Listening all the way into the pulpit
The preacher maintains a sacred conversation between God and the congregation.
There is an incredible moment, known only to a parish pastor, that occurs in every worship service. In many congregations this moment comes while the choir is singing the anthem, just before the sermon. As the choir sings the pastor sits in the preacher’s chair, looking at those in the pews and remembering their unfinished stories.
In the third pew on the right sits a newlywed couple, back in church for the first time since their wedding. They can’t keep their hands off each other. At the other end of that same pew is a new widow who’s back in the church for the first time since her husband’s funeral.
A few rows back on the same side of the sanctuary is a family that is coming apart at the seams. The husband is angry that his wife wants to take a promotion that means moving the family. She’s angry that he’s holding her back. They’re both angry that they can’t get their teenage son to talk to them. The teenager, sporting a shock of purple in his hair, slumps in the pew to make it clear that’s he angry about being dragged to church.
