A Message From the Past

By Tracee Swank

Good Manners in Church: Have an Open Mind

The main reason for coming to church is to let the meaning of the Word of God play upon our minds and spirits. For this ever to be true, one must be willing to open our minds to it. It is possible to come to church to be so determined to hold to our own prejudice that we would not be able to change. After all, we do not expect God to change His will to suit us, but we do plan to change our wills to suit Him.

From the scriptures, the hymns, the liturgy, the sermon, the fellowship, we receive certain impressions that are to affect us. Let your mind come out to meet those things. Ask yourself, “What new vision has come to me today?”

The way to be thankless before God is to disregard His Word.

Reprinted from July, 1955 Trinity Chimes Newsletter
Trinity Lutheran Church, Lewisburg, Ohio
Rev. Lorin L. Spinny, Pastor
Co-Editors; Mrs. Marjorie Mattis, Mrs. Barbara Robert

The above statements are from a newsletter from the church that my family has worshipped in for four generations. A newsletter printed in 1955! For as often as I have made reference to the idea that we can no longer be like the 1955 church I thought it interesting that these statements were printed in this newsletter.

Could it be the 1955 church with all the great tradition, honor, and glory faced the same issues that face the local church today? Indeed it is. People in 1955 didn’t want their church to change, just like people in 2009 do not want their church to change.

Changing music, liturgy, ceremony, worship styles, and how to reach out to people that did not yet know Christ were challenges in 1955 just as they are today.

How you go about bringing change to your church is just as important as the change itself. Your attitude about change will have a huge impact on how healthy and vibrant your church can be. Stay clear on the idea that when we are talking about changing methods and attitudes in the church, we are not talking about changing theology. Nothing in this newsletter from 1955 suggests a change in theology, just like many of the changes that need to take place in churches today do not require a change in theology.

This article got me thinking that maybe we in fact need to follow these instructions from a 1955 church. We need to:

• Have an open mind.
• Let go of our own prejudices about what we think church should be.
• Change our will to align with God’s will.
• Be open to receiving the impressions left upon us through scripture, song, sermon, and fellowship.
• Ask ourselves what is the vision God has for us to serve Him.
• Understand that disregarding God’s will and word is the best way to be thankless to Him.

 If we approached church and change with an open mind we wouldn’t feel stuck, in 1955 or 2009.

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