Changing the Routine

Since I work for a church, my week begins on Sunday morning at the 9:00 a.m. worship service. And this week started off on the wrong foot. After pressing my snooze button one too many times, I found myself arriving at church late and sneaking into the back of the nave for a seat just a few rows from the very back. As an Episcopalian, I have gotten in that routine of sitting in almost the exact spot every week, even to the point of feeling spite when someone snags my seat.

What I found by sitting in the back of the church was how powerful and magnificent our choir could sing. Our choir sits in the loft of the church, but their voices have a difficult time reaching across the nave. I was in for a real treat this Sunday with the children singing with the adults. It may be my sensitive side, but I was honestly moved to tears during the offertory.

I suspect that nothing was too special about Sunday. The choir probably always sings this beautifully and because I have fallen into the routine of sitting up front, every Sunday I miss out. Now I am not suggesting that we all get up and shuffle around our churches this Sunday. That might give some of the cradle Episcopalians that have been sitting in the same seat since the 1928 Book of Common Prayer was written a heart attack. But I am suggesting that when the actions in our lives become routine, we begin to miss the beauty of the world we live in. We drive to work the same way every day and ignore everything around us except for the path ahead of us. We recite the Lord’s Prayer without actually acknowledging what the words are saying to us or what we are really praying.

This week I challenge you all to be more intentional about the daily routines of your life. Take the back road to school or to the office. Look at your parents, your children, your wife, or your friends, and notice how wonderful a person he or she truly is. And if you are really feeling gutsy, find a new place to sit in church. See how the word reaches you from an entirely new place.