Today at church... | SermonIndex

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tinluke Dec 31, 2006

Today was a typical day at church. I'm so sick of going through the motions. I'm so sick of people "playing church." Like many here, I long with an absolute broken heart for the church of Christ to be what He has called it to be. I have moments of relief where I feel like everything will be okay. Then I go through seasons of despair and discouragment when I don't ever want to step foot in a church again. I feel like everything is in vain and I just want to curl up and go back to bed.

I was feeling quite discourged today and was thinking that the 4 1/2 hours to Times Squre Church in NYC may not be so bad after all. Then durning worship service the Lord just spoke into my heart. He said that I have an image of what the Christian life should look like. To me that obviously involes me and my family involed in the community church. It involes me and my husband having great Christian friends and our kids being friends with their kids. Singing around the camp fire, having awesome fellowship and growing together in Christ. But none of this has happened thus far. The Lord told me that this image of the "Christian life" has become an idol in my heart. The Lord has allowed me to become so discouraged because my focus has been in the wrong place. I've been looking towards the church to obtain an image that I have created.

He in His infinite wisdom and mercey has never allowed me to find my "nitch" in Church. He wants me to look toward HIM and HIM alone for my "perfect Christian life". He told me that I needed to tear down the image that I have created for myself and start from square one!! Can you imagine...10 years of serving the Lord and this is where my journey has lead me.

Well forgive me brothers and sisters for rambling on, but I needed to share this with you. I hope this encourages some that may be in the same place that I am. My goal now is to seek yea first the kingdom of Heaven and His righteousness!! I'm not worried about the rest anymore! AMEN

In HIM,

Tina

sermonindex Dec 31, 2006

For most of my life (I'm only 17, don't know if it really counts as a 'life' just yet!) I have gone to church and never met with God. And up until recently I would very wrongly blame the preaching, or the leading of the service for this lack of 'inspiration'. But the Lord has blessed me recently when I have actually prepared spiritually for a service. The times when I have prayed to my Father and asked for His blessing, challenge and encouragement, to feel His presence but not base my faith on feeling, when I pray not to get caught in emotion but to truly meet with the living God, those are the times when I have been blessed at church. Praying and commiting the service into His loving and providing hands, have really helped me not to go to just an average church service, where I play the drums to the same songs every week and never truly worship Him with my instrument, when I listen to the preaching but don't actually ~~[i]~~listen[/i], when I finish the service and talk about really earthly, insignificant things and come away wondering why I feel so empty, but instead to meet with the living God, to sense His presence and to hear His voice and know He is with me.

God desires for you to commit everything into His hands. I think in a Paul Washer sermon (Modern American Christianity?), he talks about how church youth groups sit infront of the TV and watch the very filth that God Himself despises, and then when they come to church for their youth meeting, they wonder why the Holy Spirit hasn't moved amongst them. Preparation and prayer are such a necessity if you want to actually meet with God and avoid that horrible, 'typical' church service where it feels so natural, when it feels like you are just going through the motions.

I hope I don't sound like I'm trying to make you think I'm wise, because I know I'm not. But this preparation and prayer has really helped me to meet with God and have a fresh, new church service every week. If you look to God for these things and not to the music, the preaching, the singing or the teaching, then you will meet with Him. All He wants is your heart and your mind. Focus on Him and not the church itself, and you will see the Lord each week.

Too often I've almost idolised the music and the preaching, hoping that these things will help me see God. But what better way to see God and meet with Him than to pray to the Lord Himself and ask for these things. Focus on Him and Him alone, and the worship, the singing, the music, the preaching and the Scripture reading will only help you to see Him in everything.

Take my heart Lord and let it be, consecrated unto Thee. Not to any earthly thing, but to You and You alone.

Amen.

S

Smokey Dec 31, 2006

Amen and Amen

We all have a special and personal walk with the Lord. We just need to seek His council, and He will show us. Come quickly Lord Jesus..

Blessings to all in the coming year.
Greg

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ginnyrose Dec 31, 2006

Tina,

Seems to me you are onto something here.

