O Holy Night

     There is nothing like a full sanctuary on Christmas Eve!
     Last night at the 9 PM candlelight service, we had 500 in attendance. The balcony was full, the choir overflowed on the chancel, rows of families filled whole pews. Worship is not like this every Sunday, but it sure is nice to see the way things could be.
     We will always have a spike in attendance on these "High Holy Days," I guess. Out-of-town guests accompany church members and their families. College students are home for winter break. Even those who have fallen out of regular worship habits come to join the family of God at worship on Christmas Eve.
     Say what you will, but I rejoice and give thanks for the turnout last night, even if things won't be like this again until Easter Sunday. I would prefer that we filled the sanctuary every week of the year. I would rather see people make regular worship attendance a priority in their lives, but I'll take what I can get. Better to have them worship once a year and hear the Word proclaimed than not at all.
     Next week, attendance will drop off. Families will catch their airplanes back home. College students will sleep in. Church members who haven't yet cultivated a regular worship habit will resort to old Sunday morning routines. But for today, on this cold, wet Christmas Day, I will give thanks for a wonderful evening of worship.