I recently read an article about how people are not ready for worship. People come to worship but they are distracted, focusing on the presence or future of their life. As I read the article, it talked about how people need a little more time to center themselves before the worship begins.

I couldn’t agree more. This is what I love about the the Episcopal Church. The custom we have asks people to enter the Nave (worship space) in silence. That once you find your place, we encourage one to kneel in prayer and then sit in silence till the service starts.

Our service bulletin starts with, “Welcome to Good Shepherd. We welcome your full participation in this service….Be thoughtful, be silent, be reverent, for you are in the house of the Lord. Before the service, speak to the Lord; during the service let the Lord speak to you; after the service, speak to one another.”

When we rush into the service and are not ready to worship, we really don’t focus on why we are attending church.

As we enter the church and begin centering ourselves in prayer, we are called into the story of a life giving spirit that will help us renew our thoughts and focus on what we really need, spirituality.

When we start off our worship time in prayer, we allow ourselves to recalibrate our thoughts and focus on why we are present in the first place.

I like to explain the service in this way. When we enter, stopping to pray and focus on why we are there and what we need. So the first part of our service, for me, is an individual opportunity to sing praises, listen to the Word and pray. Then there is an opportunity to hear a short teaching moment, that might help you further understand the liturgy that we are celebrating each Sunday.

As the service continues, we turn our focus on the presence of those we know, recognizing them and sharing in God’s fellowship through the extension of the Peace. “The Peace of the Lord be with you. And also with you.”

We then greet one another, knowing that community is important. God built us to live in community. We are to share not only community, but our common unity in Christ.

As the service moves forward, we share in the Lord’s table. Bread and wine is consecrated, and we come together to share our Lord’s meal. Jesus reminds us that we are to do these things as oft as we can, in remembrance of him.

But in order to go from church, we gather for coffee, snacks and fellowship in the parish hall. The service may have formally ended, but our lives together need the fellowship that is offered during the ‘coffee hour’.

That gives us time to catch up with one another. To check in, to hear about the things that might have brought stress or anxiety in our life. As we fellowship together, we might learn that someone has already been down that road and we can receive advise from them.

Or, we just might be able to share and know that our community is there to support us in our journey of life, faith, and the demands we face daily.

So don’t let your walk into the Nave become a burden. Take the time to know that this will help center your life. This is a time that you can sit in silence, kneel and pray to God to comfort your heart. To pray to God to calm your mind so that you can focus on the Words he offers us.

If you have a question, we will be glad to let you ask. We are not afraid of questions, we are not afraid to also tell you that we may not know the answer. What we do know, if you ask a question and we need to seek an answer, we will do it together.

That is what a journey of faith offers. Someone to share, pray and walk with.

Fr. K+