The Modern Church: Entertainment Center or House of Prayer?
Have We Substituted Lights, Stage, and Smoke for the Presence of God?
Come closer, my boy, Grandpa said, waving me over as he sat on the porch. The evening air smelled of roasted corn, and the sky glowed golden. You went to church today, didn’t you? Yes, Grandpa, I replied, dropping my bag.He leaned forward. And how was it?I hesitated. Loud, Grandpa. The music was so loud I could hardly hear the message. And the prayers,oh, Grandpa, it was as if they were fighting a battle! Grandpa sighed deeply. Ah. That’s the trouble of today’s church. Tell me, grandpa, was this how the church of old was?
The Old Church vs. Today’s Stage Shows
When I was a boy, Grandpa began, church had no microphones, no flashing lights, no smoke machines. The benches were wooden, the walls bare. But oh, my boy, the prayers! They rose like incense to heaven. People prayed from their hearts, not from their throats. The songs weren’t rehearsed to impress men but to touch God.
Today, I walk into some churches, and I wonder, did I enter a house of God or a concert hall? Lights flash like fireworks. The choir looks like performers on a stage, more concerned about dance moves than holiness. The smoke machine hisses, as if the Holy Spirit lives inside a box that must be released.But when all the noise fades, many hearts remain empty. That, my son, is the problem.
When Prayer Became a Wrestling Match.