Sold Out... Parable of the Hidden Treasure
Sorry I didn't get this up last night. With sickness and a full day of preaching I was wiped, I could not get off the couch. On top of that my 1 year old decided she wanted to stay up for a few more hours than normal. All that aside... some thoughts on this week...
Thanks to the Miller's for leading worship, authentic and excellent job, awesome faith, what a cool thing to have them here.
Some of the main points for reflection... Are you sold out, give everything to follow Jesus. Or is faith more like a good movie. It's is moving, it is something I talk about, but in the end I put it back on the shelf?
We also talked about really getting what Grace is, is first understanding how deep our need for it is. Do we really understand our own depravity? How can we get there?
And lastly, talked a bit about worship. It is the response to God's grace, it is being in awe of who he is, and it is not meant to serve man.
Love to hear your thoughts...
peace
ben
I know that when I worship I'm typically reserved and a bit too self conscious. I think I've understood that I'm there to worship the Lord but I think doing it with all my heart and mind and soul engaged looks different than what I've been bringing. God knows that I can't carry a tune in a bucket and it shouldn't matter what others think if it's an authentic reaction to worshiping God?
And now that I wrote the word "I" or "me" about 40 times in the last sentence God bless all the people who lend their talents towards worship and especially the Millers. The care and attention spent on selecting the songs we sang in worship yesterday still has me humming "Grace falls down and covers me" long into this morning.
When I think about the idea that authentic worship or faith or contagious joy reflected to God is also radiated toward each other you never can truly know whether that unreserved reflection allows the holy spirit to melt the heart of someone who has closed themself off from the love of God. I make things so difficult but God stays true and reaches through barriers and melts hearts even in the darkest of places.
A big AMEN for the yeah God moment at the end of the 5:00 service when someone on the right hand side of the worshipers gave a cheer at the end of the song.
The worship as a "whole life" reflection rather than just Sunday morning is easily distracted. I just received a call telling me that I have $2,000 in car repairs ahead (I know I should just get rid of the car but can't afford that either.) Any number of people in my life are having health issues. It's pretty easy to wallow in the bad instead of looking for the joy and when wallowing in the bad, I don't often think about God in terms of his grace and love but measure what's happening and wonder why he won't just fix and make things better. It's probably more because I'm focusing on my needs instead of praying for fulfilling His will. (Comment this)
Or perhaps it's more like something I carry with me along with the other junk I carry, like my pride and my vanity and the sin I keep repeating because I never really think it’s all that sinful, and, boy, that doesn’t make a whole lot of sense. Maybe I just don't get it.
So too, maybe I’ve shied away from understanding God’s grace because it’s just so huge.
Maybe I’ve had the ability to understand grace but having it relate to me just shines a huge spotlight on everything that makes me feel so unworthy. So it’s easy to say I just don’t “get it” when really it’s not all that complicated and really, it’s not at all about me, but something bigger.
Quite clearly I’ve not wrapped my head around grace. But I do know this, our God is an awesome God and the deeper that sinks into my heart, the more I appreciate moments to praise Him or fall to my knees or serve Him by loving and serving others. All that is WAY outside my comfort zone. I don’t think it’s because I feel like I have to work to deserve anything from God but rather that life without Him in the center is so very dark.
(Comment this)
Growing up, I never heard much about grace. It was only a few years ago that I learned what saved by grace really meant. Until then, I figured I just couldn't ever be good enough and there was no hope. And frankly, until I saw myself slapping God over and over again, perhaps I didn't really get it until now. Now I know what hope is, and how I abuse it. (Comment this)