I had a lousy night. Spent all of it in my recliner, most of it wide awake listening to my stomach rock and roll. Today I'm back to just the cold symptoms. Aside from a brief trip into town I've been inside all day, in part because of how I feel, but also because today was one of the five days each year here (the average) when the sun doesn't shine. It started to sprinkle about 11 a.m. and continued through the afternoon. For all of that we didn't get 1/4" but Jimmy, the Channel 12 weatherman, was ALL geeked about it.
Speaking of Channel 12, they're the local NBC affiliate and we typically watch them early in the morning for local news, and then again at the dinner hour. They just today moved to new studios across the street from their older facilities downtown. This morning we were both very surprised to see a black bar across the top and bottom of our TV screen during their news coverage, and quickly figured out they've switched from the 4:3 aspect ration to the new 16:9 ratio of HDTV.
I think God is trying to tell us something about our TV.
Speaking of weather reporters, I typically listen to 96.9 FM while I'm working outside. They play a short PR piece telling us why we should tune to their station (preaching to the choir), especially during the morning commute. One of the features is April's weather. It took me several times listening to that spot before I figure out their weather reporter is a gal named April. I thought, "This is December. Why do I care about what the weather is like in April?"
I wrote my sermon, made that trip into town and then worked on my preaching and teaching schedule for the first part of 2011. I read about epistemology, etiology and weltanschauung. I chose two versions of the Credo (homologeo), one by Mozart and one by Beethoven. Good progress.
I like learning new stuff. Plan on doing that till I die.
If you're still looking for that perfect 2011 calendar for yourself, or perhaps as a gift for that special someone, this Australian version may be just the ticket:
Wild Discovery Calendar
Toward the end of my time as pastor of Celebration we were rethinking the annual kids Christmas program. For the first 10 years or so of the church's history we did the normal special program featuring all of the kids. The "Cradle Roll" babies were brought up by the nursery workers so we could see those born since last year's program. Then each of the Sunday School classes were brought up in ascending order to do a song, or recite a verse, or act out a brief drama or..... When the Jr. Highers came to the platform it was an exercise in corporate pain. If you remember anything about being that age the last thing you wanted to do was stand up in front of a room full of adults and do something incredibly lame. It was amazing how many had scheduling conflicts or life-threatening diseases the second half of December. And the adults knew any of them who actually showed up hated us for doing that to them.
Some of us began to ask, Why?? I can't imagine the kids got anything of spiritual value out of the "service" except for the Jr. Highers who just got life-long emotional scars. On the near side of the platform the hour seemed like little more than a photo-op, with family members moving in turn to the front to capture their adorable little child on video.
How did any of this honor God for the gift of his Son? Kids are pretty good at figuring out when they're the focus of attention.
To be fair, Pathway is limited by logistical considerations. But for the two Sundays before Christmas and the Christmas Eve service we're having our six first- to third-graders do our customary Scripture reading. That's all. They will learn about the authority of Scripture and the role even they can play at Pathway. The adults, in turn, will listen to familiar passages with a freshly attentive ear and see the impact our childrens' ministries are having on our kids. Connor, who is in first grade (I think) read from Isaiah 7 and 9 in our worship service last Sunday. He did a great job!
That sermon I wrote this morning? It's OK. It's biblical and I hope at least reasonable relevant. But for me the high point of the service will be hearing Sarah, Morgan and Seth read God's Word to us.
4 comments:
I buy the Xmas program argument in Grand Rapids, where the term unbeliever is used to describe the guy mowing his lawn after church on Sunday. I'm sure there were plenty of true unbelievers at Megan's Christmas program last night. I can see the value of the "photo-op" in that it brings a whole lot of family into a place they may not otherwise visit. That familiarity may make church a more likely option when they face a crisis. Or, their experience with that handsome, warm pastor may get them thinking about coming to(back to) church. If so, hopefully they'll be happy at that church or come to Pathway.
Perhaps I'm drawing too fine a distinction, but a school Christmas program doesn't bother me as much as one held during a regularly scheduled service at church. Some kind of Saturday night program at the church? Else what message do we send about the greater purposes of the church? IMHO.
Sorry to break up this fine family discussion...
What I like is that we use different ages in our program, not just little children.
I like that visitors come to see their family or friends that never go to a church at all. They will hear the gospel.
I like that we aren't professional, so the little mistakes are actually endearing.
I like that it gives children opportunity to praise the Lord with their talented voices.
I like that we have a time afterwards where people can develop or strenghten relationships.
And I don't think very many kids are traumatized by participating in Christmas programs and Jr High and up should be participating only if they want and in what they want (instrumentals, singing, drama, readings, etc.) because I DO think it can be an effective outreach where the ministry of the young ones (usually family or friends of the "seasonal guest") along with a well-delivered and constructive message from the pastor, can have an impact on all in attendance as the Holy Spirit works in the hearts of the listeners. Some may view "kids shows" as nothing more than "dog & pony-circus acts" to attract the visitors. I can live with that thought. Kids learn how to be in front of people, listeners learn of God's love. Win-win.
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