Aug
13
2018
On Any Given Sunday
Posted in Worship 4 Comments
For the first thirty minutes after entering church on Sunday, we sing.
We sing to the Lord.
We read Scripture.
We pray.
Each week, different worship leaders bring their own gifts to that special time.
No two weeks are the same.
I appreciate that.
Whether we sing hymns or contemporary worship songs, our focus is the same.
Our focus is on the Lord Jesus whom we serve.
Everything we do is for Him.
Everything we do is about Him.
Apart from Him, we can do nothing. (John 15:5)
When the time of corporate worship is ending, a reminder comes up on the screen.
It is a reminder that young children can now go to their Sunday school classes.
The children have been with us, singing, and watching.
They learn much from watching their parents and other adults as they worship the Lord.
They are not the only ones who are watching.
They are not the only ones who are learning.
They are not the only ones who need a reminder.
The adults have a thing or two to learn as well.
I watched the children get up to leave as we sang another song.
They know exactly where to go.
They do this each week.
Something else happens on this journey to their Sunday school class.
I saw two little ones pass by me.
The older one of the two had her arm around the younger one.
She guided him down the long aisle.
She was his buddy.
I watched another family with multiple children as they all watched out for each other.
There were no adults standing over them, making sure this happened.
It happened on its own.
They genuinely cared for each other.
It warmed my heart to see such sweetness.
The children cared for each other.
Older to younger, friend to friend, sibling to sibling, they all cared for each other.
Oh, to see the world through the eyes of a child.
When church was over, I watched the adults.
The same thing was happening.
Warmth and hospitality exuded from every corner of the sanctuary.
People genuinely cared for each other.
It was not bunches and groups that I saw.
Bunches and groups can often be impenetrable.
What I saw were people congregating together, moving about from person to person.
I saw community in action.
I saw our pastor talking to people.
I saw people thanking a missionary pastor from India who spoke briefly to us.
I saw people welcoming home those who just returned from short term mission trips.
I saw a church family in action.
I am sure that this kind of community happens in other churches as well.
Unfortunately, it does not happen in all churches on a Sunday morning.
If the song is true, They Will Know We Are Christians By Our Love, how are we doing?
If a stranger walked in the door of church on a Sunday morning, would they be welcome?
What does welcoming a stranger look like?
It is making sure they have somewhere to sit so that they are not sitting alone.
It is making sure they have a bulletin or a hymnal so they are not scrambling to find one.
It is smiling at them and letting them know you are glad they are here.
It may be an arm around their shoulder making sure they know where to go in this new place.
You shall treat the stranger who sojourns with you as the native among you, and you shall love him as yourself, for you were strangers in the land of Egypt: I am the Lord your God. (Leviticus 19:34)
We are journeying together.
We are all strangers and aliens, made for another Place.
We get so used to our own little world, we forget that to some, it is foreign.
How can we help them feel welcome?
I watched the children and they did not even think about it.
It seemed second nature to them.
We are both walking to the same place, let’s walk together.
Whether those words were spoken does not matter; the actions spoke louder than words.
It’s not difficult to be hospitable.
It’s not terribly hard to make someone feel welcome.
It is easy to smile and shake another person’s hand.
It is appropriate to offer someone a seat next to yours.
We do this because God commands it.
Love your neighbor as yourself. (Mark 12:31)
We enjoy it because we are meeting a fellow traveler on this journey.
We need each other as we sojourn.
The attitude of a hospitable church lifts the spirits.
Warmth exudes from every crevice.
It is quite obvious when that welcoming attitude is missing.
The church feels cold and uninviting.
More importantly, without hospitality, the Gospel does not have hands and feet.
Without a genuine welcome, people will not know that they matter to God and to you.
Without warmth, a person will feel even more lonely.
Without friendliness, the stranger may never want to come back again.
That would be terribly sad.
That would be horribly wrong.
That would be confusing to the stranger.
Our walk and our talk would not match.
God is most glorified when we resemble Him.
How would the Lord Jesus treat a stranger?
We have evidence of that all through the Gospels.
Jesus went out of His way to sit with, to talk with, and to eat with strangers.
The Pharisees had trouble with that.
Jesus told them that is why He came.
After a few minutes with Jesus, a person was no longer a stranger.
Jesus had such a way with people.
At a church in Georgia, there is a statue.
It is a statue of Jesus beckoning.
The statue is the perfect height for a child.
The daughter of my friend saw an opportunity to talk to Jesus.
He mom posted the picture with a caption.
“Come to me as the children do…” She asked to hug Jesus and I heard her talking to him so I leaned in to hear… in her small little voice she was telling him how she loved him! Oh how our world would change if we grown ups had the heart of a child more often! Make my heart more like hers!
May our hearts be more like that precious little girl.
May our attitudes be more like children who willingly help each other on the journey.
May we be more like Jesus.
Amen.
Good message and great statue – .Janna
Thank you, Janna!
This little girl’s heart is so precious.
Oh, to have a heart like a child.
Gina
Great reminder, Gina!
I needed the reminder, too, Melt!
Blessings, friend.
Gina