Psalm 100:2 (NIV) says, “Worship the Lord with gladness; come before Him with joyful songs.”
Some worshippers also come before him with pencils and paper in hand.
Once some of our young adults cleaned the church when the custodian had to be out. They found so many notes written on offering envelopes and stuffed in pews and hymnals, that they saved their favorites and brought them to me. All of them are anonymous, but they say a lot about what people are thinking in church.
Some are concerned about the opposite sex. Take this note, for example: “I’ve already gone out with that six grader. But my friend made her break up with me.”
Others are thinking about financial matters, as this envelope indicates: “$25,000 BMW pay in 5 years. 79,000 per year.” (It sounds like they need to shop around for a better interest rate or a cheaper car.)
Church seems to bring out budding artists. One person drew pictures of flowers in the shape of a cross and wrote, “Flowers of the Lord.” Another drew pictures of a donkey, an elephant and a bird. (Democrats, Republicans and...?) Another person drew a full-color picture of green grass, with a man standing on the grass wearing blue jeans in a green shirt with red arms and blond hair and blue rain falling around him. Apparently it was drawn by a visiting artist, as it was on the offering envelope of a different church in our town.
Some people are uncomfortable in church, as these notes indicate: “My tailbone REALLY hurts!!!” and, “I feel like I’m falling asleep.”
Of course, those are only the notes written on paper in church. There’s no telling what notes were sent by text message. But that’s a subject for another column.
Oh, well. Maybe someday we’ll find a note left in church that says, “I was glad when they said to me, let us go to the house of the Lord.” (Psalm 122:1)
(Copyright 2010 by Bob Rogers. Email: brogers@fbcrincon.com. Read this column each Friday for a mix of religion and humor. For more “Holy Humor,” visit the Web site of First Baptist Church of Rincon at www.fbcrincon.com.)
