My Church

[themotherhen]

Tonight the boys and I attended church. The 3 little boys went to Awana. My youngest, Ben, had a hard time and missed me alot. He went to the 1st grade class, not the K class. There is a world of difference between K and 1st grade.  Ben was horrified to be separated from me. He cried. He has never been separated from me before, since I worked outside the home. 
  My sister M is joining a small group with her husband, a parenting group. I wanted to go to the same group as her, but my DH has to work. I feel odd, joining a both genders small group. DH teased me, because my neighbors thinks I am Amish, because I have a garden, chickens, and I dress modestly and cover my hair. He said, in response to my concerns about joining a mixed gender group, "Well, yes, most Amish women feel that way!" 
  He said it as a joke, in fun. But I can't help but feel that the way the Amish approach social interactions is best for families. It is segregated by gender. To avoid temptation between church members. 
  If my husband doesn't have to work, I will attend a mixed gender Bible study. If he has to work, it is women's only group for me.

[mzgarden]

motherhen, I'm sorry your littlest struggled with separation. To be encouraging, I can share that after years of teaching and nurturing in our church nursery, it's most likely he will adjust over time, if he goes on a regular basis. As to how you choose your study groups - I think everyone needs to select the option that enables them to be free of distraction and able to focus on the teaching. If for you, being in a mixed group without your husband would create discomfort, it's likely you'll not be able to focus entirely on the teaching. I think you're wise to know how you learn best and to select the class that would enable you to be the most engaged. This helps you and, the more engaged you are, the more it blesses the others in the class with you.

[themotherhen]

mzgarden , thank you! I have also taught children's church and I know he will adjust in time. He said he was away from me for such a loooooong time, it was actually only an hour and a half :-) He does want to go back, though, so that's good.
And my 9 year old's teacher taught my sisters and I when we were in children's church, and is one of my Mom's dearest friends! She is an excellent teacher and is very loving, which helps him a LOT because he is really struggling with my Mom's breast cancer diagnosis. It is a good fit for us.
You are right about my comfort with the mixed groups. At our previous church the minister of music started making advances toward me, and it was really awkward and led to us leaving that church. That situation made me a little gun-shy, you know?