Substance, not just EXCITEMENT

[Jenna]

I've been visiting family members in TN, a long way from my home in MI. Well, I thought that I would visit my sister's church while I was down here, and it certainly has caused me to long for home!

I hear so much flack about how Lutherans are so boring, blah, blah, blah. lol I've been to more traditional worship services, and I've been to services where folks have just completely rocked out in contemporary style. Personally, I think there is a place for all of it, so I enjoy both the quiet contemplation and raising the rafters.

As I was sitting in church, surrounded by enthusiastic Southern Baptists, it struck me how much people go for the general experience, and not the CONTENT.

Let me say that I love my brothers and sisters in Christ, whether we see eye to eye in doctrinal matters or not. Still, I was so bothered to hear a sermon about what YOU need to do, and what *I* need to do. My heart just fell as I listened to dire warnings and encouragement for me to pull myself up by my own bootstraps and do what is right. I just sat there wondering how many people in that room thought too much of themselves, or felt like utter failures before God because they couldn't make themselves "good enough".

I left that church feeling more than a mite depressed, instead of being uplifted by fellowship with my brothers and sisters. I just felt like standing up and asking the preacher if he could maybe reassure the people that the Lord was their strength and that though they were unable to be good enough on their own, they had Christ to be perfection for them..... and for forgiveness when they stumbled. Instead, I just bowed my head and tried mightily to pray.

(Have you ever been to a church where everyone says their personal prayers aloud, all at the same time? My brain still hurts.)

My sister pressed so hard for me to go to church with her, isntead of the "boring" Lutheran church. After all, the pastor was an old man who wasn't the most skillful speaker. She worried that I would be in pain and fear of falling asleep.

Is it really such a stretch these days to think that a person might prefer a soft-spoken elderly pastor in contrast to half-truths from the pulpit? It is just beyond me that so many people that I've spoken to (including my sister) tend to think that church needs to be an exciting "party" in order to earn their participation.

I'm a simple gal. Just give me the complete message of God's Word and the chance to sing songs of praise to God, and I'm happy.

It's a good thing that I'm heading home this weekend.

 

[Lupinus]

I feel your pain. Seems like every one around here goes to this big new mega church. I've watched an online recording of one of the sermons. It was more of a Christian themed American Idol knock off followed by a "sermon" about the evils of porn. Oh yeah, while the "Preacher" wore a God see's you downloading that porn Tshirt. Hey maybe it works for them, I'll pass.

Wheres the fellowship? Wheres the message? Wheres the teaching?

 

[Jim47]

Nice of you to share your experience with us Jenna. To be honest its been over 40 years since I've sat through a church service that was not Lutheran other then a few funerals and they were really depressing, nothing more then a celebration of life service

The Lord offers us so much comfort in His word. Its really sad how many churches fail to preach it and make use of the sacraments.

 

[DaSeminarian]

My sister pressed so hard for me to go to church with her, isntead of the "boring" Lutheran church. After all, the pastor was an old man who wasn't the most skillful speaker. She worried that I would be in pain and fear of falling asleep.

Is it really such a stretch these days to think that a person might prefer a soft-spoken elderly pastor in contrast to half-truths from the pulpit? It is just beyond me that so many people that I've spoken to (including my sister) tend to think that church needs to be an exciting "party" in order to earn their participation.

I'm a simple gal. Just give me the complete message of God's Word and the chance to sing songs of praise to God, and I'm happy.

It's a good thing that I'm heading home this weekend.

What she wants is a dynamic speaker who will "Challenge" her in her faith weekly. She doesn't get people who go to church to hear a law and Gospel sermon. So what if the pastor is not a dynamic speaker. If he is proclaiming Christ crucified for you and for me he is doing what his vocation requires of him.

Our funerals are about Christ not the life the deceased.
Funerals should celebrate Christ because there are likely people in the pews that do not have a relationship with their Lord.

 

[LilLamb219]

I have a Southern Baptist friend who insists that once you are "saved" that you need the Law for living and the Gospel is for the new Christians to hear at the early service *sigh*

The whole outlook of WHY we attend church services is different as well. They just see it as something we do ...period.

 

[Jim47]

I have a Southern Baptist friend who insists that once you are "saved" that you need the Law for living and the Gospel is for the new Christians to hear at the early service *sigh*

The whole outlook of WHY we attend church services is different as well. They just see it as something we do ...period.

Makes you wonder what they think the reason why God sent us a Savior.

 

[Aibrean]

That's why I'm now at a Lutheran church (and getting baptized/memberized on the 22nd!)

 

[seajoy]

That's why I'm now at a Lutheran church (and getting baptized/memberized on the 22nd!)

Awesome!

 

[PreachersWife2004]

That's wonderful news, Aibrean!

I haven't been to non-WELS service in quite some time. The last funeral I attended with the family was an ELCA funeral, for my grandpa, and while my husband was a pallbearer, we did not participate in the service proper - like praying. I can't remember if we sang the hymns or not. I don't think we did.

There was a woman preacher, for one thing. And the message was entirely about my grandpa and all the great things he did while he was alive.

Don't get me wrong, I loved my grandpa. It just always pained me that we didn't get him into the WELS church after grandma died (she was the driving force behind their membership there).

For me, I love the traditional liturgy and the lessons. Hearing the word is so important to me. Listening to my husband preach helps, too.

