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I’ll Take the Folding Chair
We find ourselves in a peculiar position. John and I have realized how many things are different in our lives- the middle part we are going to call it, because who really wants to know, right?
We are grandparents. Parents of adults don’t really “parent” like we have known how in the past. We are almost empty nesters. (One adult kid at home, but all the benefits of empty nesting)
We are getting to be the oldest at our jobs- people come to us for answers that maybe aren’t about work at all. We find ourselves craving quiet dinners and bar-free restaurants. We cook a lot at home because we enjoy it and we have mail order meals delivered. We talk about retirement and the future. Anything after nine pm is late for us, and we would rather be camping than anywhere else.
We are sad about the empty seats around us at church.
We would love for our children and their families to be there in worship, but they are not. Our friends seem to have a lot of Sunday plans so we sit and reflect on the empty seats. We have seen something they haven’t seen. We have experienced something they have yet to open themselves to. We refined our relationship with Christ and simplified it to this:
We cannot be Jesus for anyone else. Only He can do that. We can only be like him as much as possible and have enough humility to apologize for the mess-ups. We can only open our table to those who want to sit at it- we cannot force people to weekly Bible study or Wednesday night church or Sunday School.
We have figured out the reality of Hell is lost on most people. They don’t want to believe it could be true for a loving God to condemn anyone, so they don’t. They want to think Heaven is a place for the dead- they don’t understand this is where real living begins!
We’ve set healthy boundaries our entire married lives to preserve something we didn’t even know we were preserving. Our early phase of midlife has been a rollercoaster at best. Between grief, church, family, and professional decisions, we have been busy. But we always have been at worship, studying the word, praying and participating in fellowship. By understanding what God expects and wants for us, we are able to make good decisions about where to spend our time and how to spend it.
Now we are able to put some of our focus on those we love- some we may not even know yet! We are praying diligently for our children, family, and friends. We pray God will move in their lives and help us to fill the empty seats around us. We pray He will move in amazing grace and mercy, providing humility for those who seek it and acceptance of forgiveness or apology for those in need. We pray over the empty seats that they may have a name written on them by Jesus.
Are you someone we know? Come to church with us.
Do you have a church home? Please reach out to find one!
Does your place of worship help you develop a relationship with Jesus, not just a Sunday habit?
Are you feeling an empty place in your heart or the pit of your stomach? Have you tried filling it with something? Are you struggling to stay afloat in this world? Is the news of the day or the trouble at work or family drama weighing you down?
Are you unable to function because you are simply so tired of it all?
Come to Jesus. He will give you rest. He will promise you Heaven. He will rescue you on earth.
Matthew 11:25-30
25 At that time Jesus said, “I praise you, Father, Lord of heaven and earth, because you have hidden these things from the wise and learned, and revealed them to little children. 26 Yes, Father, for this is what you were pleased to do. 27 “All things have been committed to me by my Father. No one knows the Son except the Father, and no one knows the Father except the Son and those to whom the Son chooses to reveal him. 28 “Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. 29 Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. 30 For my yoke is easy and my burden is light.”
If you aren’t local, reach out. Find Jesus in a church near you. There is an empty seat for you somewhere, I promise. And if they are all full, we will get a folding chair and give you our seat.
XOXO
angie,
this sure hits home often sitting in church I think about when we had so many families and a large childrens choir.
Now we are surrounded by senior citizens very elderly. seems to be no one gets married in church anymore.
although I do believe God is everywhere. Thinking about the low attendance on Sunday the minister who is
young and a wonderful leader of his small flock mentioned the fact where two or more are gathered we can
still come together so I thought to myself then if he can accept this so can I.