I hope you have experienced the joy of being in church —- and arriving on time. I was determined to make it to church last Sunday and I didn’t want to miss Praise and Worship which starts off the church service. That meant making my own arrangements to get to church. I didn’t want to depend on my folks or friends because they normally run late, so I decided to try riding on the church van. I have sometimes had to take a $5 cab ride —- rather pay that than be late.
Much to my surprise I was able to climb into the church van using a step stool. That’s indeed a miracle because only a few weeks ago I could not even get into a Range Rover. I had skipped a few church services because I was weary of having to depend on others to get me ready for church and drive me home. Also my gait has become unsteady and I didn’t want to be seen in church like that especially as the members had really been moved by my Palm Sunday dance. As I have said before I was able to dance around the church ( my triumphant dance) on Palm Sunday but noticed days later that my legs were becoming weaker and I don’t think I can pull that off now. But I don’t know why I was able to climb into the van last Sunday but my gait is still unsteady.
So there I was in church —- early and comfortable in my seat. I had brought along another pillow for my back. I keep another pillow in the church —- that one I sit on. I used to be a volunteer health worker for a church and we prepared seats for the sick and elderly and that is how I got the idea to prepare a comfortable seat for myself rather than skip church because of uncomfortable seats.
Church started off (after opening prayers) with a moving testimony by the keyboardist. He said the dryer in his home caught fire but the plume of fire that he saw rise up quickly disappeared —- leaving hardly a trace. He said when the firefighters arrived they were surprised that the fire had come and gone —without a trace. No acrid smell, no smoke, no burns, no damages.
The pastor —- Bishop Smith —- took off from there, at times breaking into the African-American preacher’s cadence. He put aside his original sermon and used the testimony as the centerpiece of a free-flowing Holy Spirit-driven sermon. His delivery is worthy of an Oscar award. There should be an Oscar category for preaching — it is indeed an art form. His wife heightened the quality of the service by injecting songs that were just appropriate for the themes her husband and the keyboardist touched on.
The take-away message, the sermon: You may be in a fire right now (health, financial or relational problems, etc) but God is going to deliver you from that fire just as He did the Three Hebrew boys. He noted that sometimes God delivers you from the fire but sometimes he helps you pass through it. And after God has delivered or helped you through the fire, he said, there will be no lingering signs of the fire. There will be no smoke or smell of smoke… just like the hair on the Three Hebrew boys was not even singed. And just like he had a stroke, but now there are no signs of the stroke.
My folks came in later —- looking all nice —- but they had missed the opening testimony, the praise and worship songs it had inspired and some of the sermon. They would not be able to make the connection between the testimony and the sermon —- and that is how best to appreciate the sermon.
Sartorially speaking, I went to church “just as I am.” I took that line literally. I came in the sweat pants I rolled out of the bed in, only sprucing up as much as I could without any help. Being a believer in worshipping God in the beauty of holiness (and holiness of beauty) I still resent shoddy or provocative clothing in church, so as I get better I will dress better for church.
Last Sunday’s experience underscored for me the importance of arriving on time – and prayed up, ready to receive and to bless. For someone going through the fire as I am, I needed to really soak all of the Bishop’s message, especially as the doctors told me there is not much they can do about by damaged vertebrate.
Last Sunday service also reminded me of why I love Pentecostal churches. I was born Presbyterian, confirmed in the Episcopalian (Anglican) church (my church in Hawaii) and I am thankful that I can blend in my Pentecostal side into almost every kind of church —because Pentecostalism is the natural and Biblical order for churches.
