Doodling in the Pew Hymn Book
We had a very a-typical day at church. The worship leader was away which meant someone else had to take his place. He does a good job. Though in my mind it doesn't matter what type of music is used for worship as long as it's done for God's glory. Also the pastor and the youth pastor were on vacation. Who does this leave to give the sermon? Who shall take the pastor and youth pastor's place when they are unable to speak? One of the elders was chosen. An older member of our congregation, a man who's been around the evangelical block more than his few times, who felt God had laid on his heart for about a year on not letting Humanism corrupt society. Admittedly, this is a message we have all heard before. How the humanists have taken God out of school, how christianity has lost its way, and we lost our moral compass. I'm not going to lie, when he started to go down the laundry list of America's ills I had a difficult time paying attention. I wasn't the only one. In front of me one person played a game on his phone and another read. Behind me several people were talking. It got annoying. I got quite angry at all of these people. We should be listening to the word of God in order to test the spirits in order that we may be doers of the word. I am forgetting about the plank in my own eye. I have dozed off, doodled, and let my mind wander more often than not. If only the messages were always timely, or spoke on how I may have a better life, or whatever. No. Perhaps not. Aren't we supposed to have a reverence for the word of God?
posted by Out Of Jersey | 1:40 PM
7 Comments:
Two words: supply pastor.
I would prefer to shell out $150 or $200 for a suplpy pastor to come in than to hear a church member with an axe to grind.
Hmmm, I don't know, it could be interesting what you learn about fellow church members. You find out that old, quiet man who sits behind you has a lot on his chest and sounds a bit like George Carlin when given a captive audience.
what's a supply pastor? is that like the traveling itenerant pastors of old?
personally, i think we need to give voice to the older generation. although, honestly, of all the wisdom i have received (and still want to receive) from my elders, the "America Has Gone to Hell in a Handbasket and It's All the Liberal, Atheistic Humanitarians Fault" speech is not among them.
but, as much as i hate the ranting and falsification of history, there's some truth in there that needs to be garnered, a perspective that reminds us to call sin "sin" and that maybe it's not always such a good idea to "engage in culture."
LP,
Although I agree it's a good idea to have a supply pastor on hand, it still is good to on occassion ahve the older generation speak to the church.
too_lively
It's a double edged sword. Eitehr you get age old wisdom or just an axe to grind.
J..
I don't know man, though to this guys credit he was slightly more honest than most people about the forefathers of america.
he acknowledged that they were secular womanizers and classists?
Not quite that honest.
I think there are two sides to reverence for God's word.
There's the listener side (which you seem to feel you didn't adequately occupy).
And there's the handler side (which, perhaps, the speaker did not struggle enough to adequately occupy). I think I can say this, since I myself struggle to be a relevant speaker...the fault is not always with the audience.
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