Water In Church
 

While I realize that the Preacher almost always has a glass of water, do you/your Church frown on anyone having water in Church?

I especially am thinking of the other leaders, musicians, etc.

We allow it as long as it is discreet.
When we attend other Churches though, we refrain.

What say ye?

I attended a church where there was no Air Conditioning for many years. Not only was water approved, but I seldom wore "a monkey suit" to service. After church trips to the 7-11 next door after service were the norm. Not only water, but Big Gulps, Slurpee, and Frozen Mochas.... The latter 3 not to be drank in the Sanctuary.

I hear ya.

Was that in California?

I'm waiting for people to start bringing sack lunches. For heaven's sake - you don't need to drink that much water!! I don't ever remember wanting a drink of water during church. I'll probably feel thirsty this Sunday. LOL!

We were in a ladies retreat a few months ago and a woman had - I kid you not! - a gallon jug with a straw!!! A huge white container with lettering mind you! And those huge accordion looking straws!!!!! I was so distracted that I couldn't get into the service. Hahahahahaha! She was on the outside of the aisle and had it sitting next to her chair!! I should have danced in the spirit and knocked it over!!!

I was wondering how I could take pictures and publish these things!!!!

:killinme

Water is allowed in the church by my pastor, but I don't see the importance in it in most cases.

I understand the pastor and even singers need it, but there are people who have brought even soda into the church. I don't think that's right.

When I first had my bypass surgery, I brought water to church because I had to drink something almost all the time, but after a couple months, I could do without if for a couple hours and quit bringing it.

I also don't agree with food for children being in the church. It's on thing to have Cheerios for a one-yr old, perhaps, but I have seen people bring sandwiches for 3 and 4 yr olds.....not in the church I attend currently, but in churches I've been a member of. I don't think that's right.

You should hand out those red and white checkered napkins and say, "Here ya go, being as you look like you are going on a picnic - IN THE SANCTUARY!!!!!"

HAHAHAHAHAHA!

New England.

We don't have AC here either, but we really don't need it unless there are 150 in the building (once in 3 yrs that happenned) and we open all doors and windows and set up fans to ventilate.

My wife has stories about a lady who would bring a 2 liter tupperware jug to church for her and her 2 kids. When younger, milk was not good- she gave the kid Orange Juice. Imagine what that does to a stomach..... easy to clean off hardwood floors... Braaaaaap. Same children were equipped with a harness. Sad but true the mom would then use over 100 feet of rope and allow the child to weave a maze between the pews.

I take a bottle of water to church almost every service. My son takes an allergy medicine that makes him extremely thirsty. It's less distracting for me to give him a sip of water from a bottle than to get up and take him out to the water fountain several times during every service.

Uh oh.. I failed this one too. I keep tic tacs, lifesavers, skittles, etc in my purse. When my son sits quietly and pays attention to the sermon-- each 15 minutes, he's rewarded with a single piece. We're talking about an unmedicated ADHD child who finds it impossible to sit still and be quiet. I think my pastor must approve of such methods by parents to keep kids from disrupting the service for others-- because tic tacs, lifesavers and skittles are available for sale in the church library. :D Otherwise, I'd spend more time out of the sanctuary than in the sanctuary spanking his little rear end for acting up in church. Small sacrifices... :D

Water in the church?!?! God forbid!!





















Wait a minute! What do you plan on baptizingin then? :D

Tina,
I don't see a problem with that. I think we are speaking of grown adults. At least I am. lol!

:thwak :thwak :thwak

But Sister, dragging him out of the sanctuary to give him a good whippin is old style way of doing things and who are you to break tradition? :D

This discussion used to drag Chax out of lurking... :popcorn2

The only adults I see at church with water bottles are the preacher (who rarely uses his, but it's there for him in case he needs it) And the music leader or whatever his title is. He puts all he's got into leading the songs... and since the temperature on the platform always seems to be 20 degrees higher than where the rest of us sit... I can understand why they have it.

Everyone else just gets up and walks out to the water fountain. At some services I feel sorry for the ushers-- because they stand at the back by the doors leading out of the sanctuary, and will open and close them every time someone enters/leaves the sanctuary. They get a workout in every service...

I don't recall ever getting up during a service. I never allowed my children to do that until the end of the service. If the adults are going to keep getting up the kids will too.

All that is saying, IMO, is, "I am bored!"

When I'm bored, I just read my Bible. HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHHA!

So, what are you saying here? That your church is boring, so you have to read your Bible to make it through a service? :D

I live in AZ and here people take water ~everywhere~. For one, it's scientifically studied to be nearly as hot in AZ as that "other" place; and two it's less distracting than people getting up to leave the sanctuary to get a drink . . . plus then they usually end up standing around talking to other thirsty people.

Ask JT, when I led songs at my previous church, I'd not only have water . . . but I had a thing (little bear container) of honey. Sometimes I'd have a Hershey's Milk Chocolate bar in little pieces to coat the vocs.

