I Wonder.....

I was looking through some pictures that I took last year when Gary and I went to Pigeon Forge for our anniversary. We drove through Cades Cove, a place that I dearly love. I love the old cabins, the mills and the old churches and cemeteries. So this morning, as I sat in our beautiful sanctuary, with the numerous chandeliers, stained glass windows, carpet and padded pews, not to mention the central heat and air, I thought about these pics that I had taken of the old churches in Cades Cove. It was pouring rain, when we left to go to church this morning, a little chilly because of the rain, but hey, we had umbrellas and the car was in the carport, nice and dry. I got to thinking about the people who went to these old churches so many years ago. Their cabins many miles from the church, certainly no carpet or padded pews to sit on and I wondered about the weather they endured to be able to go to church and worship the Lord. I'm sure some walked, rode horseback, or open horse drawn buggies. In the winter they had a stove in the sanctuary, in the summer I can see the ladies with their paper fans and all the windows open. Yet, despite these hardships, they were true to their beliefs and church was an important part of their life. It's what kept a lot of them going through the hardships of life back then.

So I wonder....would we do any of this today? Would we be willing to ride in the rain and snow, or the stifling July heat to sit on wooden benches without central heat and air to hear the word of God. I wonder......