Old Time Religion

In lieu of our normal Sunday Evening Praise, we went down the street for a special service at the UAME church this evening. We’re trying to partner with other neighborhood churches when possible to build up the Body in our community.

They had a choir from a women’s recovery home singing and testifying, and it was a real blessing. On the whole, there was really only one downside to the whole evening: they had old-school wooden pews.

You know the kind I’m talking about. The kind that seem specially designed to focus maximum discomfort on your middle back and rear. The kind where you can’t get comfortable no matter which way you shift. The kind that make you yearn for the next congregational standing.

They are from another time, a time when the church itself was considerably more stringent. I don’t doubt that they were originally designed to help us experience some small part of the suffering of Christ. And while many will argue that in the name of avoiding legalism the church has relaxed some of its standards to its detriment, the move to slightly more comfortable seating is one I consider essential. Don’t get me wrong, I’m all for not getting too comfortable and staying focused; I’m not asking for a La-Z-Boy. I just like a chair that lets me focus on something more divine than my own backside.