Time flies! We are at the end of April! The last 120 days zoomed by. I’m sure just like me you were busy with many things too.
Busyness pervades much of our lives and at times we jump from one activity to another. Many of us are busy with work, doing our best to love our families, keeping fit and even squeezing time for church and ministry. It’s not easy to juggle the demands of our urban life.
In the past, sermons were given to help prioritise our time with this formula – God, Family, Church, Work (or something similar but in different orders). This week we explored Chapter 13 of The Way of Life. Bill Johnson writes that 'when God is number one, there is no number two.' According to him, 'This new insight implied I could only serve God.'
It also means that all the other activities that we engage in should be expressions of worship. Martin Luther had discovered this in the 1500s when he taught that all work done in faith is God’s calling. The sacred is found in the secular, even in the daily grind. When we choose to “grind” through the day, aware of His Spirit’s presence and the significance of our choices, that is our expression of worship.
In our community, I have witnessed worship expressed in so many ways. I have heard brokenness offered to the Lord in singing. I have tasted very delicious food prepared to bless the community. I have seen argumentative siblings stop, put aside their differences to comfort the other in disappointment. I have felt the pain of believers who cannot attend church meetings that they really want to be at, in order to honour their non-believing family member’s wishes. I have sensed the joy in young people who choose to lead lives of purity to honour God. On Saturday, the youth honoured God with their time by setting aside 5 hours to create content for TAVA's social media accounts - that too, is an expression of worship. 'Whatever your hand finds to do, do it with all your might...' says the writer of Ecclesiastes (Ecc 9:10).
Each expression of our worship is precious to our Heavenly Father. We should be aware of the dangers of doing things on the pretext that it honours Him when its actually self-serving, or done out of fear of or to gain favour from men. Nonetheless, we know his Spirit continues to guide us as we follow in the steps of the Son.
May all that we do and all that we are bring glory to God!
Blessings,
Ps Ben
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