Most of us are good at something. But to get there, it didn’t happen overnight. We typically have spent hours, days and weeks perfecting that thing we love in our life.
Following Jesus is no different. This year, if you want a deeper, more rooted walk with the Savior, you’ll have to invest in ways to grow those roots, changing old habits for new ones and revising your day to day walk.
A great place to start is recognizing that worship is a lifestyle (Romans 12:1-2). Traditionally, we are taught we worship on Sunday. While that is absolutely true, it happens on the other six days of the week as well. So to better define what worship is, we’ll need to tease out three ideas that we all possess.
First, we all have 168 hours in a week. In that time we sleep, eat, play, work, and pick up the laundry. But how much of that time do you spend towards God. A great place to start is giving God 1-3 hours every Sunday to come together with a body of believers to publicly praise the Name of Jesus. We also need a time in our daily routine to pray to our Heavenly Father and read God’s Word to discover what guidance and direction he can give us for our lives.
Second, we need to use our God-given giftedness or talent for the glory of the Kingdom. Any time you use your talent for God, it gives attention to God and you shine for him. The Apostle Peter writes in 1 Peter 4:10-11, that we each have been given gifts by the Spirit and he admonishes us to use those gifts for God’s glory.
Some of us love hospitality. Being a welcoming person at your congregation, holding doors, making the coffee or putting out the donuts are great ways to be hospitable. Some of us love to sing. Being a part of the praise team or band is a wonderful way to give God glory. Some of you love tech so working with the computers or the lighting in the AV booth is a nice way to use your giftedness.
Third, we view our resources as a tool to further the Kingdom story. And it can be scary to release your money or resources back to God when you are not in the habit of doing so. But we grow our faith by trusting God to take care of us when we put him first in our resource category.
In Malachi 3:10, God is speaking to his people and reminding them, you cannot out give God. You make a decision to put God first with your resources and he will bless you in return. Now, we don’t give in order to get but when we trust God, he will take care of us.
Worship is a lifestyle. Worship happens when we work, drive, love our family, or are dining out. It will always cost you something. So whether you are giving God your time during the week or making sure your are using your giftedness for the Kingdom’s benefit or trusting God with your resources, following Jesus will cost you something. Disciples of Jesus are not consumers but givers. This year, may you determine to become a giver and allow God to bless you because of it. Blessings on the journey.