Fall Updates

The older son was in the field. When he came near the house, he heard music and dancing. So he called one of the servants and asked him what was going on. Your brother has come,’ he replied, ‘and your father has killed the fattened calf because he has him back safe and sound.’ The older brother became angry, and refused to go in. So his father went out & pleaded with him.  - Luke 15

We are changing our Sunday worship schedule this Fall, on September 10, back to our old schedule of two worship services at 9am and 11:15am with Sunday School between at 10:15am.

Usually I simply announce our worship hours for a season or year, however this is a little more of an adjustment than usual. So I thought it might be helpful to explain why we are changing back to our old schedule after so many years. It’s about unintended consequences.

Most Christians know the story of the prodigal that went away from his father. When the son returned, the father was so happy he threw a big party. This angered his other son. That was not the father’s intention. But often what we intend is not what others experience.

Sometimes the decisions we make to fix one problem, creates another one that is unexpected. When we added a third Sunday worship service a number of years ago, our goal was to create a schedule that would be more convenient for our people. And for many, it turned out to be more convenient, but unfortunately for others it became much more complicated. For the people who lead worship it became a marathon experience that can often be exhausting and leads to worship that could be much better with more energy if it were not so exhausted. Our Sunday School leaders have been encouraged to either engage their calling to teach or to attend worship.

The results are that we are wearing out our brothers and sisters. And now that we have so many teenagers involved in Sunday School, and many of them are missing worship, it will have an impact on their lives for years to come. It has been my observation over many years that the teenagers that attend worship end up as adults that attend worship. However, if teens don’t attend worship, even if they are involved in all kinds of church activities, it is unlikely they will end up in church as adults.

So all we wanted to do was make things better for some people and the unintended consequence is that we ended up with problems for others.

With the return to the old schedule, we will go back to having a junior church program for our young children so they will not be sitting through the entire service. We will also have a Sunday School for all ages, including adults. It is our hope this will be a time to learn together as well as to catch up with friends.

Will this decision have unintended consequences? Every decision does. And if we need to make another adjustment, we will. In the meantime, I appreciate all your graciousness as we strive to help everyone have a wonderful opportunity to experience God this coming year. I always wondered if the older brother went in to the party? I hope so.

You are invited to join us in celebrating your faith this coming year,
Pastor Tom