 

[ctay]

Still hoping to get my husband to church, with his Baptist background he gives me a bad time, him just joking trying to see if he could get me going or something.

 

[NowIC]

Very refreshing post. I have been visiting an LCMS church for a few weeks now after having been raised Catholic and most recently attending a non-denom. church. I have experienced much of what you describe - particularly hearing half-truths from the pulpit. I am thoroughly enjoying learning about the Lutheran faith (the Pastor has given me material to read at home) and appreciate the reverential quality of the worship service. I was taught, (at the non-denom church), that to be "saved" all I had to do was believe in Jesus Christ and confess my sins once and for all. I now realize that I must go to the cross daily - it is not a one time event. This is both convicting and freeing - I realize I am a sinner, but can live a life of freedom from my sins in service to Christ. I will be attending the "Formation of Faith" class in the fall.

 

[filosofer]

[FONT= "Book Antiqua"]
Howdy. That is great to hear! I pray for God's continued blessings as you "search the Scriptures to see whether they are so" (Acts 17:11).

In Christ's love,
filo
[/font]

 

[synger]

Still hoping to get my husband to church, with his Baptist background he gives me a bad time, him just joking trying to see if he could get me going or something.

There's always hope. My husband was raised Baptist, too. Over the years he's slowly "gotten" the whole God-chooses-us thing (I was raised Presbyterian, and they have that in common with Lutherans), and he's finally willing to concede that Communion is a mystery, and we can't understand how it can be Christ's body and blood,but it is.

It's marrying "God-chooses-us" with infant Baptism that he still has questions about. But he's willing to accept the Small Catechism's teachings, and to study the others, and so we'll be officially Lutheran soon (by the end of the summer, God willing).

Starting to teach our daughter from the catechism every night, before her bedtime stories, has really helped. Thank you to whoever suggested that the Small Catechism is already divided into six sections, so it's perfect for reviewing one section a night. Since she has questions, we can talk about it... and both he and I are deepening our understanding, too.

 

[BigNorsk]

Jenna, The everyone praying at the same time. Was it the pretty common "Yes, Lord" "Thank you, Lord" that goes one while someone is saying a prayer at so many churches now or was it actually everyone saying their own individual prayer out loud?

Marv

 

[filosofer]

Jenna, The everyone praying at the same time. Was it the pretty common "Yes, Lord" "Thank you, Lord" that goes one while someone is saying a prayer at so many churches now or was it actually everyone saying their own individual prayer out loud?

Marv

[FONT= "Book Antiqua"]
Don't know about her, but I attended a charismatic church for a few months many years ago, and there everyone prayed their own prayer out loud all at the same time. What is interesting, one time they began singing their prayers. At first it was distracting, but I closed my eyes (not to sleep!), and it was truly a beautiful song - this from a traditional dyed-in-the-wool Lutheran liturgical kind of guy.

In Christ's love,
filo
[/font]

 

[Jenna]

Everyone was praying their individual prayers aloud, all at the same time. I wish that I could say that it sounded beautiful, but it was just terribly distracting. I felt awful that my own prayer went something like..... "Please forgive me, Father, but all of these voices rattling in my head is making it so hard for me to keep my thoughts straight to talk to you easily...."

I know that the folks who generally go to that church must like that sort of thing, but as a visitor- it was just painfully awkward. The preacher asked that everyone bow their heads and pray with him, so I thought that he was going to lead us in prayer. I'm sure that he was saying something, but I couldn't have made it out if I had wanted to.

I'm all for sung prayers. To me, that is just beautiful. Then again, aren't all hymns sung prayers? I guess it depends on whom you are singing to....

 

[C.F.W. Walther]

[FONT="Book Antiqua"]
Don't know about her, but I attended a charismatic church for a few months many years ago, and there everyone prayed their own prayer out loud all at the same time. What is interesting, one time they began singing their prayers. At first it was distracting, but I closed my eyes (not to sleep!), and it was truly a beautiful song - this from a traditional dyed-in-the-wool Lutheran liturgical kind of guy.

In Christ's love,
filo
[/FONT]

Yea I had the same experience years ago with the singing prayer thing. It was the only thing in the service that was beautiful. The rest was upsetting and sad.

 

[LutheranChick]

Hello all, new here - I feel compelled to add my 2 cents worth! I am a member of an VERY traditional Lutheran Church and I think our service is wonderful! Some may think a service that has the same liturgy every week is boring, but I don't think so at all! Our pastor is very good about pointing out how the Gospel is in everything we sing and say - he explains exactly what it means that we are saying in the responses. I have learned so much from this pastor about our worship service - a service I have attended since I was a baby, and it hasn't changed much in the last 40+ years! But I understand it so much better now.

I think a traditional liturgical worship with all the wonderful substance of the Gospel CAN be exciting, when you understand what is really going on.

 

[PreachersWife2004]

My ex was charismatic. It downright scared me to death when we visited a friend of his and his family, and right in the middle of dinner the wife started going off in tongues. And it was complete and utter nonsense. Pretty soon the husband joined in, and then my husband did, too. Then he kicked me under the table. I couldn't help it, I started laughing.

It was so disrespectful of me, but at the same time it was very disrespecful of my ex to take me there, not explain to them what I believed and then expect me to participate. And this was AFTER he had taken our classes and become a member at my church.

See, there's reasons he's an "ex"!!