Foreknowledge

Church attendance is not what it used to be. Not only in numbers, but in frequency and in reasons for going. We are very regular and I am not saying that to put a feather in our hats. I am questioning why we do that.
Why this introspection? Recently a decision was made in our church to refrain from announcing ahead of time who next week's preacher would be. We have many good preachers, but our Lead Pastor is a real gem and is very popular because of his communication skills, his Biblical knowledge, and his ability to teach, inform and at the same time challenge his listeners and at times make them very uncomfortable, but in a good way. As a result, attendance has gone up on the Sundays he is preaching. There are some people quite put out by this, but I disagree with them for a number of reasons.
How does it make the other preachers feel when very few 'show up' on their Sunday behind the pulpit? And why do people go to church in the first place? If it is only to hear a sermon by their favourite preacher, they are missing the boat. So I examined why we go to Church regularly and why it does not matter who preaches, but when our favourite shows up, it is a bonus.
As Christians, we like to get together with other Christians. Not just our friends and pew-mates, but others of similar disposition and world view.
We like to and need to worship. This happens regardless of who the preacher or who the worship leader is. God meets us every time if we have expectant hearts.
We support our church. We are not fair weather friends of our church. We support and boost our church all the time, not just when it fancies us.
We are involved. We have a duty as members of Christ's body to serve and we do. This often requires regular attendance. These are some of our favourite times spent at Church.
We love going. It is our Sunday morning thing like a coffee at Starbucks is for some people. We miss it very much when we are indisposed or on holidays and can't wait to get back. There is just something missing if we miss.
So, we do not need to know who is preaching next Sunday. We will be there regardless.