Empty Pews

There is an old saying. . . "Idle hands (or is it minds) are the devil's workshop".

The other day I came across a saying I had written in my Bible. It was from a talk that I heard several years ago and it is still so true - empty pews are the devil's opportunity. I could not help but think about how our lives are to be full in Christ. By the same token, shouldn't our buildings be full each and every time the doors are open. We come together three times a week at the building for study, devotional, workship, meals, fellowship... There are so many other times during the week that we have an opportunity to be together and we do not take advantage of them. For those of us who do get together we have an amazing blessing. Though we are not together physically all the time, we are together in thought and spirit. What a blessing is missed by those who come together only so often or just every now and then.

An empty pew is just that...empty. As trite as this may sound, that pew is just a chair but it was designed to hold Christians who come to worship. It was not designed to sit empty! It was made to be sat on, sat in, leaned on, layed on (sleeping kids), cryed in, laughed in, jumped on (carefully), climbed over, rocked back and forth with laughter, grabbed with the aniticipation of one soon to be baptized, held onto to as one pours out their hearts and souls in joy and sorrow... You get the idea. We must make it our goal to fill those pews each and every time the door is open with people who want to richly bathe in the word of God. If there are those of our number who do not want to fill those emplty spots, then we must "go out onto the highways and byways" to find others who are interested in doing so. Those pews should be so full that there is not room for others and we have to move the pews to newer and larger buildings to make room for other pews.

What are your thoughts...share with me.