Wednesday, August 12, 2020
What We Miss About Church: Congregant Reflections
For our devotionals this month, we asked various congregants what they miss the most about being together.
Join us for this series of reflections that remind us of what we miss and who we are called to be.
Scripture for the Day
Isaiah 40:8
The grass withers, the flower fades; but the word of our God stands forever.
There’s no place like home. Well, maybe. But with all due respect to The Wizard of Oz, Dorothy never lived through a global pandemic.
Many of us have not ventured much beyond our homes over the past few months. There is blessing in this reality – more time with family, more time for those projects you’ve been meaning to get around to for years. But it’s also hard to have no place other than home. I find myself longing to be in other places. Never has the Kroger cereal aisle sounded so exotic and appealing.
One of the things that I have missed so much during COVID-19 is what sociologists call “third places.” Third places are where we spend time when we’re not at home (“first” space) or at work (“second” space). Third spaces can be coffee shops, pubs, parks, gyms, clubs, or hairdressers. And the church can be a third place, too.
Streaming worship services at home is great, but it can’t fully replicate what happens in third places. Third places play an important role in community building by breaking down social siloes and drawing people together from across age groups. In third places, we feel inspired to ask questions, dream, hope, play, build friendships, give, rejoice, serve and be honest. They are places where broken hearts are mended and we learn to live for causes beyond ourselves. The church is my favorite third place, and life just isn’t the same without it.