What would happen if you were to sit close to the front in the sanctuary where you will not be distracted by others? When we sit back and a lot of people are between you and the speaker, it becomes very distracting to me. Might help you....

The images we set up do not satisfy, in fact, they create a deepseated dissatisfaction in our hearts....just like you said.

Excellent post: lots of food for thought there.
Thanks for sharing

ginnyrose

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IRONMAN Jan 1, 2007

bro Richard

For most of my life (I'm only 17, don't know if it really counts as a 'life' just yet!) I have gone to church and never met with God

most of your life?!?! 17?!?! that's not a very long "life" at all!!! :-P Praise God for drawing you to Himself at such a tender age when most of your peers are enamoured by the world! Praise Him indeed.

Sis Tina and all (even you bro Richard ;-) )
this is very much like something our Lord showed me a couple of yrs ago now. i'd been going to church as usual and now being filled/refilled with the Holy Ghost and discerning now movement of Him at church i wanted to leave. i told God that these people didn't have Holy Spirit in them and i wanted to go somewhere where He was present. God asked me "How then will they know someone who has my Holy Spirit if you leave?" all of a sudden i realized and repented of my spiritual pride and selfishness and said "Lord do and say whatever you need to through me in this place until the work is done." i have noticed a change in some people but i think the biggest change i see is in me. suddenly the gospel and all that goes with it is more meaningful...God had mercy on me on that day.

brethren let us not grow so much in the faith we think any more of ourselves than we ought...let us never forget the grace and mercy of God by which we are saved.AMEN.

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tinluke Jan 2, 2007

Thanks for the responses guys!

Richard,

There is alot of truth to what you said, and that was a problem for me when I first became a Christian. I was looking for the church to bless me and give me alittle "pick me up" for the week. Thankfully, once I came to really know Jesus, I could have fellowship with HIM anywhere. I could be doing the dishes or just taking a walk and have the sweetest fellowship with HIM. When I started to walk close with Jesus, the church became a different entitiy altogether. All of a sudden, it was strange and foreign. I came to church so many Sunday mornings and felt like Mary "where have you taken my Lord?" He was at home in the laundry room, in my prayer closet, even doing dishes, but at church it was like these people were speaking about someone else. It wasn't the Christ I have come to know so intimately in my prayer time and in reading of the word.

I wish I had come to the Lord as a teenager! What a blessing to serve HIM at such a young age. I pray that you continue to seek and serve HIM.

Ironman,

What you said really confirms what the Lord has been speaking to me also. But I go through moments where I feel like "who the heck am I?!?!" But I know when I get alone with HIM that it absolutly has nothing to do with me!! It is all about HIM. I am the righteousness of CHRIST! It's about me laying down my life and allowing HIM to be glorified through me. I am nobody and that is exactly why HE would choose to use me!

IN HIM,

Tina

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tinluke Jan 2, 2007

Ginnyrose,

Good advise, I never thought of that. I do tend to develope an acute case of ADD everytime I enter the sanctuary! That might cure me once and for all. :-P

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roadsign Jan 2, 2007

The Lord told me that this image of the "Christian life" has become an idol in my heart. The Lord has allowed me to become so discouraged because my focus has been in the wrong place. I've been looking towards the church to obtain an image that I have created.

Tina, what a great testimony! From personal experience I've learned that it is just like the Spirit to bring this kind of conviction.

For sure, our Lord is a jealous God, and challenges our rival loves - even that which is good - like family, church, etc. By the way, someone once told me that Revival can become an idol. I think you would understand what this means.

Do we want the giver, or just the gifts,
the blesser, or just the blessings?

Diane

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tinluke Jan 2, 2007

Diane,

You're absolutely correct! He is a jealous God and He desires to be our everything. I feel like He has stripped everything away from me. That may seem harsh, but at the same time it is glorious! Our reward is HIM...what else is there!?

And yes, I do know what you mean about Revival becoming an idol. I desire revival just as much as anyone esle, but I am afraid that even that has taken our focus off of Him. I think instead of praying for revival, we ought to pray to have more of HIM. That's it...that might just be the key to revival. When just JESUS is enough for His people, then we will be revived! When the Church is revived, then this country will be revived also!