If the walls of Third Church could talk they would have some interesting things to tell us about what happens from week to week in this building.  Listen and imagine with them as the walls share what they hear during a typical week.

Monday morning.  It’s pretty quiet today, especially after a busy day yesterday.  Sundays are always very busy, but today is different.  Usually Greg Bode is here by himself most of the day.  He can probably get a lot more done on a Monday without any interruptions.  Wait a minute, here comes Jodi Sparber to do some cleaning.  Dusting, picking up litter, cleaning the bathrooms and washing windows keep her busy for a few hours.  I hear that she really likes it when there’s special request to do some drawing or painting.  She’s quite the artist.  Maybe sometime she’ll even do a mural on one of us.

Things get quite a bit livelier on Monday evenings.  One week it’s the GEMS and the next week the Cadets.  Both groups seem to have lots of fun and enjoy learning and growing together.  They’ve got some hard-working counselors who must love working with kids that age because it takes a lot of energy to keep up with all their antics.  The counselors are excellent role models for the boys and girls by their life of service to Jesus Christ.

Tuesday morning the week settles into a somewhat normal routine.  Cynthia gets started with organizing her desk after Sunday.  People have left messages for her, borrowed her tape dispenser again, used up the paper in the copy machine, or even worse, left the copier with a paper jam.  She counts how many extra bulletins were left over on Sunday.  Not very many extras this week, she’ll probably have to print a few more next week to make sure they don’t run out.  I hear that more people are taking a bulletin since Pastor Kok has been putting his sermon outline on them.  It probably is a good way to keep them focused on what he’s saying.  Hmm, seems to me I’ve heard that word “focus” quite a bit around here lately.  Hope it’s getting the results they are hoping for.

By 9:00 Pastor Tom, Greg, and Shawn have all shown up and are busy at their desks.  Wonder who will make the coffee today?  They all seem to enjoy a good cup of coffee and it does smell pretty good.  Speaking of smelling good, those cinnamon rolls that Sue brought in last week surely smelled good.  They must have tasted good too, since they disappeared pretty quickly.  People at Third must appreciate the staff because I’ve noticed that goodies are brought in quite often. 

Let’s see, Tuesday night is often a pretty busy night, isn’t it?  Some weeks the Ministry Coordination team is here at 6:30 already, and then those leaders go on to meet with their own teams.  The team we relate to the best is the Building and Grounds team.  Wonder if they will talk about knocking down some walls tonight.  Things could get a little exciting if they start doing that.  A fresh coat of paint on some of us would be a pretty good idea though. 

Back to Tuesday night.  That’s when a group meets down in room 8.  Life Recovery it’s called.  These people keep a pretty low profile in the building but they are faithful about coming every Tuesday night.  I’m glad Third provides a place for these people who are struggling with addictions where they can encourage one another in their desire to make a change in their lifestyle.  We respect them and we’ll never reveal anything we overhear in that room.  We can tell you that Irv Timmermans is the man to contact if you need more information.

Another low profile group called TOPS meets in room 4 on Tuesday nights.  Every week they bring out their big scale and hope for lower numbers.  Once again, we’ll never reveal any secrets.  I don’t think Carol Roosma would mind, though,  if we tell you that she’s the one in charge of this group.

Some Tuesday evenings we hear lots of fun stuff going on in the Fireside Room.  That’s when the Friendship group meets to provide activities for some special adults who live in this community.  Some of them “belong” to Third but many of them just come here for this special activity planned for them.  I’ve seen Pastor Bill VandenBos working with them sometimes.  Matt Hammingh seems to enjoy being a part of the group, too.  There’s always food to go along with the games and other fun stuff. 

There’s another group that also meets in the Fireside Room on Tuesday night, usually the third week of the month.  The council is what they’re called.  They have lots of important stuff to talk about and sometimes it gets quite late.  I hear them discussing church matters, setting goals, and sharing ideas of what the church can be.  They often take time to pray and ask God for wisdom as they make important decisions.  These same men meet the second Tuesday of the month, but then it’s in two separate groups which they call elders and deacons.  Ivan Buma usually comes early to make coffee for the council and the elders.  One of the other guys comes in with a big tray of cookies, a cake or some other kind of dessert.  The deacons meet downstairs so we don’t always see what they have to eat.

Wednesday morning.  This is the day for staff meeting.  Pastor Tom, Greg, Cynthia, Shawn, and Amie gather in the pastor’s office for devotions and discuss lots of matters of the church.  They seem to have lots of fun because we certainly hear lots of hearty laughter.  While they are meeting, Carol is often in the office answering the phone and working on the next issue of the Bugle.

