One fine spring Sunday morning, the Baptist preacher was gazing out of his office window at a nearby trout stream. “Today would be a good day to sneak off and go fishing,” he thought. The weather was perfect, his fly rod had new string, he had very recently heard reports of a good trout run, and the associate pastor was more than ready to handle the service.
So, within minutes, the service was underway and the preacher was quietly sneaking out the backdoor, rod, net and creel in hand, heading upstream. But he didn’t go unobserved. An angel was watching his every move and went straight to God.
“That preacher lied so he could sneak away and go fishing,” the angel reported to God.
Smiling, God said, “So he finally gave in to temptation.”
The angel nodded, “Should I alert the congregation, sir, and allow him to be caught?”
“No, give him complete privacy,” God said.
“Should I command the fishes to avoid him so he gets skunked and catches nothing?” the angel asked.
“No,” God said calmly. “We want the preacher to catch something. In fact, command the largest trout in the stream to take the bait and give the preacher the fight of his life.”
Confused but loyal, the angel did as God instructed, and within minutes, the preacher had hooked a massive trout. The fight was spectacular. The preacher used every trick in the book to land the fish successfully. He loosened the drag so the giant fish could run and not snap the line. He slowly walked the bank, up one end and down the other, allowing the huge fish freedom and time to tire out. Finally, after an exhausting 10-minute ordeal, the massive trout cruised into the shore, and the preacher proudly scooped him up in the waiting net.
The angel quickly turned to God, “Should I make a hole in the net so the fish is released?”
“No,” God said calmly. “The preacher will release the fish.”
“What?” the angel said, shocked. “This preacher lands the biggest fish in the stream, by far the biggest catch of his life and, forgive me, God, but you actually expect him to release it?”
Smiling knowingly, God assures the angel, “The preacher is supposed to be in church. He can’t carry the giant fish into the service and he certainly can’t talk about it to anyone.”
Missing church isn’t the end of the world. Sometimes we get sick. Sometimes someone needs our help and sometimes we are just plain tired. And sometimes we are just plain determined to do something else that day.
One time a pastor took a rare Sunday off. He and his wife drove to the local mall. Not that they needed anything, but they were just curious to see what the world outside of church looked like on Sunday morning. The mall was fairly busy. People were running to and fro. The pastor wondered how many of those people were Christians who skipped church today. He also wondered how many could care less about going to church. Then he shuddered, “I wonder how many were thinking the same thing about me?”
They didn’t buy anything that day. They ate dinner and came home. They had seen the world outside of church, and in that world, there was no special blessing from God. They didn’t fellowship with any of God’s people, and it didn’t make them feel any better for having been there.
In my life I have never gone to a church service and wished that I had done something else. God always gives you a special blessing when you come to worship Him and fellowship with His people. You always feel better for having been there.
Psalm 92:13: “Those that be planted in the house of the LORD shall flourish in the courts of our God.” Psalm 122:1: “I was glad when they said unto me, Let us go into the house of the LORD.”
Watch sermons and read articles by visiting www.tomahawkmbc.com. Listen to Pastor Jack’s sermons on WSIP FM 98.9 every Sunday at 10:30 a.m. Watch Facebook lives on Jack Ward’s page every Sunday at 11:25 a.m. and 6:10 p.m.