It happened again. It
shouldn’t surprise me since it occurs often, but it seems like every time it
catches me just a little off guard. I
don’t know if each time I don’t believe that it can happen again or if I just
don’t trust that the Lord can do it again.
Regardless, I am so thankful that He always does.
What happened? Worship
happened. Once again Dan and I went to
church yesterday and worshipped with our brothers and sisters in Christ. It is a rarity that we miss because we know
how vital it is to our Christian walk and there is nothing else that we do that
impacts our week like worship does.
There is no other hour in our prior six days that has the same effect on
us and when a Sunday is over, we can’t wait until the next Sunday.
I cannot tell you the number of times that I have walked into
our church exhausted on a Sunday morning.
There have been days when I went through the door completely spent,
either from a busy week or due to pain.
I’m sure many of you can relate because I know I am not alone in feeling
this way.
But something happens as I worship. My focus begins to shift from me to the One I
came to worship. The burdens and cares I
walked in with, suddenly don’t seem so overwhelming as I lift my voice in
praise. The pain that I am experiencing,
takes a back seat to feeling the Holy Spirit working in a powerful way. It’s hard to put into words, but something
happens in that service each week that just can’t be duplicated anywhere else.
Can I worship my heavenly Father in my home? Yes.
Can I worship my Lord in nature?
Yes. Can I even worship my Jesus
while I’m driving my car? Yes I
can. But none of that compares to being
in His presence with my brothers and sisters in Christ. The reason is that this wonderful group of
people is my Christian family. They are
my community and having the privilege of being with them is something that I
treasure. In Christ, we have a common
focus. In Him, we have a common bond and
the time we spend together each Sunday sets the tone for my week.
The early church knew the importance of meeting together. We read in Acts 2:42-47, “All the believers devoted themselves to the apostles’ teaching, and to
fellowship, and to sharing in meals (including the Lord’s Supper), and to
prayer.
A deep sense of awe
came over them all, and the apostles performed many miraculous signs and
wonders. And all the believers met
together in one place and shared everything they had. They sold their property and possessions and
shared the money with those in need.
They worshiped together at the Temple each day, met in homes for the
Lord’s Supper, and shared their meals with great joy and generosity – all the
while praising God and enjoying the goodwill of all the people. And each day the Lord added to their
fellowship those who were being saved.”
God did mighty and miraculous things when the people did life
together and the same is true today. God’s
purpose is for us to come together, not just on Sunday mornings, but throughout
our week to support, love and care for the needs of each other. It worked those many years ago…and it works
today too.
If you are struggling and feel all alone, make sure you are
involved in a local community of believers.
Find a group with whom you can worship and do life with them. Don’t look for perfection…because you will
never find it. Look for brothers and
sisters in Christ whose focus is on the King of Kings and Lord of Lords. Then, get ready for something to happen that
just might make you feel totally different when you walk out than when you
walked in!
No comments:
Post a Comment