How does this look?

You ever wonder or noticed how we can get caught up in some pretty petty things? I mean everyone does. At least, I think everyone does. I know I can anyway. At church, we are preparing to renovate our sanctuary. It definitely needs to some updates for stability sake and just cosmetically. There has been discussion about what color the carpet should be and at one point it was discussed whether we should keep the pews in or take the pews out and put in these cushioned chairs. Well, that idea was shot down as the pews are pretty special to this church and well they must be holy, too, because people were pretty vocal about replacing the pews.

My question is: what makes pews any better than pew chairs? Or what makes pew chairs better than pews? Where does it say anywhere that one is better than the other? Who says the stage has to have a big pulpit and two throne chairs? Of course, what makes not having those any better? We get caught up in the small matters of the church. That isn't necessarily a bad thing, but if engulfs us then we have a problem. When we become more consumed with the beauty of the church over the effectiveness of the church then we have a problem. There is nothing wrong with having opinions and preferences. We have to remember just that though, they are opinions and preferences. They aren't biblical principle. Those are the things we need to be most passionate about. Those are the things we need to get fired up about, not if someone disagrees with us about whether the carpet should be this color or that color. I wonder how much more influence the church would have in this world if it didn't squabble over things that really don't mount to anything in the long run. When the church as a whole becomes more concerned with spreading the love and message of Christ over what carpet is going to be spread on the ground, then the church will find a power and an influence that hasn't been seen in quite some time.

I think we all wear the blinders sometimes. We become so passionate about something that we miss the bigger picture. I have always said that you have to choose which mountains you die on. Hopefully, the mountains that I choose to die on are based on biblical principle and not personal preference. Hopefully, they are truly mountains and not mole hills.