So, I wouldn't be the first to suggest that we should re-evaluate church.
How we see church and what we think church should be, should be in line with what we believe, but how many of us have really thought about it?
Especially those of us who believe we should be living for God beyond the end of the Sunday morning church service.
I struggle with leading Worship. Initially it was because I was exploring the whole 'Worship is a lifestyle' thing (yes, back to that again) and I needed to break out of the 'Worship = Music = Worship' trap. Beyond that there will (and should) be issues of worthiness and rightness before God. I'd flip around and keep coming back to the priviledge and responsibility that being a Lead Worshipper is. I knew I was missing something but I was caught in a thought process that was never going to change until I actually [i]thought[/i] about it. I am reminded of something Marcus Buckingham talked about at the GLS; the importance of asking the right question (that's a real learing point; if you are struggling with a question and you just can't seem to get an answer, make sure that you are asking the right quetion.)
Today it hit me.
I need to re-evaluate where church fits in to my theology and I haven't yet. Not that I want to discard church; not in the least. The implication though, is that if Worship, or as I'd prefer to phrase it 'following Jesus' is more than just church, then I can't move on fully to everything else God has for me until I downgrade or move my 'Sunday Service' to where it should be.
I don't think I have very far to go. I don't think it has anything to do with the church I go to either. Just, in the same way that my understanding of prayer has changed radically in the last week, that my thinking needs to shift. I couldn't even tell you what I need to change, just that I need to let God expand my thinking.
I'm getting very 'Big Picture' these days. I don't know where that's leading.
Phil, sounds like the Spirit is really working on you. Thanks for being so open and sharing what's on your mind and heart. I'm loving what I'm reading, and it's making me take stock of similar areas of my walk with Christ.
ReplyDeleteSounds like you're in a period of growth -- based on the few posts of yours I've read. For the last few years I've been making a journey toward the thought that the Sunday (or whatever day) gathering is a time to celebrate all God did in our collective lives thoughout the week. It seems so many people think that service is to be some grand time of learning or a time to get all charged up so we can actually survive the week ahead. To me that seems so me centric and not God centric. Worship is about God. And for me worship IS a lifestyle, meaning it's how I choose to live my life on a daily basis.
ReplyDeleteHey Mark thanks for the comment.
ReplyDeleteI agree with so much of what you said.
You have given me yetmore food for thought.
Phil -- I just posted some related thoughts on my blog -- http://markcork.wordpress.com/ if you're interested. It's the post entitled Complicated.
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