Every other Wednesday morning 15-20 young women show up for an hour of Bible study.  Two or three “grandmas” take care of the more than 20 children in the nursery while the moms study together.  This is just one of three groups of young women who are involved in Bible study.  The other groups meet early in the morning or in the evening when dad is around to take care of the kids.  Those groups meet either in a restaurant or someone’s home, we hear.

Wednesday evening things are really busy here.  There’s a wonderful sound coming from the basement from 6:30-7:30 where the Handbell Choir is practicing.  This is a new program here at Third and sounds like it should be a wonderful addition to the services.  It’s a great way for teenagers and adults to work together also. 

At 7:30 the choir meets for its weekly practice in the Fireside Room.  Director Del VandeKerk is there early to get things set up.  He’s been working with the choir for several years and has earned a reputation as an excellent choir director.  The Christmas cantatas are always a special treat.  They are working on some special Lenten songs lately and singing every Sunday morning.  We missed them when they took a break during 40 Days of Purpose.

Youth Group also meets on Wednesday nights, but it’s hard to tell where they will be on any given week.  They often meet at church and then go somewhere else for an activity.  Lately when they meet here at Third they have to squeeze into Pastor Shawn’s office since the Youth House has been under renovation.  If those walls could talk, they’d really have an interesting story to tell.  I hear all the interior walls have been removed so it’s only the exterior walls that will be able to listen in on as the teenagers talk, pray, laugh, and play their music. 

It’s early Thursday morning and we already hear the doors opening.  The Executive Team finds 6:15 am the best time to get everyone together for their monthly meeting to discuss some of the business items of the church.  Occasionally on other mornings we will also hear a small group of men gather for a time of sharing and accountability at an early hour.

Pastor Tom also invites the leaders of the small groups to come in occasionally for a time of encouragement and support.  This doesn’t usually start quite so early, probably about 7:30.  Usually early enough that they call it a breakfast meeting and share muffins and coffee together.

In an hour or two the staff members are all on duty, and then before long Adelene Haverhals and Carol Bratt arrive, usually with some yummy looking food, to meet with a small group of Hispanic women for Bible study.  Another group, called the Women’s Coffee Fellowship, also meets for an hour or so beginning at 9:30.  At 11:30 more women arrive for their Lunch Hour Bible Study.  No lunch though, just coffee or water.  But the first question we hear after they’ve finished their lesson is “Where are we going for lunch?”  It sounds like they make the rounds of the local eating places.  If we could follow them to the restaurant we’d probably hear lots of interesting stories.  By 1:30 the Sharon Bible Study ladies are arriving for their bi-weekly meetings which are led by Pastor Vriesman.  They usually enjoy singing one or two hymns as well.  Two ladies must be assigned to prepare refreshments.  They always have a nice assortment of treats to serve along with their coffee after the lesson. 

Thursday evening there’s the sound of singing coming from the Fireside Room.  Men’s voices only.  That’s right, the King’s Men of Song meet here for their rehearsals.  Director Don Smith and his men make a joyful noise as they sing praises to the King.  The King’s Men have been using Third Church for many years as their home base for rehearsals.  They also led an evening service recently. 

From late spring to early fall, we hear lots of sound coming from the area just north of the church.  Skate Church draws a lot of boys and young men who love to skate, as well as a few girls, to our church.  There is music and skating going on as long as Pastor Shawn and his helpers are willing to be there.  We hear it takes a lot of helpers to bring out the ramps, register the skaters, provide refreshments, and most importantly, share the gospel with these young people.  During the winter months they move the activity indoors at the Fairgrounds but we often hear Pastor Shawn telling great stories of what is happening in Skate Church!

Friday’s another busy day.  Cynthia is printing, folding, and collating the bulletins and announcement sheets.  Sometimes we wonder how she can think with all those machines making a racket.  We’ve also heard her sigh in disgust sometimes when one of the machines fails to cooperate properly.  The phone continues to ring and people drop in to talk, but she keeps working.  Pastor Kok often likes to have a few hours without interruption so he can concentrate on the messages he’s preparing for Sunday.  I doubt that we walls are sound-proof enough to keep the noise from bothering him. 

Here comes Carol Roosma to pick up the announcement sheet for Susie Maas as she does very faithfully every week.  Next Patti Hoksbergen stops in for several copies to distribute to people at the Christian Health Care Center.  Alberta Eshuis usually checks in on Friday afternoon also to pick up her mail.  We miss Herman Hendricks the last several months.  He also liked to get his mail on Friday instead of waiting until Sunday morning.

Jodi and Randy always make an appearance on Friday to finish the cleaning for the week, clean the windows, shovel the snow, or mow the grass.  Herm Meenk often checks in to see if there’s anything that needs to be taken care of in the building.  Recently, after a few weeks of tinkering with the pilot light on the water heater, he told Jeremy DeJong to put in a new water heater.  A dishwasher without hot water isn’t worth much, I guess.

