If you are a
member of Old Union Church, you took a vow to be “a faithful member of this
congregation, giving of yourself in every way.”
The Presbyterian Church’s constitution explains that this vow includes “taking
part in the common life and worship of a congregation.” Are you living up to your promise?
First, are
you taking part in worship at Old Union?
Like just about every other church, we’re happy if half of our members
join us on Sunday morning. Of course,
other commitments and issues occasionally keep us from worship. But where else would it be acceptable for
only half the people to fulfill their promise?
Would your bank be content if only half their customers made their
agreed-upon mortgage payments? For some
bizarre reason, we take our commitment to financial institutions more seriously
than the ones we’ve made to the Lord of the cosmos who died for our salvation.
“Taking part
in worship” means more than merely showing up physically. It means that you come to church on Sunday
prepared to get down to business. Even
before the service begins, you focus your heart and spirit upon the task ahead
of you. During worship you actively seek
to be aware of the Spirit’s presence among us.
As we read and reflect upon Scripture, you open yourself to the ways
that God wants to touch and change your life.
Through our hymns, prayers, and offerings, you present your entire being
to the God we love.
Second, are
you taking part in the life of Old Union Church? Worship is the first and most important part
of our church’s life, but it is only the starting point. There is so much that happens, or could
happen, in our church outside of the Sunday 11:00 hour. If you are only coming to church for worship,
then either someone else is carrying the responsibility for our church’s life
that God has in mind for you, or our congregation is not doing everything that
God wants us to do.
God’s desire
for our role in his plans for our church is constantly changing. Over time, the most faithful thing for you to
do may mean stepping back from a responsibility you’ve had and making room for
another person to fill that niche. God’s
will is dynamic and constantly changing.
However, when you move out of one role, it is so that you can move into
a new one. If you say that you’ve “taken
your turn” doing something at the church, it means that now it’s your turn to
do something else.
We live in a
society that encourages us to think of ourselves as consumers. It’s up to someone else to make things happen
for us, so that we can sit back and enjoy it.
Whether it’s sports, movies, or even keeping the roads clear, we expect
there to be someone to handle it…someone other than us. The church is different. God loves us enough that he wants each of us
to take part in the wonderful things that he is doing. If you’re not sure how God wants you to fit
in, just tell him that you want to. It
won’t take long for him to show you.
No comments:
Post a Comment