On my recent trip to Vermont, I visited the Trapp Family Lodge, where the real von Trapp family of The Sound of Music fame lived and worked after they left Europe. One of the features of the grounds around the lodge is a hike to a little stone chapel in the woods that one of the sons, Werner von Trapp, built in honor of the fallen comrades he served with during World War II.
I decided to take a look at this little chapel. The hike started off pleasant enough until I reached a very steep path covered with sharp rocks, twisted tree roots and various holes and ruts. As I was huffing and puffing my way up the hill, contemplating turning around, a couple was coming down the path toward me. One of them looked at me in my beleaguered state and said, “You can make it. It is right around the corner.” I did make it, and it was just around the corner. I enjoyed looking at the careful craftsmanship of the building, and I rang the bell on a rope in celebration of my arrival at this little house of the Lord.
On my way down, there were a few hikers coming toward me, and they asked, “How far?” I said, “Just at the end of this hill. It’s steep, but it is worth it.” I was able to pass on my experience to them and encourage them to continue their journey to the chapel.
On our way to our own churches each Sunday, the devil likes to throw obstacles in our path. Our tired bodies, sports games on TV or delicious brunch menus at a local restaurant are like the rocks and roots and holes that almost stopped me from reaching that church in the woods. What are some things that have prevented you from going to church? Think of how you can avoid those things in the future so that you can enjoy time with the Lord and celebrate him in his house through word and song.
It is good for us, too, to be able tell others who are considering going to church after being absent from it for awhile or who have never set foot in one before that it is worth to go. Our words of encouragement and our recounting of our experiences at church may be just what people need to hear to attend worship and be blessed by it.
