Two Sunday’s ago the unexpected happened…the lights went out during worship. We knew there was a problem with the electricity not running at full capacity early that Sunday morning but we at least had some lights but no AC. During the announcements the lights went out entirely, leaving us largely in the dark. A little bit of light trickled in from a few small windows but it wasn’t enough light to really read anything by. Our worship service had already been adjusted due to the limited power we had at the start of service and was majorly adjusted on the fly when the lights went out completely.
What happened next was memorable. It was fun. It was family. We just sang…and prayed…and past the Lord’s Supper (in the dark). People will forget every last sermon I ever preach but I doubt anyone will forget that worship service during their lifetime. What was unexpected and in many ways unwelcome turned into some of the best singing we have ever had. What is more, the feedback from the congregation was right on cue. People were listening. People were responding. It was fantastic.
It is important that we plan and that we have some organization…but let us never forget that some of the most important things we do might just be a lot simpler than we make them.
Next time the lights go out…I hope it is because we turned them out and left the AC on! There I go trying to control everything again 🙂
3 Responses
It was a blessing to be there! Far to short a time!
A good lesson there for all of us. We should be spiritual opportunists, and look for God’s glory in everything. It also reminds me of the time the Russian pairs skaters were performing during the Olympics many years ago. In the middle of their performance, the music went out. But the skaters went on with only the music in their heads. After awhile the crowd stood up and started cheering as the skaters performed their routine perfectly. I never forgot that, either.
THAT SUNDAY WORSHIP WAS ONE OF BEST IN A LONG TIME.