Snow on Sunday

Our church, and several that I have been in, have cancelled church due to the snow or icy roads. One older lady, going to church in the snow (because many feel obligated even when it is treacherous), wrecked her car and was stuck in it for some time before rescued. This made the pastor re-think it.

My current pastor does not usually make the decision on his own, though. He ususally consults with the deacon chair.

 

I'm in Colorado and our church has closed several times during huge snow storms. I would say let commonsense prevail.
James2

 

Have cancelled, but because we need 45 minutes to 1.5 hour to go to church (depending trraffic), we left already when the notice came over the phone. So we wound up being there at the chruch. The trip was 2 hours at that time but we gave extra time to get there.

Guess who was at the meeting? The Pastor and family (they knew that we would go), since they had to drive about 15 minutes only, then there was a young couple with their children and another coupel from next door. We had a wonderful Wednesday evening prayer and we all went home after that.

When I arrived home we had three messages from folks. One was from the Pastor, the other from a Trustee, and another from a friend who attended another chruch. They all warned us about the bad road conditions, and urged us to stay home!

But we never had cancellation on Sunday. We have pretty good snow removal from the major highways.

 

<BLOCKQUOTE>quote:</font><HR>Originally posted by Ps104_33:
I'm sitting here in south eastern Pennsylvania this fine Saturday morn and its starting to snow. Calling for 6-8 inches.
Now my Pastor has a policy that he will never cancel a sunday service on account of snow, unless the government forces it....... <HR></BLOCKQUOTE>

Ours does in really bad weather. Otherwise,
some people would struggle through no matter what and possibly get injured.
If you do have services no matter what, hopefully it is also expressed in your church that people are not considered less spiritual if they don't come in bad weather.
My husband can handle almost any driving conditions, I cannot and would not endanger my kids. Yes, there can be really bad weather in OK, last year for example, there were massive ice storms.

Karen

 

I've never seen our church cancel, but everyone lives pretty close. Even if the pastor or something couldn't show up we all know what to do without him, lol.
da Gina

 

We have a couple of times when we had ice storms. Once the ice in town on the streets was 6" deep, then snow on top of that.

 

<BLOCKQUOTE>quote:</font><HR>Originally posted by Dr. Bob Griffin: Wonder how many times I've heard that load about "every time the doors of the church are open". What a feeble dictatorship some Baptists run. <HR></BLOCKQUOTE>

Funny that you say that Dr. Griffin, because I love to go to church every time the door opens. But there were some very rare occasions when severe illness kept me from attending. I felt terrible though for not being in the house of the Lord. I had a deep sense of loss - the loss of fellowship. I think that's what motivated David also to go to the house of the Lord. Naturally we never had 65 below zero yet here in the asphalt jungle.

 

I have many times heard my pastor say every time the doors are open. However it is not an order, it is simply his wish that our chruch family be together as much as possible. When he uses that phrase he also tempers it with except when you are sick or unforseen circumstance keep you from comming. His point is that if my daughter is sick then either my wife or I need to stay home with her but not both. If my wife is sick, would I go to work under the same circumstances? If I would then I should be in church.

Bill

 

Having church when road conditions are questionable is just plain foolish. When our pastor lived on the church prperty there would be church no mattter what because he was there, bad poiciy as some people don't have the brains God gave a gnat and would risk their safety and that of others to be in church.

Our present pastor lets common sense prevail and cancels church when conditions are questionable. We have even had to cancel when our acces road became accessable only by four wheel drive vehicles.

The Lord gave us a brain and we should use it to determine whether to risk the safety of our families and those who would have to come to our aid it we become starnded.

Ernie

 

A few flakes shuts everything in Atlanta down for the day. (Hey, you said "Florida." You didn't mention Georgia.)

Joshua

 

Again, this is about common sense. Calling off a worship service because there is a possibility that putting people on the roads might endanger their safety is not a mortal sin. It's a no-brainer. I have more respect for God than to intentionally put His people at risk.

 

AMEN! TomVols AMEN!

 

It sounds like common sense wins the day. We cancelled one Sunday evening when a tornado blew through town about 2 pm on Sunday. I had to cancel, I was cutting up trees in the street down the block from our church. Most of the streets in town were blocked by fallen trees.

Once in a city I pastored in Wisconsin we had a 20 incher on Thanksgiving weekend which began sunday morning. The interstate closed Sunday about 2 pm and about 3000 people were stranded in our city We cancelled our evening service (probably broken the 11th commandment...thou shalt have church Sunday night!) Then I called all the families who lived in our neighborhood (about 6) and we had a gathering at our house (to keep from breaking that 11th commandment) Somehow a couple from Minnesota stranded from the storm called and ended up staying with us for the night. We had a great time with those who came without endangering anyone's life. The husband of the visiting couple was unsaved and our service made quite an impression on him.

 

<BLOCKQUOTE>quote:</font><HR>Ernie - Wouldn't that mean that YOUR church in North Dakota would be closed from Nov-March?
Man, I've been in your fair state in Winter and even if there was a rare GOOD day, I would still be risking my life if my car fell into one of those pot-holes that go all the way to Beijing!

<HR></BLOCKQUOTE>

well, will have to agree about the pot holes, but without them we would lack swimming pools (gets warm enough 2 or 3 days during the summer)

Ernie

 

If it snows down here, I'm staying home, because no one knows how to drive in it, and I don't either
(Ga, not Fla)

 

Snow? What's that? Oh yea, now I remember that in the not so distant past that we used to have white stuff falling from the sky in winter.

I encourage our people to use their own discresion while driving in the elements. Iowa folk aren't so silly, if it's bad weather they don't come to church even if it's good weather . . . We have canceled some sunday evening and thursday evening services due to weather. During difficult weather most of the folk who live in town make it to church and those who live in the country or adjoining communities stay home where they belong. I am never deterred by weather but some who are of weaker heard and stronger mind usually talk sense to me.

Excuse me while I check and see if the bananas are ripe.

Pastor Steve
in the tropics of Iowa

 

On a historical note, the 11th commandment mentioned by Circuitrider was derived from the 8th Pillar of the Baptist Faith, "We have always done it that way"

My church has cancelled once in the 3 years I have been there, we got about 30 inches started Friday night and stopped Sunday Night, with winds that reminded me of Wyoming. There were drifts as tall as me. Our Church is on an unpaved minor road that the county didn't get to until Tuesday, and the truck the church hired to do their parking lot couldn't get to the Driveway. It would not have mattered anyway, since I couldn't get my van out anyway, and had to ride with the neighbor in his Jeep Grand Cherokee just to get some essentials from Meijer. I-75 only had one open lane, and even than you had to have 4 wheel drive. Sometimes it just ain't possible. I missed two days of work too until they got everything straightened out.