Sometimes, funny things happen at Church. After all, we’re human and most certainly, not perfect. We make mistakes - sometimes funny ones!

If you think about it, a story is worth more than a material gift. In fact, sometimes the gift is just a way to create a story that will be passed down through generations. I’m sure if you think hard enough, you’ll have a story that you (and people around you) can randomly laugh about. 

Grandma Hid My Cookies

I occasionally like to stop at the store and pick up a box of freshly baked cookies on the way to Church on Sunday morning. It’s a small gesture and, admittedly, a selfish one since I usually get cookies that I enjoy ... usually Chocolate Chip! In fact, other people in the congregation perform similar acts of kindness once in a while. Sometimes they bake cookies or muffins or just bring snacks they purchased. Our kids love it and we love it too.

One particular Sunday, I found an awesome box of freshly baked double-chocolate chip cookies in the grocery store’s bakery, so I took them to Church. It was really hard not to eat any of them while en route!  As we were driving (the whole fam was in the car), I could smell those delicious cookies in the car the entire trip which made my stomach growl!

When we arrived at Church, we set that box of double-chocolate chip cookies on the table in the entryway. We opened the box to make them available to everyone. There were a few boxes of different kinds of cookies and muffins on the table that day. I was so excited and so hungry!

As I was chatting with friends and catching up with everyone, our Pastor was preparing to start the service, so everyone began making their way into the sanctuary.

I was really looking forward to this sermon, since we were finishing a series on the concept of ‘predestination’ and how that topic is a slippery slope. We were exploring the belief that (as an individual) you’re ‘predestined’ to either be in God’s favor (or not). We discussed that this is dangerous in the sense that people then feel like they can do whatever they want. The lesson was that we certainly do have free will to choose to believe in Jesus or not ... and that God in His grace gives us the free gift of salvation when we chose to believe. I couldn’t wait to hear it! So all I needed was some cookies and I would be ready to go!

But, when I turned around to get one of those cookies that I’ve been waiting so patiently for, the entire box was gone! Poof! What!? It’s not like all the cookies had been eaten and all that was left on the table was a sorry looking box of crumbs. They were just gone!

As I walked "cookieless" into the sanctuary, with my head hanging low, my wife informed me that her Mom (Grandma!) put the box of cookies in the freezer, since there were so many cookies on the table that morning. Grandma didn’t want the cookies to go to waste, so she froze them! Why couldn’t she have chosen someone else’s cookies to hide? The good news was that my wife was kind enough to grab a couple of the ‘other’ cookies for me before we went into the sanctuary, so I was not completely "cookieless." It just wasn’t the same.

What did I learn from this experience? I was "predestined" for cookies, but when someone feels they can do whatever they want, like taking away all the cookies, it can be a "slippery slope" of dessert disappointment.

Time Travelling Congregation

One crisp fall Sunday morning, on the day we turned back the clock for daylight savings, my family was on the way to church to attend Sunday school. Everyone was well-rested, since we technically "gained" one hour of sleep due to the time change.

We always had our Sunday school/Bible study at 9:30 a.m. prior to our worship service. The worship service started at 10:30 a.m. That morning, when we arrived, we walked through the Church parking lot with the usual group of "Sunday-Schoolers." We chit-chatted all the way to the front door. You could see your breath in the crisp, frosty air and it felt good to step into the warmth of our church building. We typically made a circle of chairs toward the back of the sanctuary for discussion and Bible Study. We were studying the truth that God tells us to test for false prophets in 1 John, chapter 4.

During our discussion of 1 John chapter 4, we suddenly heard the Church door open and a cool breeze blew around the corner as someone walked in the door. We all wondered who it could be, since all our ‘regulars’ were already there. We were all excited that someone else was going to join our group!

It was not a visitor. A member of our congregation walked into the empty sanctuary with her two young children. She saw us in our small group, gathered at the back of the sanctuary.

She looked puzzled and said, “Hey everyone! Wow ... not many people showed up for church today. What are you all doing back here?”

Our Sunday School class paused with half smiles on their faces knowing the ‘fall back’ happened. “We’re just having Sunday School - you’re welcome to join us!”

The young woman realized she forgot to turn her clocks back, flustered, responded, “Of course! Thank you!”

Her kids quickly noticed the lack of cookies, and asked, “Mom...why are there no cookies?”

And, there was laughter! In November, your clock can be a "false prophet!" Don't forget to turn back your clocks so you can be at church on time in a few weeks!

 

God is good.