They Shared the Practice
It was a very special family until the death of the most important member of the family. The circumstance surrounding his death was something that the family would never forget. They had shared a meal with him just hours before he died. They decided that they would continue a family practice which been part of their lives for so many years. They decided that once a week they would get together and share his favorite choice for dinner and talk about him. As they grew older, they even taught their children about him. That weekly meal together seemed to be the catalyst that kept them together.
After a while, circumstances began to change that meal together. Some could no longer come to the meal, so they decided that that would use their laptops and virtually the family could still come together. While they could not be at the meal, they would make his special meal and they could “sorta” be there. Their work situations changed often, so when the family came together, they would eat his dinner but would record the meeting so that those who worked could still be part of the gathering, even though they were not there physically. Those who could not come even prepared that special dinner and ate it as they watched others eat. That plan seemed to work for a while, but you can guess what happened.
Over a period of several months, the lives of those who were watching the family eat began to change. It was just not the same as sitting around the family table and talking about him. It did not happen all at once but the interest of those who could not come began to diminish. It was just not the same. They were doing what they once all did together, but it was just not the same. There was something about sharing together the memory of the family member who died that could not be duplicated using a laptop. The idea seemed good, but it was just different. The family was not as close as it once had been.
In a similar way, there once was a spiritual family of God who came together and shared a common meal remembering the One family member who died. They sang songs together about His life and every week remembered Him together. The hearts of all of them were stirred as they learned by experience what actually happened as they all spoke together to each other in songs about Jesus. They really felt a closeness of fellowship and sharing as this happened. It was the same feeling they had as they gave or shared the joy of seeing someone baptized.
Then covid hit. That family tried to use the internet but there is such a difference in sharing in worship and watching others worship. Think about it. Is there something you need to change in how you worship because of covid?