TICKED OFF (going to church)
Posted on Oct 22, 2011
Tell me if you can relate to this…
On our way to church as a family…
One daughter starts complaining about how busy she is and how she feels so much pressure to make a decision.
Mom and dad try to give a “suggestion” about how to address this
Daughter responds with a sassy tort and disrespectful tone
Dad (that would be me) turns and gives the “death stare” and warns daughter to watch her attitude.
A couple moments of silence…then…REPEAT the above sequence.
Tension is escalating…emotions are on edge…mom and dad exit the vehicle and walk as fast as possible toward the church so as to not have to sit with hormonal teenagers.
PAUSE: Has this ever happened to you? Been on your way to church…or some other gathering that is supposed to lift your spirits and bring you closer to God…when all HELL breaks loose (and I do not use that word lightly…as I am convinced that it is Satan trying to rob us of the joy of worship, fellowship, enlightenment and family harmony/unity).
So, to continue the story, we get in the worship center…my wife, son and I all sit together and the 2 girls girls end up in the row right behind us…how ironic is that! So much for escaping the kids.
We stand up to start to sing the worship songs…I am NOT feeling it!!!! I am in no frame of mind to worship and I am still chewing on the actions of the past 10 minutes…just 10 minutes to ruin my mindset for worship. The worship is really good. The song selections are powerful….and then I notice that my son (remember, we have 15 year old triplets) gets his hands in the air as he worships…then out of the corner of my eye, I see the daughter in question with her hands raised and eyes closed…worshiping…then the other daughter joined in like kind. OH MY!!! What do I do with this emotion? How do I process this? I want to be angry? I want to stew on the moment. I want to be…well…selfish and immature.
My heart was softened in that instance. The emotions from the vehicle were washed away (although not the need to still address the attitude and disrespect). I could feel my eyes welling up with tears as a flood of gratitude that God has bless us with 3 great kids who love the Lord…and are not ashamed to give witness to it.
Thank you God for taking a situation that could have become toxic and destructive and using the simple action of 3 great kids to reengage me in worship…and to reenforce that you are King and Lord of all…regardless how had Satan tries to diminish it and distract us from you.
POSTLUDE (good “church” term): After the service, the daughter in question came to both her mom and me in the parking lot and hugged us and apologized. So thankful for tender heart!
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I am right there with you. Have twin 15yr old boys and another 11 months younger, plus two other boys 8 & 17. Battles on Sunday morning getting ready and going to church are part of the weekly spiritual warfare. When not in the middle of wanting to pull my hair out, its almost laughable how consistent it happens. My 8 year-old, the ONLY day of the week he’s not out of bed at the crack of dawn is Sunday morning. Why is that?? And he LOVES church. Get thee behind us, Satan!
So true and so easy to relate to. Great post.
But if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus, his Son, purifies us from all sin [1 John 1:7]
Well, all I can say is praise the Lord. He always has the answer for us when we do not know how to find it. As far as your daughter, I have learned this, not from being a parent, but from being the now grown up daughter. My parents were amazing advice givers–still are. But I did not appreciate it as a hormonal teenager. And now, as an adult, whether or not I appreciate it, I understand where it comes from. I don’t want to be fixed–I strictly want someone to listen to me air my complaints and drone on about awful situations….sometimes. But, when they do offer their 2 cents (which is every time) I can say with a grateful heart that I know their intentions are true, from love, and in the spirit of the Almighty God.
It is true that the awful junk comes up at the most inopportune times as well. I am reminded at how amazing our Creator is– that all it took was God catching your peripheral vision to recapture that moment and bring you back to worship. Truly amazing. The power that we adhere ourselves to, that lives within our hearts, is far greater than the power that tries to destroy us. AMEN!