Our church has two services each Sunday. We used to have three but, about nine months ago, despite a growing congregation, we went back to two. We were able to do this in part because of our recent capital campaign which allowed us to remodel the balcony, seating considerly more folks at each service.

Now, both services appear to be hitting near that 80% mark, meaning that we may need to start looking for some other options which might include using an overflow room in the church with video feed. They say that, at 80% of capacity, a church will feel full and uninviting to new folks. I can believe that. Especially our church which tends to have bottlenecks at most entrances and exits.

Anyway, yesterday we attended the 9:00 service which is the more traditional service. That is because we were helping out in Sunday School during the other service. I grew up a pretty traditional guy. However, a few years back, we started trying the contemporary service. At first, it seemed rather foreign to me but it worked well schedule-wise all things considered so we stuck with it. Now, it is where we feel most at home.

We sat with my folks yesterday. They remain pretty traditional. In fact, they remain "last five rows of the church" traditional. That was a little odd to be back there again. Lisa has helped me over the years to realize that the church has other rows you can sit in and actually see better from and perhaps even feel more a part of things from.

It was neat yesterday to be in the traditional service again for once though. It was quieter, yes. But the Spirituality was still there. I wanted to sing louder than the others there but, with my voice, that could have been disastrous so I held back best I could. (I sing a bit like a ferret in heat.)

You know what was really neat though? All of the faces I saw of people I didn't know. Yes, I suppose the average age was a little older than the later contemporary service but not as much as you may think. It was great though to see a whole new group of faces and to realize, too, that there are quite a number of people who apparently attend both services.

It helped to remind me of the importance of switching things up a bit once in awhile. I don't think God wants us stuck in ruts. He has created a wonderful world for us and gifted us individually to embrace that world. Getting stuck in a rut is somehow denying His call.