How to Make a Big Decision


How to make a Big Decision...like calling a Snow Day!

Ever wonder how "big decisions" like canceling church services are done??  Let me take you into the wee morning hours of February 1, 2015 when church services were canceled due to the snow.  Let's what what happens...
  1. Pastor Bill awakes...and immediately turns on the news.
  2. A scroll full of names appears on the screen.
  3. Fear grips his heart.
  4. Pastor Bill looks outside to see...snow!...and lots of it!
  5. A prayer is said, "Why God?  I have a great sermon this morning!"
  6. Pastor Bill continues staring at the screen, looking for "Lutheran names".
  7. (The thought here was...who is canceling church and where?  The names of the two big ELCA churches around us(First English and Salem) never do pop up).
  8.  Pastor Bill goes into the kitchen and peers out a better window to see the snow still coming down HARD!
  9. Fear grips his heart again.
  10. Pastor Bill grabs tablet to continue to scroll down the church names, hoping to see ones he knows.
  11. A text comes in.  A Confirmation parent is informing him that her daughter will not be there.
  12. Resigned that he probably will have to cancel church, he marches over to the office to retrieve the "cancel church sheet" housed in the secretary's desk.
  13. With "Cancel Church Sheet" in hand, he goes back home...and stares out the window some more.
  14. A prayer is said, "God, let it keep on snowing!"
  15. A text goes out to Melissa to start the Facebook page cancellation notice happening.
  16. After texting parent to let them know that church will be canceled, he proceeds to cancel services through the websites, stopping only long enough to weep over the great sermon he had prepared that he won't be able to deliver.
  17.  A ringing of the doorbell thirty minutes later indicates that someone didn't watch the news...as does the phone calls that come in throughout the morning.
  18. Resigned to stay up and face down his decision, Pastor Bill goes into the basement to play on his computer until the official time for services would be over.
Of all the decisions that I get to make as a pastor, canceling services is by far my least favorite.

However, I am so glad we did cancel services.  With folks coming from all over the Peoria area, it was better for everyone to stay home than to risk their lives on the streets.

Still, after making this decision that only affects a few people, maybe we should stop and pray for those who make even bigger decisions in life that affect not just a small community of believers but many, many more!

'Cause I know, after making a decision like this one, they need our prayers!