Today was a good day at church.
The worship band didn't miss a beat, the sermon was poignant and powerful, and our corporate prayer time felt "anointed". For someone who is often too critical of church, it was refreshing to have everything run so smoothly and feel... well, pretty good.
I thought halfway through the service: "This is good church." And then I reflected on the absurdity of what I had just thought: good church? What a ridiculous statement.
Why do we place so much stock in an hour-and-a-half hour experience one day each week? That seems to be placing a lot of unnecessary pressure on the preacher and others involved in the service (except God).
Is that what really makes "good church"? Gosh, I just can't help but think that Jesus had something more in mind when he entrusted to Peter the "ekklesia" (a group that was called out from the ways of the world).
As I was thinking this, I looked at the man in front of me. His name is Al. He was the first person to greet me when I came to the church about two years ago. Since then, his health has been rapidly declining. When he was temporarily in a senior center, I visited him several times. After he got out and was going through some physical rehabilitation, I would go over to his house and read him the Bible. We would talk, laugh, and pray together.
That was about six months ago, if not longer. I haven't seen him outside of the church building in a long time. As I remembered this and compared it to my present satisfaction with "good church", I felt disgusted with myself.
Why can't that be "good church"? I'm done with good church services.
Sunday, September 21, 2008
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4 comments:
church building...that's what you were evaluating. Al is the Church.
Yup, amen. Thanks, Aaron.
I tried a good church on Sunday perfect service spoke to 4 people afterwards out of 150 one of who I knew before, and one of the others telling us about a baby room where we can take our baby if it gets noisy.
Went to a different church in evening, only 15 people but I spoke to all of them and I am normally the shy one and they appreciated the baby's noises as otherwise the church is too quiet!
so next week , I am not going to that morning one again.( it was also 8 miles from home)
thanks, tom. sounds like you made the right choice. i like baby noises.
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