In the first four years that I worked at the Church, I attended a Sunday Service exactly once.

Attending Worship has never been part of my job description, but David encouraged me to come just to see how the service went. I did, it felt familiar, and somehow four and a half years went by. In the fifteen months since, I haven’t missed a Sunday. Well— a Friday.

By now, most of you know that our Online Worship Experiences are filmed Friday mornings at the Church.  By the time Doug gets the clips uploaded and we have overcome whatever emergencies inevitably arise (because there is almost always something), it’s usually Friday afternoon by the time I get the clips. And so, this is how I started going to Church on Friday nights. 

My first Friday night at Church? Well, that service lasted until almost midnight. A video vigil of sorts. It turns out there is a pretty steep learning curve when it comes to editing video. Some of you probably remember our early services which I am convinced made it through on a wing and several prayers. These days, the videos take much less time, but I’ll never forget the bleary eyed nights eating takeout in front of my computer willing YouTube to upload faster, please, it’s already 10pm. 

As the Fridays went on, we learned with each service. Our product got better, our processes got more efficient, and I, ironically, felt myself slowing down.  My Friday night editing sessions felt like an island of constancy amidst the enduring pandemic.  When grocery stores could not keep essentials stocked, I edited the videos. When schools closed and major league sports were suspended, I edited the videos. When my family cancelled our Thanksgiving, then Christmas festivities, I edited the videos. When positivity rates and fatalities soared, I edited the videos.  Somewhere along the way, I realized that I was going to Church. The editing process is meditative, yes, but feeling the service come together each week through the prayers and the music and the sermon brought me peace at the end of weeks that more often than not felt hopeless.

I have a notebook on my desk with my notes from each sermon over the last year. There is our very first service which muses whether we should be hoarding toilet paper. There is David’s sermon on boredom, one on hope for the future, the Christmas Eve service that made me cry,  all the way through to Michael’s this past Sunday on grace. I distinctly remember each of these services bringing moments of clarity and calm. You probably have some of your own favorites from the past year— maybe some are even the same as mine.  I am confident that these messages will stand the test of time, but I also know that one day, years from now, I will find this notebook in a box somewhere and instantly remember the year that I went to Church on Friday nights. I don’t think I’ve ever learned so much. 

Until Friday,

Lauren R. Hardin
Marketing, Communications & Office Manager

This article appeared in the Wave on June 9, 2021