Am I Putting Ben Folds Before Jesus?

The Tinley family missed church this morning. Because of an all-church brunch, Sunday school classes were cancelled, so I didn't have to teach. Knowing that Ashlee would be off today and that I wouldn't be teaching Sunday school, Cole graciously let me take a break from the radio show. So the Tinleys decided to set aside the morning for family time.

I had still planned on going to the late-morning service at church, but as 10:30 approached, it became apparent that the family was in no shape to worship. I had a sore throat, a stuffy head, and a mild achy-ness throughout my body; Ashlee is 13-weeks pregnant and had a difficult morning. Meyer, unlike his parents, felt fine; actually, he felt so fine that the little energy Ashlee and I had was completely expended trying to keep up with him. (As far as I can tell, the cats are healthy, and—aside from a tantrum from Naomi—they have been well behaved. But we don't take any of them to church.)

So we skipped church this morning. I wouldn't feel so bad, given the circumstances, but Ashlee and I will be seeing Ben Folds tonight at the Ryman Auditorium. The combination of Ben Folds and the Ryman makes this a show that we cannot miss. Ashlee and I saw Ben with the Ben Folds Five the last time he played the Ryman, back in 2000. It was one of the best shows either of us had ever seen.

Sure, we'll probably feel better by the time we go to the concert than we did this morning; but I still have to ask, Am I putting Ben Folds before Jesus? In the interest of honesty and full disclosure, I should probably add that we will be setting the VCR (yes, we still have one that we use) before we go so that we don't miss Desperate Housewives.