Over the course of this semester, you will attend chapel approximately 60 times. With sleep still in your eyes, you will walk from your room and find your seat in the Benson. At this point, you have a very important decision to make: What kind of attitude will you have toward today’s program?
We are constantly told how important chapel is, and we can choose to either accept or reject that statement. I confess that I have a history of doing the latter — rejecting the notion that chapel is important — and choosing to have a bad attitude about it. I have overheard and taken part in my fair share of conversations about the importance of chapel.
However, I’ve come to realize through these discussions that the real issue with chapel is me. What does it say about my heart if I can do nothing but criticize the people of God and their worship for him? What good does it do if I throw myself into my chapel seat five days a week with a poor attitude and then complain afterward about the service? We seem to think of chapel as just a program or a class we go to, but in reality, it is the worship of our great and incredible God. After three years here at Harding, I’ve finally learned that the programs that may not have seemed very incredible were often that way because I didn’t have a good attitude and put my heart into them.
You have a choice as to how you are going to feel about chapel. You — and only you — can control whether or not you actually “show up” for chapel.
I would much rather spend 60 of my mornings in a good mood praising my God than 60 of my mornings tuned out in my own world. As a result, I’ve actively made a choice to have a good attitude about chapel this semester. It has allowed me to enjoy a number of chapel programs I would have previously not paid attention to.
Now that I am putting forth more of an effort to really appreciate what chapel has to offer and learn from it, I find myself no longer pretending, whether during the worship or the prayer or in paying attention. The speakers deserve more of my focus and attention because I know God speaks through them to the student body.
The same choice presents itself to you now. You can decide to have a good attitude about chapel or be indifferent for 60 mornings that you will never get back. Please know I write all this not to condemn anyone; I understand how hard it is to stay focused every morning. I write this merely as a challenge to anyone who has a poor attitude about chapel. I challenge you to truly worship your God.
So what will your attitude be?
