July 03, 2014
Surprise Visit
As I talk to people about
attending different churches and reporting on their worship service, some of my
friends express concern about a church that may have an off-day on the day I
visit. For instance it wouldn’t be a normal Sunday if there were a substitute
preacher, a crisis in the congregation, or praise team members missing because
of the church camp out. Betty said, “You’ll just need to go back again and give
them another chance.” I had to laugh. I have a list of 74 churches to visit and
somehow I can’t see going back to each one until they have a normal service. I
suspect many believers use similar reasoning when they think about the Lord’s
return. They too hope it occurs on a normal day when their spiritual ducks are in
a row. Jesus said, “You also must be ready, because the Son of Man will come at
an hour when you do not expect him” (Luke 12:40 NIV).
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1 comment:
Gail;
-----The confines of observing and reporting will make problems for the church having an off-day service. Commentary and opinion probably would make it worse. Interviewing some of the congregation’s core faithful about what is the normal service would be the only way, other than visiting again, to report on the normal service.
-----As critical as is observation, this scenario demonstrates how short of completion it actually is. It needs analysis and thought following in its tracks. For much of what differentiates one church’s worship service from another (normal or off-day) are unobserved ideologies and attitudes. For example, at the church I attend, the congregation often recites the Apostle’s Creed as a professing act. It would merely be a ritual without the idea behind it of calling every individual to adhere to the straight-forward Scriptural truths of faith in the Lord. It is easily seen as an extension of the Presbyterian attitude of running-in-unison--by-the-book. And I love that idea. Ideologies and attitudes can only be reached through communication, study, and logic.
-----Without these, anything beyond a mere description by observation of worship activities becomes commentary and opinion. I thank God I don’t have your task. Then again, a well animated, simple description of the community’s different worship services is far more than what we would otherwise have. Engage our imaginations and you will win big even by describing some of the off-day services.
Love you all,
Steve Corey
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