{"id":1902,"date":"2012-12-19T17:06:47","date_gmt":"2012-12-19T17:06:47","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/irreverin.com\/?p=1902"},"modified":"2013-02-12T08:00:06","modified_gmt":"2013-02-12T15:00:06","slug":"in-church-at-christmastime","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/irreverin\/2012\/12\/in-church-at-christmastime\/","title":{"rendered":"In Church, at Christmastime"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<\/head>

The phone is ringing off the hook,<\/p>\n

The sanctuary\u2019s hard to book.<\/p>\n

Yes it\u2019s clean\u2013dare you to look\u2013<\/p>\n

In church, at Christmastime.<\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/p>\n

One hard-working secretary<\/p>\n

Is a little tried and harried.<\/p>\n

Under bulletin notes, she\u2019s buried,<\/p>\n

In church, at Christmastime.<\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/p>\n

The kids are plenty sugar wired,<\/p>\n

the moms all look a little tired,<\/p>\n

and we all know how that transpired<\/p>\n

In church, at Christmastime.<\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/p>\n

Cause church ladies are such a soft touch;<\/p>\n

they\u2019ll never say you\u2019re taking too much,<\/p>\n

so there are extra cookies and such<\/p>\n

In church, at Christmastime.<\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/p>\n

The dads compare their Rudolph ties\u2013<\/p>\n

the brightest & tackiest gets the prize\u2013<\/p>\n

cause that\u2019s the way it is with guys<\/p>\n

In church, at Christmastime.<\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/p>\n

The youth group flash-mob was a hit,<\/p>\n

(the brave sponsors won\u2019t soon forget)<\/p>\n

and well, those kids aren\u2019t tired yet,<\/p>\n

In church, at Christmastime.<\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/p>\n

The band is running practice late,<\/p>\n

the choir has too much on its plate,<\/p>\n

the preacher\u2019s hollering \u2018wait, wait, wait!\u2019<\/p>\n

In church, at Christmastime<\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/p>\n

The fridge is where we keep the candles.<\/p>\n

The \u2018hallelujah\u2019 isn\u2019t Handle\u2019s.<\/p>\n

But at least (so far) we\u2019ve had no vandals<\/p>\n

In church, at Christmastime<\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/p>\n

Plenty of toys in the toy drive sack,<\/p>\n

and the light bill broke the camel\u2019s back,<\/p>\n

in that old nativity we keep out back,<\/p>\n

In Church, at Christmastime<\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/p>\n

Cans of food for the pantry shelves,<\/p>\n

carolers march like happy elves,<\/p>\n

and we all smile in spite of ourselves,<\/p>\n

In Church, at Christmastime<\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/p>\n

The pastors look a little fried.<\/p>\n

The first poinsettias have already died\u2013<\/p>\n

We knew that daggone florist lied<\/p>\n

\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 In Church!<\/em> \u00a0at Christmastime.<\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/p>\n

Coffee hour is all fair trade,<\/p>\n

and cider replaces lemonade.<\/p>\n

Somebody served, and somebody prayed,<\/p>\n

In Church, at Christmastime.<\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/p>\n

All the green stuff has been hung,<\/p>\n

Every bell, been shined and rung,<\/p>\n

Let every tenor\u00a0 bust a lung,<\/p>\n

In Church, at Christmastime.<\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/p>\n

In waiting space\u2013 the quiet place\u2013<\/p>\n

there enters in a tiny grace,<\/p>\n

and soon we might just see his face,<\/p>\n

In church, at Christmas time.<\/p>\n

\u00a9Erin Wathen, 2012<\/em><\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a><\/p>\n

Photo by Anne Camille @ Four Deer Oak <\/a><\/p>\n<\/body><\/html>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

The phone is ringing off the hook, The sanctuary\u2019s hard to book. Yes it\u2019s clean\u2013dare you to look\u2013 In church, at Christmastime. \u00a0 One hard-working secretary Is a little tried and harried. Under bulletin notes, she\u2019s buried, In church, at Christmastime. \u00a0 The kids are plenty sugar wired, the moms all look a little tired, […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1154,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[4,5,1],"tags":[57,58,59,805,9,10],"class_list":["post-1902","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-advent-and-christmas","category-faith-and-community","category-uncategorized","tag-advent","tag-christmas","tag-church","tag-pastoral-life","tag-progressive-christianity","tag-spirituality"],"yoast_head":"\nIn Church, at Christmastime<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"The phone is ringing off the hook, The sanctuary\u2019s hard to book. 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