Church goes kaput, Worship does not.

Howdy,

It was only last week that I was bragging about what a steadfast churchgoer I was. How I would weather (heh) the storm and get my kiester to church. How I was a church attending machine!

And then this weekend happened.

Sigh. I'm a stubborn twerp, but I ain't completely stupid. And as I found out on Monday, the Sunday service was nixed anyways. Hence their online note: http://www.seattlequest.org/blog/2008/12/worship-home-guide-sermon-1221

Sermons via online!

Now, myself? Not a fan. One of the reasons I didn't really fit into Mars Hill was because they're "polished". Their services are created with a certain televised aesthetic in mind, and that's just now how I like things. I prefer intimate/ close up. I think that's the reason this little video sermon thing doesn't repulse me quite as much. My experience with this little video that the Quest folks put up is that it maintains a one on one feel. (Probably brought on largely by the fact it was shot in his home office, the lighting is funky, and he didn't edit out his reaching for the camera buttons) ;)

I can see the appeal of online/broadcast sermons. I do. If you just can't make it out of the house (newborns, weather, elderly), it certainly is better than nothing. Sure you sacrifice the presence of a person who's actually looking at you the same time you're looking at them, but there should still be a God-sent message, right?

Eh. I think someone would have to really sell it to me to get me to do it every week. I want the face to face. I'm quite content to stare someone down and tell them I think they're wrong. I tend not to, let us have our little God disagreements, but a pastor can tell if an entire audience is shifting in their seats. There are visual cues to keep the speaker in check and help them realize if the sermon is "clicking" or not.

And wouldn't ya know it, their Christmas Eve sermon, where they always get a packed house, was cancelled too! But no online video/guide, so maybe they figured one a week as enough. ;)

So, after having 3 church shindigs killed off by snow in the last ten days, I'm realizing a few things. A: I like the face to face. I don't really relish the drive, but I like the interaction. It's the only Christian to Christian time I can count on.

B: Sometimes you just can't make it. It is not enjoyable, and one can at least try... but sometimes you're just gonna stay put. The end. (Hospital stays come to mind.)

C: The internet is a good way to announce to the masses that you're closed. Perhaps even offer up a substitute to those folks. But it doesn't cover everyone. (I have no internet at home, and that's the way I like it!) They'll figure it out for themselves eventually.

Or so one hopes. :D

-PC, a media major, but a face-to-face Quaker first

The lengths to which I'll go (and drive)

Howdy,

Well, I'm now listed on blogged.com. And I told them I updated this weekly. Sigh. Guess I'd better stick to my word, huh? ;)

To any of you outside my county, I'll just tell ya that we got plenty of snow this week. (And those of you around know that our definition of "plenty" is 4-6 inches. Midwesterners, we ain't.) I will also let you in on a secret that no one in Seattle will actually admit to: We can't drive in the snow. It rains in the majority of the year, and we can't even handle that action. So when ya toss snow into the mix... well, the city pretty much shuts down. In fact, I often comment that there are two kinds of people in Seattle. Those that don't know how to drive in snow, and those that think they knew how to drive in the snow. I'm in the first category. Ten years of driving and I have yet to chain up. I know to use 2nd to drive up hills, but other than that, I'm a twerp. I give people as much wiggle room as possible.

Now, a smart person would stay home on a Sunday morning instead of venturing out into the snow. ....so I ventured out into the snow. Happily, everyone is chicken and afraid of damaging their precious car. I am above such material concerns and figure God will take me whatever way God chooses (i.e., that "stupid" element). I think my car skidded once in forty-five minutes. I did just fine. Drove to Ballard, went to church, and not surprisingly, the attendance was about 1/3-1/4 what it normally would be. A shame, because there was actually a pretty good sermon on marriage. I don't think it was quite the eye opener he wanted it to be (he definitely was feeilng the time resetraint), but there were some good points made. My noggin' will retain, "Sleep together, eat together, pray together, talk together". I know! It's like it makes sense to spend time with your spouse! Go figure.

Then along came Monday and small groups. The snow had basically been cleared off, the steep hill I drove on was mostly bare (yay!), and I think everyone who planned to attend showed. So kudos to our mighty group. (I really like my Monday night group. An eclectic mix of folks, ages, and backgrounds, but they're all good people in my book.)

Then came Wednesday night. Heh. I want to say it snowed in between Tuesday night and Wednesday morning, but I'm not one of those people who will stare out the window and watch it snow. I tend to take it as it comes. And unbeknownst to me, who doesn't have e-mail at home, an e-mail was sent out saying that the meeting was cancelled due to snow. So I take my little car, sit in stop/crawl traffic, get through the ice in my city, hit the city that the meeting is held in? It's like I walked through the wardrobe opposite C.S. Lewis's. In two minutes it went from snow and ice patches to completely dry. There was nothing. Nada. No flakes, no moisture, goose egg. I parked my car, walked up to the door stop, and had a sense of dread when I saw that they only had on about half the lights they normally do. Rang the doorbell, and on the third try, they came down and told me about the e-mail and that it wasn't gonna happen.

And here's the kicker... when I finally did check my e-mail at work? There was no e-mail from them! I'd been left off the list! So I would have driven out there regardless. ;) God enjoys humor. I've decided.

There ya have it, I am a stubborn guy who was raised not to miss church. Will I allow myself a mental health day now and then? Sure. But I'm wary about skipping church too much and getting in the habit of finding excuses not to go.

Two blogs ago "anonymous" and I had quite the little chat. I'm going to guess it was a she, but we'll just call them "anon" for short. (It has nothing to do with their position! Their sentence structure strikes me as feminine! Sue me. [Side note. Please don't sue me. I like what little comic books I own.]) Anon feels called to go out and preach to other countries. I don't. But I do feel called to drag my sorry bum out of my apartment and make the effort get to church, even if it is a little "messier" than normal.

So yes, I'm a fan of exerting oneself and making sure the pews are filled. But yes, Seattleites are weather wimps. And we all know it. What can I say, God made some of us more "special" than others. ;)