"I once read a story in William Danforth's classic little book I Dare You!
about a professor who hit upon a great discovery while buttoning up his
vest--or rather, he hit upon the discovery because his vest wouldn't
button up. It turns out his little daughter had sewn up some of the
buttonholes by mistake, and as his fingers were going along in the usual
motions of buttoning a button, something happened. A button wouldn't
button.
The fingers fumbled helplessly for a moment, then sent out a call for help. The professor's mind woke up. His eyes looked down, and a new idea was born, or rather a new understanding of an old idea. What the professor had discovered was that fingers can remember. You know how repetitive certain tasks--such as riding a bicycle, using a keyboard, or even driving home from the office--can become, so much so that our brains essentially go on autopilot.
With this new knowledge in place, the professor began playing pranks on his classes, testing his thesis. He soon found that the results were always the same. As long as they could keep on doing the things they had always done, his students' minds wouldn't work at optimum capacity. It was only when he figuratively "sewed up their buttonholes" by stealing their notebooks, locking the doors, or upsetting their routine that any creative thinking was done.
So he came to the great, and now generally accepted, conclusion that the human mind is "an emergency organ"--that it relegates whatever it can to automatic functions for as long as it can. It is only when something upsets the old order of things that the mind really starts working." (1)
What would happen if we performed our Sunday morning worship service in reverse? We begin by taking the offering. Then, Brother Scott gets up and preaches. Next, the choir sings a special number. Follow with the congregation singing. On the heels of that comes a time of fellowship to greet each other. Finally, announcements are made. We leave.
How far into "Bizarro Big Church" (or "Backwards Big Church" for the comic book deficient) would we get before people broke out in hives or got up and left?
This week's lesson is "I Celebrate YOU", and the scripture passage is Psalm 92. Our main focus is that believers should rejoice in the opportunity to worship God and the benefits worship brings to their lives.
We're going to have a little fun this week with the Baptist National Anthem. I promise you'll walk out of Sunday School with a smile on your face and a tune you won't be able to get out of your head.
So join us Sunday morning at 9:50 a.m. for a different Small Group Bible Study experience. I know it's Spring Break, but come if you're in town. You'll be glad you did.
Finish Friday strong. Enjoy Saturday with your family. See you Sunday!
Loyally yours,
Darren Bayne
The fingers fumbled helplessly for a moment, then sent out a call for help. The professor's mind woke up. His eyes looked down, and a new idea was born, or rather a new understanding of an old idea. What the professor had discovered was that fingers can remember. You know how repetitive certain tasks--such as riding a bicycle, using a keyboard, or even driving home from the office--can become, so much so that our brains essentially go on autopilot.
With this new knowledge in place, the professor began playing pranks on his classes, testing his thesis. He soon found that the results were always the same. As long as they could keep on doing the things they had always done, his students' minds wouldn't work at optimum capacity. It was only when he figuratively "sewed up their buttonholes" by stealing their notebooks, locking the doors, or upsetting their routine that any creative thinking was done.
So he came to the great, and now generally accepted, conclusion that the human mind is "an emergency organ"--that it relegates whatever it can to automatic functions for as long as it can. It is only when something upsets the old order of things that the mind really starts working." (1)
What would happen if we performed our Sunday morning worship service in reverse? We begin by taking the offering. Then, Brother Scott gets up and preaches. Next, the choir sings a special number. Follow with the congregation singing. On the heels of that comes a time of fellowship to greet each other. Finally, announcements are made. We leave.
How far into "Bizarro Big Church" (or "Backwards Big Church" for the comic book deficient) would we get before people broke out in hives or got up and left?
This week's lesson is "I Celebrate YOU", and the scripture passage is Psalm 92. Our main focus is that believers should rejoice in the opportunity to worship God and the benefits worship brings to their lives.
We're going to have a little fun this week with the Baptist National Anthem. I promise you'll walk out of Sunday School with a smile on your face and a tune you won't be able to get out of your head.
So join us Sunday morning at 9:50 a.m. for a different Small Group Bible Study experience. I know it's Spring Break, but come if you're in town. You'll be glad you did.
Finish Friday strong. Enjoy Saturday with your family. See you Sunday!
Loyally yours,
Darren Bayne
"Character cannot be developed in ease and quiet. Only
through experience of trial and suffering can the soul be strengthened,
ambition inspired, and success achieved."
Helen Keller
(1) from No More Dreaded Mondays by Dan Miller, pages 184-185.
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