The Back Row

It was the 1990 Super Bowl. San Francisco vs. Denver at the Louisiana Superdome. During that time I worked as a correspondent for HBO’s Inside the NFL and one of the perks was to receive tickets to the Super Bowl. They weren’t always the best seats; in this case I was planted on the top row of the Superdome.

I remember an acquaintance from one of the networks yelling up from his seat, many rows down, “Hey Lisa, how’s the view up there?” I yelled back, “I’m at the Super Bowl, aren’t I?” I was simply happy to be in the stadium, at the big game.

On Saturday, I didn’t have the same attitude.

We tried to get to church early, but couldn’t make it out the door. I didn’t want to end up in the balcony, because that’s where we had to go in the past when we were really late. I enjoy worship on the ground floor.

We arrived at church five minutes before the service started, and it was already packed. What was going on? Nothing was available downstairs. Upstairs, it was the same story, but I found two seats in the back row of the balcony, so I grabbed them.

As I worshipped, I secretly sulked. I disliked being in the upper deck, and detested the back row even more, then I heard,

Who are you worshiping? If you are worshiping me, then the back row is every bit as good as the front row because I’m omnipresent. Remember, Lisa, it’s the heart I see.

The Holy Spirit was right. I wanted to be on the ground floor so I could see the speaker and worship team better. It really was not about worshipping God. We can worship Him anywhere, anyplace, even in the back row.

When our pastor introduced the guest preacher, I realized why we had an overflow crowd.

The Duck Commander himself took the stage. Phil Robertson, the star of Duck Dynasty and an evangelical Christian, was the guest preacher.

We were out of town the weekend before and forgot he was speaking. Of course, that’s why the church was splitting at the seams!

And then I was ashamed for desiring a better seat. This was an outreach to bring in those who didn’t know Christ, because Robertson shared his testimony in a powerful way. It should have been an honor to give up my main floor seat to those who needed to hear and see Phil’s message.

Jesus spoke about something like this scenario in Luke 14:7-11:

“When he noticed how the guests picked the places of honor at the table, he told them this parable:

“‘When someone invites you to a wedding feast, do not take the place of honor, for a person more distinguished than you may have been invited. If so the host who invited both of you will come and say to you, ‘Give this person your seat.’ Then humiliated, you will have to take the least important place. But when you are invited, take the lowest place, so that when your host comes, he will say to you, ‘Friend, move up to a better place.’ Then you will be honored in the presence of all the other guests. For all those who exalt themselves will be humbled, and those who humble themselves will be exalted.’”

I wasn’t invited to move up to a better seat, but I was humbled.

What do you expect when you walk in a room?

Special treatment?

A place of honor?

God is still working on me in this area, after years of receiving freebies and dignitary treatment in the media. It’s a difficult mindset to break.

Jesus also said, “The first will be last, and the last will be first.”

Help me Jesus, to be okay with the back row, to be humble, and to choose being last.