Looking In

“O wad some power the giftie gie us

to see oursels as ithers see us.” 

(O would some power  the gift to give us  

to see ourselves as others see us.) 

- Robert Burns, Poem: “To a Louse” (verse 8)

   

A funny thing happened on the way into Church one Sunday.

 

Picture a sunny Sunday morning anywhere in America.  Now imagine a friendly, nicely-dressed couple going up the stairs of a Church moments before the morning Worship service begins.  They are not the only people in the scene: Kids are finding their families again after Sunday School (or pleading to sit with their friends); Adults of all ages are smiling greetings at one another as they make their way into the Sanctuary; Greeters are holding stacks of bulletins; music is playing in the background - America is going to Church.

 

This scene could have happened - in fact does happen - in thousands of places, with one exception (I hope/pray that it is an exception) .  The difference was what happened when we (yes, the couple was K. & me) sat down and I noticed that K. didn't have a bulletin.

 

It turned out that the Greeter wouldn't give her one. 

 

Through a long set of difficult-to-describe circumstances, the timing at the top of the stairs, just as Worship was ready to begin, caused me to get a bulletin first.  I don't remember how I ended up walking in front of K. (I was raised better than that), but when she reached, smiling, towards the Greeter, he pulled back the stack of bulletins and pointed to me (and, presumably to my bulletin).  She was briefly flabbergasted, but a woman is nothing if not flexible after 35 years of living with and working in Churches, so she chalked it up to some Earth-friendly attempt to save a tree and walked on in to Worship.

 

Now - why tell such a story?

 

[If you've been wondering how I was going to connect the great Scots Poet Robert Burns and his immortal poem "To a Louse" to this, here's where it all comes together] .  

 

For the two of us, this just became a humorous story.  When it comes to going to Church, we are 'professionals' - we can make it through a worship service with just one bulletin - heck, we could do it bare-handed if we needed to - but this provided one more glimpse of Church-life from a different perspective - from the outside looking in.

 

That's the perspective of most new folks at a Church.

 

 I spent many years trying to convince folks that walking into a new Church - or walking into any CHURCH for the first time (for someone who didn't grow up in a Church) - was a task that ranged somewhere between "Hard" and "Terrifying" on the Life Difficulties scale.

 

It doesn't matter that most Churches (including the one we were at that day) are filled with friendly people who love Jesus - if a person can't get through the front door he or she will never get to experience the genuine power of being able to share in fellowship with those folks.  Worse than that, simple embarrassment can become a wall that shuts off a person's ability to hear the Good News - and sharing the Good News is the only defensible reason for maintaining the institution that is the modern Church.

 

For most of the past 2 years, K. & I have had the unusual opportunity of seeing Church life "from the outside".  It is not an opportunity for which we had hoped and prayed - it just happened to us.  It was an opportunity in the same sense that auto accidents, injured and sick kids, flat tires, family emergencies, and blizzards have been "opportunities".  It shows up and you deal with it.

 

For us it has provided a chance, as former Professional Church Folks, to 'see ourselves as others see us' - if "ourselves" means Church - the Body of Christ as it exists at the beginning of the 21st Century.

 

This is not just a story about a Greeter at one Church, or about a humorous snub to one person.  The little story above is just the most benign example of the kind of thing that has made it difficult to connect fully with a Church "home" during the last 2 years.  It is NOT that we doubt that people want us in their churches.  We are fully aware that most congregations would love to "get" us as part of their church life.  How do I know?  Because I had the privilege of working with folks like us for almost 4 decades.  We bring an unusually high level of talents, gifts, and abilities with us (not to mention that I personally am insanely friendly & humble).

This is just a story that serves as a (hopefully) gentle reminder that every Church, every Sunday, has to be on the lookout for fragile human beings.  You will recognize fragile people when you see them - they will be the ones who are breathing.

 

Remember that we worship the One who knew how to approach this world with care: "A bruised reed he will not break, and a dimly burning wick he will not extinguish." [Isaiah 42:3].

 

It takes more energy than most of us want to exert after another long week of our own troubles.  Remember Hebrews 13:2, though:  "Do not neglect to show kindness to strangers, for in so doing many have entertained angels without knowing it."  [ ! ]

 

I hope to share more reflections on our temporary sojourn as some of the folks looking at the Church doors from the other side - it is a good feeling to know the riches that reside inside those doors. 

 

+ + +

 

[Editor's note:  It would be a good use of Google to search for "To a Louse" if you are not familiar with the poem.  It is a short poem about Burns' encounter with a louse (as in the singular form of lice).  It was evidently true that this guy could write a poem about anything.  If the version you find seems to be in an unfamiliar language, ask Google for a modern English translation, or better yet find a site that shows both versions together.  Enjoy.]