April 26, 2006
First Impressions
There are some areas of service in the church in which our older folks are no longer able to participate. For instance, you wouldn’t expect to see a 70 year-old serving as youth sponsor. I think one area of service ideally suited for seniors is the position of greeter for the morning worship services. I learned, however, that not everyone agrees with me. Apparently there are those who think the senior population doesn’t project the ‘image’ of the people the church is trying to attract. Speaking bluntly, greeters make the first impression on visitors and most churches are not trying to attract older retirees. Sadly, greeters are no longer just a friendly face of welcome; they’ve become a marketing tool.
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
1 comment:
Gail;
Indeed it would be odd to think of an eighty year old youth sponsor in today's church. Or an eighty year old music minister, or even pastor. So we see some function as greeter or nursing home visitor or old folks' quartet, just for the amusement of it, as being their fit service.
Unfortunately our society is made of the necessity for amusement, and that is prcisely why our grandparents have become cast asides. Their styles and tastes certainly do not fit any more. Last night Char and I were reading aloud from The Screwtape Letters. I stopped in the middle of a paragraph and exclaimed, "Boy, the way these guys wrote in the thirties and fourties is sure hard to read!" We both chuckled. Things change that much between generations. And when the elements of a civilization become so cushy that the controlling factors of what is vogue or not revolves around the issue of how well it can stimulate emotions, even subtle variations like liguistic expression can get you thrown out on your ear.
We have given head knowledge, but not heart obedience, to the Biblical truth that God, His Word, and His principles are timeless. If that head knowledge were to reach the heart we would understand that His principles are more and deeper than can be learned in a lifetime. But those who have spent a lifetime learning His principles have more spiritual perspective to offer than do the youngsters in the so called prime of life.
I always have believed that the place for the elderly in a church is closer to the eldership than is the place for the younger. Though the younger may know more about stimulating today's emotions, and generating a lot of activity, the elderly know more about the operations of God's principles, and how they work in a world of decadence. I do believe that this is why the purveyors of the contemporary celebration culture have unabashedly run over their brother's and sister's who still feel a need for traditional reverant worship. Emotion plays today, not principle. That is why the elderly's place for service in the church has all but disappeared.
Post a Comment