Other people who stop in at various times during the week are the organists who come to practice for an hour or two, Jim Carberry who drops off the Community Bulletin, the UPS man with a package of Sunday school papers, or maybe the large print TODAY devotional.  We’ve heard that that was missed last month.  The nursery coordinators come in to replenish supplies and check over the toys.

Skaters will often stop in to talk to Shawn or ask for permission to be on the ramps for a while.  Occasionally someone will stop by to request assistance with housing, food, or gas bills. 

Saturday is usually pretty quiet around the church but sometimes the praise band will come in for an extra rehearsal or an organist will need some more practice.  One of the women of the church stops by with a fresh bouquet to place on the organ.  During 40 Days of Purpose several people were here early on Saturday morning for a time of prayer together.

A few weeks ago we walls thought that the end was in sight for all of us in the building. We had heard people most of the day and then late in the afternoon we smelled smoke!  Just as we thought the whole place was going up in flames we heard Pastor Tom say, “Do you smell that?  It's the smell of grace.” 

Sunday morning.  The day begins early with Cal Bratt arriving by 7:00 am.  Sometimes one or more of the praise band members are already here.  Soon the building is ringing with the sound of the drums, guitars, and voices.  The sound and video technicians show up to make sure everything is working properly so that the service will go on without problems.  Cal gets the coffee ready, unlocks all the doors, puts out the bulletins, sets out the cones in the parking areas, and makes sure there is a glass of fresh water for the pastor. 

A few people show up by 8:15, but most of them wait until very close to the starting time for the Dayspring service at 8:30.  It’s amazing how many people can come through those doors in the last five minutes.  Soon the sound of voices singing praise is heard throughout the building. 

Fifteen minutes or so into the service we hear the patter (sometimes a bit more like thunder) of little feet on their way downstairs to Children’s Church.  We enjoy hearing the sounds of happy children praising God with their songs and stories.  Back upstairs we also hear the sounds of cooing babies, jabbering toddlers, and the soothing voices of the nursery attendants.

When the service is over there is lots of conversation going on in the narthex as people enjoy their coffee and meet and greet their fellow worshippers.  It’s hard for us to catch many of the words but there is a general buzz of talking that indicates people are enjoying themselves and having a good time. 

By 10:00 the children and some of the adults have found their way to various rooms in the basement for their education hour classes.  More good teaching and discussion goes on every week in these classes.

By 10:30 those who like to come early for the second service are already coming in the doors.  If the choir or a praise team is singing, those people show up in a few minutes so they can practice briefly before the service.  Some Dayspring people are still enjoying their coffee and conversation, and others are waiting for kids to come out of their class.  The narthex continues to be filled with people either coming or leaving.  Some people chose to stop at their mailbox just before leaving; others make it the first thing they do when entering the building each week.  In addition to the announcement sheet they sometimes find birthday or anniversary cards, minutes of a team meeting, a special invitation to the GEMS Spring Fling, or a note of encouragement from an appreciative fellow member.

At both morning services those who have agreed to serve as greeters are shaking hands and welcoming people, especially keeping an eye open for those who are new to the church.  One or two others are staffing the Information Center which offers literature about Third, TODAY devotional booklets, children’s bulletins, and extra copies of the Bugle.

Partway through the second service the wonderful aroma of food begins wafting through the building.  It’s time for another fellowship luncheon in the Fireside Room.  Wonder if there will be any visitors joining the group this week.  Food must be a good way to make them feel welcome and there’s always plenty to share.

For a few hours on Sunday afternoon it’s pretty quite around here except occasionally there is birthday or anniversary to celebrate.  Then there’s lots of activity going on in the Fireside Room.

Sometime before 6 pm the sound and video technicians arrive to make sure things are in order for the third service of the day.  A few elders meet with Pastor Tom and other worship participants for prayer in the pastor’s office shortly before the service begins.  This practice also takes place at both morning services. 

Young children head downstairs for their special program of Children and Worship which is led by Deanna Pawlowski and Tammelyn Boersma and their faithful assistants. 

Beginning at 6:00 those attending the evening worship service offer their praises in song and prayer.  Often Pastor Tom will turn the message into a Bible study of a specific passage.  He moves down to the main level and shares what God has spoken to his people in his Word.

It’s the end of a  very busy day here at Third Church; Cal and Melinda have locked the doors and the last people have left.  It is quiet again but the walls can still hear the echoes of what we’ve heard all day.  People praising God and sharing in the fellowship of believers.  We’re glad that we can be a witness to all that goes on in this place.  We may be just walls in a building called a church, but we know that the church is much more than a building.  It’s the people of God establishing his kingdom in their hearts and lives.