Let's Go to His House!

Homer Simpson, the incorrigible animated character and patriarch of the Simpson clan, once said, "I'm having the best day of my life, and I owe it all to not going to Church!" Funny to some I'm sure, and perhaps reflective of the thoughts of others. In an increasingly secular society, and given the negative news reports on various scandals involving some in the Church, it is no surprise that some see places of worship has having little or no relevance in their lives. For some, it is a Sunday morning ritual, while for others, there are token visits for baby dedications, weddings, and funerals, if any at all.

For Christians who are passionately in love with the Lord, and enjoying their relationship with Him, nothing could be further from the truth. Even when physically and/or mentally tired, the inner man looks forward to those times of worship and fellowship with other believers. As Matthew Henry wrote, "It is the will of God that we should worship him in concert, that many should join together to wait upon him in public ordinances. We ought to worship God in our own houses, but that is not enough; we must go into the house of the Lord, to pay our homage to him there, and not forsake the assembling of ourselves together....for the honour of God and for our mutual edification and encouragement." To add to that, I also believe that Church should be our place of refuge from life's storms; the place where we can be properly restored, renewed, strengthened, and encouraged.

Those are some of the reasons I can fully appreciate David's delight when he wrote, "I was glad when they said to me, 'Let us go to the house of the LORD!'" (Psalm 122:1, KJV), or as The Message translation puts it, "When they said, 'Let's go to the house of God,' my heart leaped for joy." Perhaps in our own experiences, we have not always "leaped for joy", but there is something special about going to the house of God that provoke our hearts to be there. Yes, it may be challenging to see some of those hard-to-love people, but it is not about them. It is about going to meet with God - to worship, praise, and to hear Him speak through the Word.

How do you feel when it's time for Church? Yes, it really does matter!

The Refiner's Fire

Earlier this week I received an email forward that was simply profound in its theology on Malachi 3:3, which reads, "And he shall sit as a refiner and purifier of silver: and he shall purify the sons of Levi, and purge them as gold and silver, that they may offer unto the LORD an offering in righteousness." I do not know the author of the commentary, which I've titled as above, but it was simply too profound not to share. I pray that it blesses you as much as it did me. Here goes:

This verse puzzled some women in a Bible study and they wondered what this statement meant about the character and nature of God.

One of the women offered to find out the process of refining silver and get back to the group at their next Bible Study.

That week, the woman called a silversmith and made an appointment to watch him at work. She didn't mention anything about the reason for her interest beyond her curiosity about the process of refining silver.

As she watched the silversmith, he held a piece of silver over the fire and let it heat up. He explained that in refining silver, one needed to hold the silver in the middle of the fire where the flames were hottest as to burn away all the impurities.

The woman thought about God holding us in such a hot spot; then she thought again about the verse that says: 'He sits as a refiner and purifier of silver.'

She asked the silversmith if it was true that he had to sit there in front of the fire the whole time.

The man answered that yes, he not only had to sit there holding the silver, but he had to keep his eyes on the silver the entire time it was in the fire. If the silver was left a moment too long in the flames, it would be destroyed.

The woman was silent for a moment. Then she asked the silversmith, 'How do you know when the silver is fully refined?'

He smiled at her and answered, 'Oh, that's easy -- when I see my image in it.'

If today you are feeling the heat of the fire, remember that God has his eye on you and will keep watching you until He sees His image in you.

Calling "Home"

The phone rings and it's the dreaded automated response: "If you're calling for ABC, Press 1; for DEF, press 2" and so it goes. Another unsuccessful attempt, and depending on the number of times experienced, maybe a bit of frustration. As if by conspiracy, this happens, more times than not, when we really need to talk to a real person, but as businesses engage in cost reductions, and life demand more from us as individuals, answering machines and other automated response systems have become a part of our culture. As I put the phone down, I wondered, somewhat amusingly, "What if God had an automated response system?" With angelic music in the background, maybe we would hear something like - "God is busy at the moment, but to leave a request, press 1; for thanksgiving, press 2; to complain, press 3", and so on. Then again, how many of us would simply hang up?

It can be frustrating trying to urgently reach someone by phone, and not being able to do so . At certain times of the year, international circuits are busy, connections may be bad, lines may be down, yet how incredibly comforting it is to know that when we try to 'connect' with our Heavenly Father, we do not have to worry about those limitations.

In his conversation with God, David said, "I will call upon you, for you will answer me" (Psalm 17:6a, ESV). There was no doubt in his mind that his "connection" was clear both ways - him to God and God to him - and we too can have the same assurance. God Himself declared, "Call to me and I will answer you" (Jeremiah 33:3), and even better, through Isaiah, "Before they call I will answer; while they are yet speaking I will hear" (65:24). These attributes of God did not disappear with the Old Testament believers, because God is unchanging in nature. Of Jesus, God in the flesh, it is said He is the same yesterday, today, and forever (Hebrews 13:8), and so we too can rest in the comfort of His assurances.

God has made available to us an instantaneous connection to Him that is always on; 365 days per year, 24 hours per day, 7 days per week. It doesn't go down in leap years either. If our calls are not going through, we need to check our side of things for possible obstructions. Are we properly 'plugged' in to Him? Any 'wires' crossed? Once things are in order, one thing we know for sure - no automated responses, no voice mail.

"I will call upon you, for you will answer me." What comfort!

It's A Heart Thing

There is something delightfully pleasing about doing something with one's whole heart. Even the dreariest of task can take on meaning and purpose when we put all of ourselves, so to speak, into it. It is the highest expression of effort, and even if the end results were not as expected, not very many people would argue with maximum effort. We can deduce therefore that it is possible to do a thing half-heartedly, or even without much 'heart' into it. Sort of like going through the motions, just because.

I thought of this as I read, and reread, David's "I will praise thee, O LORD, with my whole heart" (Psalm 9:1a, KJV), and took note of two important determinations in that desire. Firstly, a casual reading of the verse does not capture the emphatic nature of the expression "I will". The "will" is the mental faculty by which we deliberately choose or decide upon a course of action, and therefore implies a diligent purposefulness. Among all the options available to the Psalmist, he chose, diligently and purposely, to praise. That totally ignores whatever circumstances he found himself in at the time. His praise would not be situational. Secondly, he wasn't just content to praise, but he purposed to do so "with my whole heart". On this verse, I agree with noted Bible Scholar Matthew Henry who wrote, "If we would praise God acceptably, we must praise him in sincerity, with our hearts, and not only with our lips, and be lively and fervent in the duty, with our whole heart."

In Old Testament times, Moses, Joshua, Samuel, Joel, to name a few, all challenged the people to serve/love God "with all your heart". Through Jeremiah God declared, "ye shall seek me, and find me, when ye shall search for me with all your heart" (29:13). When Jesus was asked which was the great commandment in the law, He mentioned two, the first being, "You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind" (Matt. 22:37). God has not changed. What He desired then, He still desires now: nothing but the very best of ourselves, all of our hearts, in love, in praise, and in worship.

It is not enough to merely go through the motions, as God takes no delight in such actions. In this quiet time of reflection, now is as good a time as any for a heart check. "I will praise thee, O Lord, with my whole heart"; can you say that? Remember, it is not based on situations or emotions; it's a heart thing.