Bums on Seats

As the church are in the planning process for a new heating system, the question was posed to us that following the removal of all the church furniture, i.e. the pews, would we be putting them back again? The thought hadn't struck me before, and suddently the relevance of the church fabric to the outward mission of the church became clear. They are directly linked.

Ah, I hear you say, "when two or three are gathered in my name..." doesn't mention anything about a church building, well maybe not, but the NT is littered with references to meetings, whether in the temple, in one onothers' houses, or other places. The church has to meet and base its operations somewhere.

Consider this though, would you want to hold an outreach rally on your village green in the middle of winter in the cold and pouring rain (as it has been today - as evidenced by the repeated re-appearance of 2 soggy cats!), or would you want to have such meetings in a warm, non-stereotypical and comfortable building?

I've been sounding out opinion of various church members, and asked one after this evening's service what he thought the non-church-goer villagers might think, and his very meaningful reply was "they probably won't see it for a year".

But back to the link of fabric and mission. It's true to say that as a church, when we plan future mission and outreach activities, not individually, but as a whole strategy, determining what you can do is partly determined by the building and its capabilities. I am therefore now making a stronger case for the removal of the pews, to be replaced by loose, comfortable and flexible seating as one of the pillars of the church's Mission Action Plan.

You could say that it's one of those things that if we don't do it now, we never will, and I'd hate to be saying that about our outreach work.