If you haven't met Ed and Edith yet, you might want to read my previous posts about them first.
Ed and Edith
More on Ed and Edith
Ed and Edith at the Franklin Graham Crusade
Ed and Edith are in The Present Future
On any given Sunday...
Bad news today. There was a missionary speaker from Outer Mongolia or somewhere and the clock in the back of the sanctuary meant nothing to him. Noon came and went. Finally at 12:07 the benediction was given. "Every time the pastor has someone else speak this happens. Next time there's a guest speaker let's just stay home. If they don't respect our time why do we even bother coming?"
After church every Sunday Ed and Edith are quick to make it out of the parking lot so they can beat the Sunday church crowd to their favorite restaurant. They hate the long lines, so if someone at church corners them in conversation (some might call that "fellowship") they get real fidgety. Church is over! It's 12:08! Let's get out of here!! They've even figured out that if they park by the side entrance they can escape faster and not have to talk to anyone.
Meanwhile first time guests file out without a greeting or an invitation to come back or (could you imagine?) a "Why don't you join us for lunch?" Ed and Edith are oblivious to anyone else.
At the restaurant it seems the other church in the neighborhood didn't have a missionary speaker today. And their pastor got them out "on time". So there they are, that other church getting the tables and service and food while Ed and Edith have to put their names on a waiting list. Their stomach's are growling. Then to make matters worse, who comes in the door but the pastor and the missionary! "It's their fault we're waiting! I'm not happy with either of them right now, so I hope they don't see us and want to talk."
"Ed and Edith. Your table is ready." Saved by the bell. Now, Ed and Edith's table has four chairs and there are just two of them. Maybe they'll ask another couple from their church to join them? Or how about the pastor and the missionary? Wouldn't they like to hear about reaching the Outer Mongolians? But Ed and Edith are oblivious to anyone else.
After ordering their beverages the waitress (who is covering for another table or two because someone didn't show up for work) is a bit slow bringing them out and instead of a diet Coke she brings Edith a sweet tea. "Honey. That's NOT what I asked for. And the service here today is slower than usual."
In a hurry, the tea is exchanged for a diet Coke. Soon their meals are brought out and without a kind word or thanks to the waitress they have their lunch. In their conversation a comment is made about how people who work in restaurants on Sundays never go to church and must be essentially godless.
The check is brought to the table with a smile and a "have a nice day" from the young lady. But Edith is too busy examining the charges to respond. A tip, if you can call it that, is left on the table. It comes to 10% of the meals total ("That's generous considering how long we had to wait and that she got my drink wrong") and is tucked inside a Gospel tract that looks like a five dollar bill. That's to help with the "godless" part.
I eat out often, and in my conversations with restaurant wait staff I've discovered that "church people" on Sundays come across as rude, demanding and cheap.
How is it that we can "worship God" between 11 and 12 and then treat those He loves like they don't exist between 12 and 2? Can we really be that oblivious to anyone else?
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12 comments:
Your title caught my eye because my great aunt and uncle were named Ed and Edith! Indeed, you are right about the sorrow that goes behind the hole story. It is like the Great Samaritan and how many wouldn't help the one in need because we are so busy focusing on our own agendas.
Great post. Good reminder to be real all the time. I have even reminded myself to smile. I don't want people to see me and NOT want what I have in the God I serve. Thanks for stepping on my toes.
Having a form of godliness but denying its power. I am so turned off by many Christians today. I hear them joke around and use sexual inuendos and other coarse words. Now mind you they are not using cuss words, so they are OK. They don't realize the Bible talks about coarse jesting. How about speeding... follow the laws of the land... Speeding is OK though. Or gluttony... That is one sin that is bragged about from pulpits and pews alike. The church is luke warm and God is going to vomit it out. It's all about making them feel good.
That reminds me so much of the Brennen Manning quote -
"The Greatest single cause of Atheism in the world today are Christians who acknowledge Jesus with their lips and walk out the door and deny Him by their lifestyle. That is what an unbelieving world simply finds unbelievable."
Right on!! Thanks for the thoughts. I wish we could all get a grip and started treating each other better than ourselves...me included! I love this post and will go read the other ones. You have helped me think today.
Tricia :)
Unfortunately, I find that many people think that as long as they worship once a week it gives them license to treat others any way they want the rest of the time! I call those types ..phoney god fearing types. And, for those that wonder when waitresses go to church when they work on Sunday, there ARE other worship times available, and church is not just in "church."
~A sweet waitress
I find that these Sundays After Pentecost are very much the time to look at how we are living and remind ourselves, and the Eds and Ediths among us, of how we need to walk the walk as well as talk the talk!
Mind you, British Eds and Ediths wouldn't dream of going out to Sunday lunch - that would be spending money on a Sunday, which many find a big no-no, even now. Our tipping culture is different, too; a 10% tip would be fine, here, and you are not expected to leave a tip if service is included.
Hey! I know them! Isn't that the same couple that sits in the back and leaves during the "invitation" song at the end of the service?! ;)
You know, the ones that you see eating at Basnight's every Sunday?
Growing up was:
1. Get to church early so we could get the best parking space that was positioned to be the fastest exit out of the lot.
2. Sit in the last row for the quickest exit possible (always during the closing song.)
3. Walk quickly & directly to the car and be the first one out the lot so we can be first in line at the donut shop!
It was kind of like the slogan at one of our restaurants on the OBX...substituting different words of course! Worship (if that is what you want to call it) and get out! (I cleaned that up for the sensitive types).
Church was never for fellowship for us. Just an hour of obligation to be endured once a week.
Oh how much we missed!
What a great post. I am always keeping a "check" on myself to make sure I am not an Edith.
Ed and Edith sound alot like Doris and Henry (some tapes and skits we have used at our church).
I have been reading your blog by the way of reading Nate's blog. Thank you for allowing me to do so! This entry really struck a nerve with me.
I live in a town in the buckle of the Bible Belt, in Broken Arrow, OK. While in high school I worked at a buffet restaurant that was just down the street from a large Bible School/church. I would be scheduled to work Sunday afternoons many times (much to my dismay) and work like crazy trying to keep up with and serve the patrons who came in after their church services. Often times, we (the wait staff) would not receive tips, unless it was a dollar or two, and the tip would be wrapped inside a church pass along card, or pamphlet. How dismayed I always was when that happened. My spirit was hurting because I could not attend my worship services that day, and I always tried to tithe more than 10% of that money. How upsetting when I couldn't even earn money to do so from the folks who had had the opportunity to feast their souls and enjoy fellowship that day.
I always try to remember how people who are working on Sundays, especially, may be feeling spiritually. Thanks for this post!
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