The shepherds came from afar to worship the Christ child. They travelled overland from the east (evidence suggests Persia or Mesopotamia) all the way to Palestine, bearing precious gifts for the new born King.
Their hearts led them in search of the Messiah.
Their journey ….. was an integral part of their worship offering.
Excerpt from Dec09 Sunday sermon titled “The Heart of Worship” by Pst Christopher Chin@Christ Methodist Church
This struck me deeply when
I
heard
it.
I
thought
about …….
the preparation ..
the time and travel …
the expense and possible
inconveniences ……………..
the searching and the hope …..
the persevering faith to believe that
they had gotten it right whilst following
the star to an unknown location ……………
and how these melded into the final delivery
of their worship, of themselves, their hearts and gifts
to the
King.
In my goal oriented, task centered, “time is money”, all important “end game” psyche, the process of “getting there” is often just something to get over with as quickly, cheaply, effectively and efficiently as possible.
But iff,
in the pursuit of God and His Purposes for our communities and ourselves,
“getting there” is an integral part of the worship process
then it means that:
- the process of struggling and working through ourselves to forgive …. is worship
- the effort we put into understanding others and listening with our hearts; and listening some more, again and again …. is worship
- the persevering through uncertainty and prayer …. is worship
- the continuing in hope and trust … is worship
- the choices we make to think joy and to rejoice when circumstances and experiences are going against us ….. is worship
- the keeping at “keeping on” till the power of His Word breaks through, out and over our lives and circumstances …. is worship
This changes everything for me actually.
Quite radically.
Keep writing if you have the time and let me know your thoughts yah? It’s really great to hear what God has been doing and saying to you.
