Just a few more days and I am dis-connected for a month. I really look forward to this time of year. A time to be away for a few weeks of vacation and then a few weeks of concentrated study. Most of all, I look forward to time just to think and pray. (And–play) When people ask me about being at one church for almost 11 years, I usually tell them that a major factor is yearly checking out during July. This time, more than any one thing has significantly helped me to maintain my freshness in what I do. I am very thankful for a church that practices this kind of investment.
This fall I will be preaching on “worship.” I have been immersed in this for about a month and will continue to be in July. For the last month or so, I have studied my Bible, read a number of books and significant articles and have had a number of converstions regarding worship which have been helpful and very challenging. Whether or not I ever preach one message on this subject, I have already been so blessed by the study, reflection, and prayer that I have already done. And–I have grown.
What has happened up to this point has been much more than a study of worship (as important and valuable as that is). I am growing in my own worship life before God. I am praying that is what happens in the life of our church. It just seems like we ought to come away from a series on worship, more drawn to God.
Imagine for a moment, a person like you or me growing as a worshiper of God…
Becoming passionate for him, and losing my passion for a new television, a new car, and a new house.
Treasuring him above all else, and really believing that he alone is what makes me rich!
Seeking his wisdom for living and at the same time practicing a reckless faith in him.
Praising him with abandon, instead of seeking the approval and praise of people around me.
Prizing him to the point that I feel that I can lose almost anything else but him.
Hungering to be in his presence and losing my appetite for things that really don’t count.
Longing to have the heart of a worshiper.