you find Foothills?
Eric: I found Foothills through childhood friends of mine, and I was around fifth grade, actually. I started coming to the junior high group and just had a blast. And my parents saw the enjoyment I was getting out of it so they started coming, and we’ve been here ever since.
Chelsea: When I was in junior high we started going from church to church to church to church, and we found Foothills. [There was] something about it that my mom really enjoyed it for my sister and I… They had [great programs] for kids, and junior high especially, it’s such a critical age, I felt she just knew that we needed to be here. Out of all the churches we went to, there was just something different here, and I’ve grown to love it and to know that this is where our family belongs.
What did you find at Foothills?
Eric: What we found at Foothills, as a growing family now with kids of our own, is neat little traditions and things that happen throughout the year. But one in particular is the candlelight service every Christmas.
Chelsea: Yes, it’s something that my family and I did. My mom would take us from [childhood]. I can remember going as a small little child all the way to going as an adult. But this one Christmas Eve I can remember my mom had to work straight up until Christmas, which meant she worked Christmas Eve day, also. And my sister and I were supposed to be ready to go because she was going to be home right [before the service]. It was just a stressful season in general of circumstances colliding together. And she came home and, being children, I didn’t want to wear the dress that I had and my sister’s tights were dirty. And there we were, my mom just got home from work, she was trying to get everything ready and we were just like, “No.” She, in that moment, could have just broken down, but she looked at us and said, “I don’t care what you wear, but we need to go.” I remember just looking at her and [thinking], “Well, you need to go, but I’m good.” We went with our dirty tights, and I wore jeans, and my mom came and we all sat together. We lit the candle, and I can remember…. I remember, this isn’t my mom remembering, but I remember looking and knowing that Christmas was so much more than presents. It was more than the dress I had or the dirty tights. And it was something my mom knew and she knew we needed to go. It wasn’t that God needed us to go because He was with us all the time, but we needed it. And I just remember thinking, “Wow, I am part of something so much bigger. I am part of this whole story going on.” I think sometimes as parents we can forget… We think our kids don’t understand things, but these are moments where all generations are together. You have little babies crying. You have toddlers pushing. You have moms shushing. You have grandparents singing. And in this one moment, you see God’s faithfulness over all generations.
What would you say to someone reading this?
Eric: If they’re thinking about coming to church, I would say: There’s community. There’s family. It’s a great place for you as a parent, if you’re a parent, to be equipped. I would say, just come and see.