I love it when you are in church and you see people sleeping. It brings out the small child in me. You guess who is going to snore first, or whose head is going to roll back or who is going to dribble. It's a whole lot of fun but I am sure your not supposed to think that sleeping in church is serious business, or at least that's what all the preachers tell us. You know the horror stories they tell just to get you to pay attention to the sermon or my other favourite. Touch the person next to you and say don't sleep through your blessing. But Acts 20:7-12 is the honest to goodness story of sleeping in church.
Imagine preaching so long that people fell asleep in dangerous places. There you are crammed into a little room so you think I will sit on the windowsill at least I will get some air through here. It's a good spot the cool breeze should keep me awake. But instead he warm air and the long preaching you fall asleep with no support you fall out the window. Imagine the response of the preacher. I would be mortified personally and would probably be seriously embarrassed. But Paul no he goes down hugs the man and simply says he is alive. Everyone goes back inside and the tired boy is taken home.
Now as a child this would have been the most exciting church service I had ever been to. As an adult it poses me a number of questions.
Do we as church leaders think about the peoples needs when organising a service?
When we go to church are we prepared for church?
My guess is that sometimes both for fall short. My thought is that worship is important and when going to church for worship or when organising worship for others we should think about what we are doing not just bow to tradition.
No comments:
Post a Comment