One of my favorite memories as a teen is not centered around a overly positive experience. It wasn’t really a bad experience, but more one that taught me something about human nature.
I was sixteen years old. My family had just moved from Montreal, PQ to a small city just outside Vancouver, BC. We had arrived in town just before the weekend and really hadn’t got our boxes unpacked that Sunday morning when we got up and headed to church. Dad was the new pastor of a church. The biggest question of the morning: where were my mother, my sister and I supposed to sit. Mom was never the kind of Pastor’s Wife that had any desire for a high profile in the church so we chose to sit in a back corner, about three rows from the back and against the outside aisle. Of course, we were in our seats a few minutes before the service began.
Just as the service began, a married couple came walking in and uttered words I’ll never forget: “Excuse me, those are our seats.” And then they stood there waiting for us to move. Stunned beyond words, we got the not-so-subtle-hint and moved back a row… because it was empty! As a sixteen year old who was still developing his spiritual gift of sarcasm…
But wait, that’s not all!
Five minutes later, well after the service had begun, a family comes walking in… “Oh (with feigned surprise), we normally sit there. We’ll find another seat – this week.” The point was made! They easily found another seat a couple rows up.
You have no idea of the amount of joy that flooded my soul later in the service. The Vice Chairman of the Church Board introduced my father to the church family, and then asked if we would stand up. Before I heard welcoming applause, I heard a gasp from a few people in the rows in front of us. At the conclusion of the service, most of those seated around us gave us a hearty welcome.
That day, I learned that Pew Stealing is a terrible abomination. Some people are kind, polite, and sweet-spirited – until you try to sit in their pew. I do not recall ever sitting in that area of that church after that day.
The Church is about change… helping people change so they can become more like Christ. Just don’t ask some of them to change the pew they sit in.
