Safe...and Dangerous

Ever tempted to stay home and sleep in on a Sunday morning, instead of coming to worship with your church family? Here's some advice: Don't!

A study a few years ago by the United Kingdom's Department of Trade and Industry, reported in theLondon Times,says the average household is a pretty dangerous place. In a study of hospital records from 1999, government researchers found an 85 percent increase over the year before from injuries severe enough to require hospital admission associated with...tea cozies.

Since I had no clue what that was, I Googled it, and discovered (via Wikipedia) that a tea cozy is a cover for a teapot traditionally made of cloth or wool which is used to insulate the tea, keeping it warm while it brews. Very dangerous indeed.

In the same study, it was found that vegetables were indicted in 13,132 household injuries, toilet-roll holders 329, false teeth 933, and 16,662 were hospitalized after losing out to a sofa. "Trouser incidents" contributed to 5,945 injuries, compared to chainsaws at just 1,207. "It seems odd there are so many more accidents involving trousers than chainsaws," admitted James Eason of the Royal Society for the Prevention of Accidents, "but everyone has trousers and hardly anyone has chainsaws."

My first reaction is that those British folks are not very bright, or at least awfully clumsy. But I'm sure someone could do a study here in America and find similar statistics. We are constantly hearing of some report telling us the inherent dangers of our workplace, or traveling on the roads and highways, or riding a bike or scooter, or vacationing at the mountains or beach (Shark!). But when was the last time you heard someone say that "church" is a dangerous place to be? On the contrary, several academic studies have confirmed that people who attend church regularly are generally healthier, happier and live longer! So you might want to think again before you consider the "risk" of sleeping in this Sunday.

On the other hand, when you get serious about walking with the Lord and being an active part of His church, it can be kind of dangerous. One prominent pastor used to say he wanted his church to be "a safe place to hear a dangerous message." I'd agree that's what we'd like to be at Shelby Crossings--a safe place for people to find love and acceptance, while being confronted with the uncompromising and life-altering truth of the gospel that will turn their life upside down. Or better, rightside up!

Here's hoping you have a safe weekend, but that you make plans to join us for a little "danger" on Sunday as we kick off our new summer series of messages from the Old Testament book of Daniel I'm praying for you, and look forward to seeing you on Sunday.

--Pastor Ken

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