The Desperate

People show up in church on Sunday morning for all sorts of reasons.  Some show up more for the cofffee and doughnuts than the bread and wine.  Some show out of duty, others as a way of exposing their children to another choice, and some have those Sunday t-shirts which can only be worn on Sunday at a particular church.  And some show up in desperation.  They need some word to get through the present darkness in their lives.     

The word the desperate need to hear can come in different ways.  It may be in the sermon which is one of the things which always drove me in preaching.  I always preached as if someone is there who really needs to hear the word that was given.  Sometimes it became obvious, but more than likely, not.  The years of preaching and knowing some of the desperate ones has convinced me that preaching is an important part of worship, too important to approach with a careless attitude.  And, too important not to have been built on prayer.   

And, of course, music is another way the desperate can hear the word needed in their lives.  Music goes to a deep place of the heart and soul.  It is not just heard with the head, but experienced with the heart.  Music is often more about feeling and emotion which is a powerful means of hearing something which is often missed by the comfortable.  Never forget, too, the power of a kind and concerned word to a pew sitter down the way, or a touch that expresses love and compassion.  Worship is a great place for expressing kindness.  It always goes further than we can know.