Question of the day ??
I pastor a couple of smaller rural churches and have been approached with the question of whether we will be open on Christmas or not. I was simply shocked and amazed at such a question. It never even occurred to me that on one of the holiest days of the year we'd stay home. Then I heard that some of the mega-churches like Willow Creek, as well as some of the smaller churches are going to be closed on Christmas (a Sunday morning by the way).
What do you think? Should we go to church on Sunday, Dec. 25 or stay home with family?
I will go ahead and give my answer. Instead of transforming the world, we are conforming to it. And this is just another sad note in how we've done a lousy job in transformong. On a day where we are supposed to celebrate the birth of our Savior, many will choose instead to stay home and enjoy opening Santa's presents and/or having cooking for relatives take priority over worship. What a sad world we live in when on our Lord's birthday we don't even come to worship him.
Sadly yours,
greg
posted by Greg Hazelrig @ 9:58 AM
9 comments
9 Comments:
We are having our service at 9:30 instead of 11:00 with no Sunday School that day. We've been building it up for weeks and expect a great turnout.
And we also will have our traditional Christmas Eve Candlelight Communion service which is normally a packed house.
Brother Greg,
I feel it is very sad that churches have come to the point where they would consider being closed on Sunday. Sure, there are many reasons we can come up with to justify us wanting to not have Church on Christmas morning. What an opportunity to worship! Is there a better or more practical way to spend Christmas than worshipping God?! If we come up with any excuse of conveinence to miss church on Sunday, it is time for some serious introspection.
What's next? Moving Easter to a more appropriate morning?I can't believe churches would even consider not having worship on a Christmas morning that falls on Sunday!
Wow, just what are our beliefs? What are our priorities? What is Christmas?
I'm sad with ya, brother.
I said more "appropriate"..meant more "convenient"....can't type and shake my head at the same time.
Thank you for your comments...Lisa...know what you mean about typo's. I have them all the time.
My response here is more to dannyg whom I almost always agree with. On this topic, I respectfully disagree to the fact that we should find a middle way. And now remember that this is coming from a person who believes the truth can almost always be found in the middle. I'm not saying that danny's church is wrong. At least they're having church. I just don't think we should change our worship habit to accomodate our worldly desires. And these worldly desires can be good things such as spending time with family. But even this can become an idol if placed before God.
Basically, we all make choices. We can choose based on convenience or our own desires, or we can choose based on what we believe is God's will for us. As for my wife and I this year, we won't see our family on Christmas day becasue we're too far away to have a service and go home. It would be easy to cancel services and be with my family. But would it be right? Would it be what God would want me to do?
But I don't look at what I'm doing as some great thing. I'm simply doing what I preach every Sunday. And that's trying my best to put God first in my life before anything else. I choose to believe that He's worth it.
This Christmas people all over the world will choose how they think is best to celebrate Christmas.
Danny, you make a good point in that many cannot be there at the traditional times. So I believe that other opportunities should be available as well (while not cutting out regular worship times).
Or I hope that on Christmas at the hospitals and other places where there truly is not other choice but to have someone work, that people will come together in some small way and worship together. If you have to work this Christmas, maybe you can bring worship to those around you.
Thanks for your input Danny.
I just asked that question myself on my blog yesterday. One response that I got pointed out that for many of the evangelical groups, there isn't a focus on a "liturgical year," so the whole idea of Advent building up to the Christmas event doesn't have the same level of significance.
Hi Greg...I, too, am disappointed that this has even become a question or issue...we complain when the 10 Commandments are removed from a courthouse...prayer is no longer officially allowed in our schools..."Under God" is urged to be left out of the Pledge of Allegiance...and "Christmas" is not included in some of America's largest companies'advertisements...and how dare we forget the reason for the season, Christ, coming as a Babe, coming into the hearts believers, coming in final victory at the end of time...now, some Christians and some of our Churches rationalize that since attendance will be low on the Sunday when Christmas Day is also a Sunday because it will be a poor use of their human resources, so they will cancel worship on Christmas Sunday so the day can be spent with family and won't waste money staffing their church...the choice of attending church on Sunday is just that a choice...the choice of attending church on Christmas Sunday is just that a choice...our church will have a Christmas Eve Communion and Candle Lighting Service...our church will have our regular Sunday Morning Worship Service...our church will serve a community Christmas Day lunch from 12:00 - 1:30 for all who would choose to attend...we are no better and/or no worse than any other church because these are the choices we are making available...each of us has the freedom of choice to choose our worship patterns, habits, obligations, duties, responsibilities and privileges...I pray we choose wisely...I am grateful for God's Church that is a beacon shining brightly in the world, and I pray that the beacon will not flicker or be dimmed...God's Church is always open on Sunday inviting all and everyone to Come and Worship...Maybe next time Christmas Day arrives on Sunday this question will not have to be asked...as always, thanks for asking the question...spend Christmas in a way that brings you closest to God...Worship is one of those ways for me...
Thank you annonymous.
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