Vocal Point: Church only place for Broncos spirit

On a recent Sunday, I had the chance to sit in the pews and watch my 6-year-old grandson contribute a nine-word line of poetry to an hour-long Christmas pageant performed at a Protestant church in Spokane. The church meets in a very old building, built over 100 years ago. Nowadays, the chapel is tidy and freshly painted. The church members seem proud of their restored building.

The flock is mostly younger people in their 20s. The “elders: are in their late 30s. Lots of children and babies. I am used to elderly elders and a more aged congregation. There are sufficient faces of color in the congregation so that one didn’t get that “whites only” impression that sometimes raises its ugly head, true or not, in a town where we caucasians are about 90 percent of the general population. The members of this church seem to have a “welcome everyone” attitude. Lots of smiles and hand shaking. Most of it seems genuine.

I am a sinner and only cast my shadow on a church door for funerals, weddings and grandson’s Christmas pageants.

The service opened with a microphoned singing quartet who harmonize old religious songs with updated beats, a pleasant surprise for those of us raised on staid hymns written in the 17th and 18th century with only an organ or piano for back up. The accompanying music at this church is canned but full sounding with horns, guitars and drums. The words of the hymns appear on a large video screen above the pulpit platform. Lots of “Amens” and “Praise the Lords” erupt from those on the pulpit and they receive a like response from those seated in the pews.

All of this modern media and hip music in the Lord’s house put me off at first but after a while it all seemed so natural that I bought into it, my hands were moved to clap upon occasion.

Now for the strangest part. The video screen showed religious images and words to hymns as the prelude music played before the actual service began. I noted several Denver Broncos clips, maybe five seconds long, were interspersed among the updated hymnal lyrics on the video screen while the booming music filled the chapel.

I leaned over and asked my grandson’s father, “Is that Tim Tebow being flashed on the video screen?” He knows of my longtime contempt for the Denver Broncos and anyone who has ever played for them.

“Yep,” he replied, “You’re gonna be tired of the Broncos and Tim Tebow before this is over.”

Shortly after that, 10 minutes of the Broncos vs. Chicago Bears game highlights were shown on the video screen above the pulpit. The entire congregation stood on their feet while those highlights played. Of course, that was a game in which quarterback Tebow demonstrated some heroics (along with other Broncos) that pulled out a win from the jaws of defeat. During the entire film highlights, the congregation cheered, but never more than when Tebow spoke softly with his confidence and praise of his fellow players and his God.

The game ended in overtime, at that moment I found myself cheering for the Broncos, a team that has caused me to lose hundreds of dollars over the decades and broke the hearts of us Seahawks fans year after year. That was the first time that my adrenalin has been pumping at the beginning of a church service.

There are worse people to admire than Tim Tebow. We can hope he sticks with quarterbacking, and doesn’t get a sufficiently big head to run for political office.

Praise the Lord, especially if I can get a little help from above regarding my bet on the Seahawks on Sunday.