Today in church I was sitting in the very back of the sanctuary. To be honest, I was uncomfortable back there. It's really interesting to me how some people cannot stand to sit in the front pews while others (like myself) have a hard time sitting in the back. As I was sitting there, I started thinking of an analogy that I'm sure has its flaws, but I liked it pretty well. Also, I'm not trying to step on any toes here, just going off of observation...I know everyone has their differences. Anyway:
Imagine life as a highway and the cars are churches. The "back row Christians" sit in the back seat and let the driver take them wherever they need to go. They have very little to do with the driving process. The "front row Christians" sit in the passenger seat. They are a part of the driving process and even help give directions every once in a while. They're probably the ones who lead small groups or Bible studies and have made a place for themselves in the church. The pastor sits in the driver's seat. They know the way and the destination and they're willing to take the lead to get their passengers there. On the highway, semi trucks are of the Devil (again, no offense, but I really dislike them so it fits in my model). They get in our way, slow us down, scare us, and sometimes make us very angry. Even though they are larger than our little car, our driver knows how to deal with them and drive around them.
One thing I've noticed about SOME back seat Christians is that they tend to grumble to themselves or the person sitting next to them. They have their own ideas of how things should be done, and they won't be happy otherwise. They're the ones who quietly start "mini coups" (get the joke?) in the church when they're unhappy. Then, on the flip side, the passenger seat Christians are the ones who tend to talk to the Pastor about what's going on and how they feel about it. They may have their own ideas, but they deal with it respectfully.
Obviously there's room for the in-betweeners. Just like I enjoy conversing with my parents up front in the car, some back pew Christians have a healthy relationship with the pastor and they're not grumbling and blurting their opinion when it's not appropriate. They may also have a part in direction giving. Likewise, some front pew Christians aren't very good at helping with directions. They just enjoy the front seat and calling, "Shotgun!"
Then you have car crashes. Some cars crash on their own. They lose control, something hits them, the car breaks, whatever. Some cars crash into each other and cause much conflict. Some cars meet the semi (they are pretty big). If we're going to get into that, I should talk about the cars that break the law. Police Officers are like the Superintendents (in the Nazarene church, for those of you who don't know what I'm talking about). The Police sometimes have to stop drivers and make corrections, all for the purpose of a safer and more successful trip.
Honestly, there's no lesson in this...no Bible verse to go along with it. But it would be interesting to see where you think you sit in the car, and if you hold true to my observations. I'm not here to tell you what role you need to play in the church, I just thought my analogy was interesting and wanted to share. :-)
