The problem is not that the churches are filled with empty pews
A QUOTE
The problem is not that the churches are filled with empty pews, but that the pews are filled with empty people.
… Charlie Shedd (b. 1915), quoted in The Greening of the Church, Findley B. Edge, Waco, Tex.: Word Books, 1971, p. 9
A TEXT
May the Lord direct your hearts into God’s love and Christ’s perseverance.
2 Thessalonians 3:5
One thing I do: Forgetting what is behind and straining toward what is ahead, I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus.
Philippians 3:13-14
AND A PRAYER…OR TWO
God of consolation, you have transformed the shame of the cross into a sign of victory. Grant that we may be united around the Cross of your Son to worship Him for the mercy offered through his suffering. May the Holy Spirit open our eyes and our hearts, so that we may help those who suffer to experience your closeness. ; You who live and reign forever and ever. Amen.