Moving away from the Pillow Talk series into a message about finances was a huge shift this week. It was a great sermon, but I missed the old eighties songs and all the fun from the weeks before. Finances are not really my favorite topic anyway. Not nearly as fun as sex and I’m not nearly as good at them, either. However, Shawn made several great points in his sermon which will be available in the next day or two online at www.welcometothecrossroads.com. One of the points that left me thinking hard was this, “You can be a person who chases treasure or you can be a person who is a treasure.” It is so incredibly easy to get sidetracked into chasing after stuff and to neglect becoming a person of great worth and character. I have a hard time trying to make the shift out of the American mindset of acquisition and into the Biblical mindset of giving your stuff away.
How could we change the world if we applied this? As Americans we totally have the resources to eradicate world hunger and poverty if we can shift into a global mindset. This verse was especially convicting to me today: Is. 58: 6-7, “This is the kind of worship I’m after, to break the chains of injustice, get rid of exploitation in the workplace, free the oppressed, cancel debts. What I’m interested in seeing you do is sharing your food with the hungry, inviting the homeless poor into your homes, putting clothes on the shivering ill-clad, being available to your own families.” ……Shawn shared this verse and I am so convicted that I tend to expect other people and organizations to do this for me. I think that because I give money regularly to good causes that I have done my part. As a woman with a heart for worship, I found it interesting that these verses describe helping the needy as worship. Jesus said it this way in the New Testament, “Whatever you do for the least of these, you do for me.” Is that not worship? To minister to our God? Tonight I read the rest of Is 58 in The Message translation. Maybe this will speak to you like it did me.
Is. 58:1-3, “……They’re busy, busy, busy at worship, and love studying all about me. To all appearances they’re a nation or right-living people- law-abiding, God-honoring…..” (This describes me pretty well) Then read vs. 6-7, “This is the kind of worship I’m after, to break the chains of injustice, get rid of exploitation in the workplace, free the oppressed, cancel debts. What I’m interested in seeing you do is sharing your food with the hungry, inviting the homeless poor into your homes, putting clothes on the shivering ill-clad, being available to your own families.” Now skip down to vs. 9, “Then when you pray, God will answer. You’ll call out for help and He’ll say, “Here I am.”
My worship is not truly worship until it includes actions. Adoration without application is inadequate.
Worship set today:
Opener: Never Let Go
Middle Set: Forever Starts Today (an original by Worship Dude)
Center
Here I am to Worship
Close: Not sure of this title – it’s that song about being hungry for God’s presence. Can tell you the chord progressions….just not the title….that’s an instrumentalist for you right there!
Thought the set came off pretty well. I really missed our guitar player who was out this week. I am so accustomed to him playing lead and me finding fill around his chords that it’s much harder for me to figure out what to play without him. I do agree with Grrr, the bass player, about Worship Dude’s new song, I asked him privately how he liked the new song, and his reply was, “Does he seriously not realize that he could have a number one hit single?”
So another awesome week at The Crossroads. I’m looking forward to some time off this week on Spring Break!
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