Time is the ultimate pressure point of our lives. There is seemingly so much to do and so little time to do it in. And that means we cram our schedules fuller and fuller. Weekends are rarely quiet times of the week, often we cram in everything we just haven't had time for during the week. And increasingly this is as true of Sunday as Saturday. Interestingly the Bible's pattern of rest and work is 1 day of rest, 6 of work. Our pattern is supposedly 2 and 5, though I wonder how much that means we abandon 1 and 6 because we allow bleed across the weekend of 'work'. Because I think as Christians a 1 and 6 pattern would make us really stand out and do us good. Anyway that is a subject for another ramble
Over the last few years I've become increasingly worried about the way we are coming to think of church. Now there are lots of good reasons to be away from church on a Sunday, as families move for work and become more geographically distant weekend visiting becomes a familial obligation, and a good loving practise. Similarly with friends, sometimes a weekend with good friends can be an oasis of calm and a great time for reflection aside from the chaotic maelstrom of everyday life. Such times of deliberately stepping out of life normal patterns is good and such relationships are restorative. If our family and friends are Christians we attend church with them and that too is a blessing, seeing other believers, other fellowships and other ways of rejoicing in Christ and spurring one another on is good for us.
But here's my concern, so many other things now vie with Church for our time and commitment on Sundays. We've had to make decisions regarding Sunday sports with the boys because they clash with church, not just church on Sunday morning but increasingly football is 2 nights a week, Saturday and Sunday morning and sometimes afternoon. We've had to make similar decisions about Martial Arts and competing. But it's not just sport. Cubs, scouts and other uniformed organisations are increasingly running events over Sundays. School play rehearsals and the like are often on Sundays. Music groups, orchestra's, choirs etc also run so many things on Sundays. Alongside that so many courses and events for adults run on Sundays, from sailing clubs and sewing groups, to singing groups.
Here is my concern, what are our actions conveying to our others about the importance of the gospel, our faith and the necessity or otherwise of church? What does it reveal about the way we really think of God's people? I am not legalistically arguing for slavish attendance at church every Sunday. But I wonder if the trajectory we are on is doing more damage than we realise to our churches and especially to our children as they learn the lesson that church is just another optional activity to be fitted in when there are no higher priorities. What will that mean for them as adults and as parents themselves?
I wonder if you asked your children how important they think church is on a scale of 1 to 10 what they would say and why? What about what they would say about how important they conclude you think church is? Is it a nice option, is it advisable or is it essential? How do we really think about it and how does that show in our lives?
It's easy for us to drift into patterns of non-attendance before we realise it. To be away this weekend visiting family, that weekend visiting friends, this week we are at Scout camp, and so on. In part that's why we're running an afternoon service alongside our mornings. So that for those who are away or visiting family there is a second opportunity to worship God and gather with his people to be both encouraged by others and an encouragement to others.
The New Testament pulls no punches we NEED church. Yet I wonder if we really believe that?
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