Monday, August 3, 2020
What We Miss About Church: Congregant Reflections
For our devotionals this month, we asked various congregants what they miss the most about being together.
Join us for this series of reflections that remind us of what we miss and who we are called to be.
Scripture for the Day
Matthew 6:25-29
Therefore, I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or what you will drink, or about your body, what you will wear. Is not life more than food, and the body more than clothing? Look at the birds of the air; they neither sow nor reap nor gather into barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not of more value than they? And can any of you by worrying add a single hour to your span of life? And why do you worry about clothing? Consider the lilies of the field, how they grow; they neither toil nor spin, yet I tell you, even Solomon in all his glory was not clothed like one of these.
There is a lot to miss about church. Listening to Rev. Sundermeier preach in person, hearing the congregation and choir sing, feeling the pipes of the superb organ, going to Sunday school, seeing everyone, and of course, the cookies. For me, these all add up to one major thing: consistency. It is hard when your daily and weekly routine is flipped upside down. After all, as humans, we revolve around routine. Perhaps without knowing it, we fell into a routine and didn’t appreciate all it had to offer. I could count on every Sunday being a day I could start off by going to church and Sunday school. Parking in the LAZ parking lot, jay-walking across the street (you didn’t hear that), and seeing family and friends in the rows of Fifield Hall or the Sanctuary. I could count on walking up to the third floor for ping-pong and Sunday school. And I could count on coordinating a concerted operational effort to get my family out the door when all my parents wanted to do was talk with others.
That routine, that consistency, is what I most miss about church. Matthew chapter 6, verses 25 through 29 tells us to not be anxious for the future. Look at the birds and the lilies of the field, which are taken care of, without anxiety. Enjoy life to its fullest, appreciate every moment, and remember what this period is teaching us: to appreciate everything you can, big and small, while they happen, not after they disappear.
