When the Saints Go Marching In

Thank God for annoying people getting together on Sundays
for the tone-deaf weirdos filling uncomfortable pews
singing poorly written songs
for wandering sermons with vague points
and for U2 obsessed musicians equipped with acoustic guitars
and a knowledge of 3 and a half chords

Thank God for the old couple glaring
at the teenagers with nose piercings
for the men in their late 30’s
with bic’ed heads and goatees
and for prayers that go on too long

Thank God for finger picking and ugly carpet
for the gauntlet of smiling middle aged men
handing out programs and shaking hands
and for free bad coffee

Thank God for announcements about potlucks
and youth group ski trips
for the signs that tell the parents of child 278
to go to child care as soon as possible
and for the pastor who tells the same story
about his daughter every other Sunday

God blessed the awkward church
He breathes his into the church with dysfunctions
too great to be ignored
He comes near the church filled with uncomfortable people
making uncomfortable conversation with other uncomfortable people
He sits in the back with the people complaining about the worship
He stands with the smelly people raising their hands
He even kneels beside those who go to the altar
because everyone else was going forward

Who is like Him? And who can fathom His ways?
He fills his kingdom with the obsolete and irrelevant
and with those without understanding
All thanks to Him who counted me in that number.