The Hunger Games opened last week… It was a great movie. While at the East Towne Cinemas theater here in Ellijay, I made a few observations about how the crowd at the movies contrast with the crowd on Sundays… See if these line up with your perspective, too…
Priority
I noticed that about 90% of the movie-watchers were in the theater and had taken their seats at least 10 minutes before the movie began. (I know this because I was one of the last to arrive, and had to take one of the very few seats available on the back row!) These people didn’t want to miss a beat… They really wanted to experience the entire movie from beginning to end.
I’ve also noticed that on Sundays, about 75% of us worshippers are not present and ready until about 10 minutes after the service begins. What does this mean about us? What does it say about the priority of corporate worship for us?
Posture
As I arrived only about 10 minutes before the movie began, I was relegated to the back row… There just weren’t any other seats available in the auditorium. I’m sure the earliest arrivers picked seats somewhere right in the middle, then they begin to fill in along the aisles, then toward the front, and finally, when I arrived (still 10 minutes early, mind you!) there were just a few seats sprinkled here and there throughout the room… Mostly in the back.
For some reason, it seems that the Sunday morning crowd starts filling the back section first, then, only if no seating is available, do they move into the front sections. There are many Sundays where I may be talking to over 200 people in the auditorium, but fewer than 20 of them are in the front section, which has right at 100 seats available! Do I spit? What does our posture and position say about the authenticity of our corporate worship?
Preparation
In the movie theater, ALL of the movie-watchers had brought their money, stood in line, bought their ticket, grabbed some popcorn and coke, and were settled in for over two hours of entertainment. Many of them were there because they had read the book (or all of the books) and loved them so much that they couldn’t wait to experience it together on the big screen. (I know my wife had been talking about it for months!) These people were prepared.
Do we take the time to cultivate a heart for God by being in His Book during the week? Are we worshipping together as a body as an overflow of what He has been burning into us during the week? Are we preparing our hearts and minds to meet with God on Sunday mornings before we arrive at the auditorium? Or, are we approaching God cold, not sure what He wants to say to us or do in us? Are we hungry? Or are we just playing games?
I’m not sure what or even if there are any real answers… I’m just asking making observations and asking questions. What do you think? Hit me back and let me know.