Reflections from Pastor Barry. . .
The Heart of Worship
Our core purpose as a church is the worship of God. Everything that we do flows out of that wellspring of worship. Because that's true, it's good for us to think about worship -- to consider exactly what it is and why we do it. We've been talking about that recently in our gatherings -- and it's a great thing to think about as we begin a new year together.
Some of the most important parts of worship happen before a worship service even starts. That may sound strange, but it's true. I'm talking about the days and hours before our worship services begin as God's people devote themselves to preparing for a meeting with God. When we gather for worship, we enter into God's time and space. If we truly intend to be sensitive to His presence and ready to respond to His voice, then we need to prepare ourselves for that holy encounter.
I want to encourage our church family to take seriously our preparation for worship.
Pray throughout the week as Sunday approaches. Ask God to prepare your heart to receive what He wants to say to you. Spend some time in quiet prayer on Sunday morning. As you enter our place of worship, remember where you are and why you have come. Pray again for a sensitivity to God's presence. Pray for the people around you. In your words and attitudes, help others as they prepare for worship. And through all of that, trust God to honor your preparation as you desire to give Him your best through worship.
What happens in worship is different from everything else that happens in life. Worship affects all of life; it flows into the rest of life; it is set within the context of life -- but it is different. And that difference calls for our preparation. In worship, we are in God's presence in a unique way.
Yes, we are called to "come into His presence." But as we do that, let's consider what needs to happen before we come into His presence. Let's be willing to prepare so that we might truly worship Him in spirit and in truth.
God at Work
Look at the nations and watch -- and be utterly amazed.
For I am going to do something in your days that you would not believe, even if you were told.
Habakkuk 1:5
We often ask God to work in our lives. We ask God to intervene. We seek some sign or evidence to assure us that God is here. And, truthfully, we are often frustrated because we can't seem to see what God is doing.
But the problem is not God's inactivity -- the problem is our vision. God is at work today in marvelous ways; but for some reason, that's hard for us to see.
One day Jesus prayed out loud -- and His prayer was followed by a voice from heaven! Other people heard the voice. And some people recognized that it was the voice of God. They heard it for what it was. But other people -- people who had heard the very same thing! -- dismissed it and said, "I think that was thunder." (John 12:27-29) And that's exactly what we often do. We watch God work -- but then we find some way to discount what happened. We see a miracle -- but then we find some way to explain it away. We live through a remarkable demonstration of God's power -- but then we tell our friends that it must have been a coincidence. We see God change a life -- and we give in to cynicism and wonder how long that will last.
But with the eyes of faith, we can not only see what God is doing, we can also describe God's activity for what it is. If it's thunder, let's call it thunder. But if it's the voice of God, let's be willing to admit that out loud. If it's a miracle, let's call it a miracle. If God works in our lives, let's give Him the credit. If He speaks, let's acknowledge that we really did hear His voice.
We often say that we want God to work. But He's already at work! And we would be wise to recognize what He's doing.
Long ago, God spoke through the prophet Habakkuk. He said, "Look around! Look at what I'm doing! I'm doing things that you wouldn't even believe! Be amazed!" When we see that happening, let's not be afraid to call it what it is. Let's choose to see what God is doing -- and, then, let's choose to be honest about what we've seen.
People of Compassion
Do you ever find yourself surrounded by people in need? If so, you're in good company. Every day of Jesus' earthly ministry was marked by that same reality. He was constantly surrounded by people in need. In fact, what is perhaps the most beautiful part of the story is the way He responded to that need. He taught and He healed and He forgave and He loved -- and, through that ministry, needs were met.
In Luke 18 we find the story of Jesus' meeting the needs of a blind beggar. Jesus gave this man his sight and the assembled crowd responded by giving glory to God. It's a wonderful story of grace and power. But what stands out in the story is the initial reaction of "the religious crowd" to this man in need.
People that day were following Jesus as He made His way to Jericho. For many, the day was a day of celebration and joy. Jesus was attracting attention and it was an exciting time. People wanted to listen and learn. Many of these people were religious people who sensed in Jesus the very activity of God.
But the celebration that day was interrupted by an obnoxious beggar who would not be silenced.
The people saw the beggar as an embarrassment, a distraction, an interruption. What terrible timing! After all, this was a grand day of following Jesus -- a day of celebration! And this blind man interrupted all of that. He was too loud. He was too insistent. He did not fit in. And he simply would not be quiet about his need. In the view of the religious people, this beggar had no part in what what happening that day.
But to Jesus, the man was not an embarrassment or a distraction or an interruption. He was simply one of God's precious creatures broken by loss and hurt and pain. And Jesus stopped the religious celebration to reveal the grace of God.
How odd for religious activity to keep people from God! Yet, we know how that can happen even today. We also know how that can happen even to us. We can be so caught up in the religious rituals and habits. . .that we walk right past people in need. We can be so caught up in maintaining the church. . .that we forget the reason the church exists. We can be so taken by experiences of worship. . .that we ignore the instructions of the One we claim to worship. How strange. And, yet, how common.
When the religious crowd that day heard the blind man shouting for Jesus, they tried to silence him. Perhaps they should have heard the cries of pain and realized that this man was the very one whom Jesus had come to rescue.
People in need are all around. If you ever notice that you're surrounded by those kinds of people, be relieved. . .because you're exactly where God wants you. If you look closely, you'll discover that He's right there with you. And that's mighty good company to keep.
Be alert. God is on the move. God is at work in some unlikely places. Let's not miss what He's doing.
Our Heritage and Our Legacy
One of my favorite words of Scripture is from Paul's second letter to Timothy. As Paul encourages Timothy to maintain a life of faithfulness and commitment, he writes, "I have been reminded of your sincere faith, which first lived in your grandmother Lois and in your mother Eunice and, I am persuaded, now lives in you also" (2 Timothy 1:5). With these words, Paul reminds us of both our heritage and our legacy.
Our heritage is the source of our faith. Timothy had been trained and taught by his grandmother and his mother. Some of us can tell that same story; we are grateful to God for faithful parents. For others of us, we think of Sunday school teachers or campus ministers or music leaders. But whatever the specifics, those of us who now live in faith can point to some person or to several people who loved us, nurtured us, and taught us. That's our heritage -- and it's good to be thankful for that heritage. Let's be certain to celebrate those people who shared the faith with us.
There is also in Paul's words to Timothy a reminder about our legacy. Our legacy is what we pass on to others. The faith that had first lived in Timothy's grandmother and mother had been passed on to him. Because of that, Timothy's passion in life was passing that faith on to others. Even as we celebrate our heritage, we are reminded of God's intention regarding our legacy. We've been given something so that we can pass it on. That's why we value children and youth at Huron Shores Fellowship. That's why we invest so much time and energy training the young people placed in our care. This next generation is our legacy.
If we look closely at our life together as a church, we will catch glimpses of both our heritage and our legacy.
We look back and we trace God's hand in bringing us to this place. Our response to our heritage is one of profound gratitude.
And we also look forward and strive to be found faithful. Our choice as a church is to guarantee a legacy that honors God.
As a church, why do we do what we do? If the question ever comes up, here's the answer: we do what we do to honor our heritage and to guarantee our legacy. In God's grace, we can usually do both of those things at the same time.