If he behaves in such a way to need that... His daddy comes out of the sound booth and takes him out. It doesn't have to happen that way very often. He remembers it for a while after it happens. ;)

I see. Praise the Lawd, Sista! You still believe in them old paths!! HA!!! :D

I'm in a good mood today, in case you couldn't tell. :)

I live in a very dry climate so I think it is sometimes necessary. And I would agree that it is less distracting to have a sip of water at your seat than to get up and go to the drinking fountain multiple times (like many children in our church do).

contrary to popular believe that church building really is NOT God's house...our bodies are. However it should not be trashed because we all use it and that would be disrespectful to each other...we invite visitors and that would be disrespectful to God to not care what they think

No. lol! I can say that my church is far from boring, BUT I have been bored in other churches through the years and with some speakers. :D

We have water in the sanctuary for anyone on the platform. I usually have one at my seat that someone brings in and leaves for me, but I don't always open it. If we do alot of praying for people at the altar, sometimes I do want it. I CANNOT stand for anyone to bring in anything other than water though. We have a coffee bar in the lobby, but we have big signs that says that nothing but water can come in the sanctuaries. However, once in a while, someone misses the signs and brings one in anyway.

I have been in one service where there was a coke machine in the sanctuary and all during service, you could hear the money drop and cokes falling. It was insane!!:popcorn2

Tina, I'm not talking about mints or small stuff, I'm talking about sandwiches, chips, and even drinks.

Thankfully, nobody does that at the church I attend now.

Until her kids got older and she got smarter......LOL!

Little children are somewhat different, but school age children can make it through service without needing a drink.

I'm sure they aren't excused from the classroom everytime they want a drink, are they?

This irritates me with kids that are allowed to leave service to go potty three or four times a service. We are there for two hours!! Even a toddler doesn't go three or four times in two hours!!

I wear a podemeter as part of a health and fitness program @ work. I put 1,500 - 2,000 steps easy during a service. We are preparing the sanctuary for video services and the lights get extremely hot. I've had a bottle of water while someone got the Holy Ghost. If your church is like ours, the only people complaining about the water bottles are the spectators. Participators have no problem with them.

If the church was full of nothing but adults, I wouldn't have a problem with it, perhaps, but since there are children and teens of all ages, it presents a problem when some have water and others don't.

All it takes is one kid that has water and then they all want some, and if they don't have a bottle, they want to go downstairs every ten minutes.

This happens with teens even. One goes downstairs and suddenly, bladders all over the congregation have suddenly filled or the demon of thirst has taken over their minds.

I don't personally care if everyone but me has water. I'm an adult and able to control myself. However, children are different and I don't think it's fair to them.

Maybe it's because I was raised in a church where we went to the bathroom and got a drink before church and we didn't go again until after church. That was the rule.

I must confess. I indulge in things other than h2o during service. My soundbooth is in the balcony next to my studio. Quite often I am back and forth between the two during service keeping levels right in the studio and keeping the house rocking(excuse the reference to "rock"). So in my mini fridge under my board i have it stocked with Red Bull and water. I know I know, heathan.

Water bottles are acceptable in our church. Most everyone on the pulpit has one available to them. Most times, I have one with me.. and I openly drink it when needed, sure beats going in and out of service.

Anytime our choir sings we are encouraged to bring water bottles by the case and we all carry one. We have them throughout Christmas and other programs. Singing takes a lot out of you and water is very helpful.

This is more the sort of thing I have issue with.... There is one woman in church who brings drink and chips for her little boy...So the few times I have sat near her I've had the joy of hearing the rattling of the bag as she opened it and then the aroma of Doritos filling my nostrils....makes it hard to do anything but crave chips or be completely annoyed... The way I see it is you feed your kids BEFORE or AFTER church -- not during...Unless in the case of babies who have not been weaned... I have no problem with water... There are several who have it at church and there's never a display about it.

The candies you describe here and the way you use them are a far cry from eating sandwiches and chips in church...they are small candies that can be eaten very discreetly -- even used to cover dry mouth, soothe a cough or sore through or freshen breath... Dorito sister's makes a spectacle of sorts with the noise and smell....and he rarely even eats on the chips.

Weren't some of the folks eating popcorn or something too? :popcorn2 It seems like I remember them eating during service along with their cokes!!

The church needs water in it so we can baptize folks.

The last General Conference I was at had people all around munching on popcorn, hot dogs and drinking soda.

During the offering or afterwards?!?

In my humble opinion, tolerance of any shape has taken a backseat to the now generation. It is not any hotter now in churches than it used to be, if fact some have air conditioning that didn't used to. The way we have church is not any different than services I remember as a kid. However, people think that they have to have water for some reason. They don't give a second thought to getting up at a very crucial point in the service and going out to the bathroom or whatever it is they do. Consideration to others has taken a very backseat. I am for the preacher and singers having water but even this I think could be taken to extreme. In years gone by, I have seen many times a pracher preach without any water. This is the NOW generation. Whatever I want, I want it now! If I am hungry, I have to eat now. If I am thirsty, I have to drink now! If I am tired of sitting here, I have to get up and leave. It doesn't matter if the spirit of God is moving on someone and I might disturb them, I don't take into consideration the needs and wants of others, it is truly "all about me". And sad to say this way of thinking has crept into the church.

Some people take medicine that causes them to be thirsty. I think is is less intrusic to have a bottle with them than getting up and going out.