“Return to me and I
will return to you, says the Lord of heavenly forces.” (Malachi 3:7b)
Within
the next week or so, our children and teenagers will be heading back to school
to start a new school year. This should
be a reminder to the rest of us that it’s also time to start back to church if
we’ve gotten out of the habit over the summertime! And just so everyone feels welcome and “at
home”, here are some special things we’ll be providing this Fall:
--Cots will be placed
in the Narthex for those who say ‘Sunday is my only day to sleep late’
--Steel helmets will be
provided for those who say ‘The roof would cave in if I ever came to church!’
--Blankets will be
furnished for those who say the church is too cold, and fans will be given to
those who think it’s too hot.
--We’ll have hearing
aids available for those who say ‘the preacher talks to soft’, cotton for those
who think that he talks too loud, and a few “Slow Down” road signs for those
who think he talks too fast.
--There will be TV
dinners for those who say they can’t go to church and cook lunch for their
family at the same time.
--We’ve renovated part
of our Sanctuary to have grass and trees for those who feel closest to God in
nature, and part of the grassy area will have a putting green for those who
think that Sunday morning should be for golfing.
--We’ve turned some of
the pews to face backwards, so that those who say ‘I’ll come to church when I
get my life turned around’ will feel at home without ever having to do that.
--We’ve also built
several small, private rooms connected to the Sanctuary for those who say that
they worship God at home alone, by themselves.
--And finally, the
Church will be decorated with both Christmas poinsettias and Easter lilies for
those who have never been to church without them.
Okay…
so we won’t really be doing all of these things. But it does highlight some of the many silly
excuses we use for not coming to church!
This
Fall as our children and youth head back to school, why not put away your
excuses and renew the habit of coming back weekly to the place where you can
meet and grow with God, fellowship with people who care about you, and find a
sense of purpose and meaning to life. “Seven days without worship make one weak!” I hope that won’t apply to you!
I look forward to seeing you in church! Remember, God loves you and I do, too!
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