Advent and Worship

This entry is late. I don't offer an excuse, but... preparing for a day spent in public worship takes time and the day itself takes time. Actually, time is what I wanted to talk about. Advent and worship both have to do with time. I started this year's Advent blogs talking about it.

I've heard more than my share of comments about worship being something anyone can do anywhere. "I don't need to go to a building." I have a new argument to offer people who say this to me. Here's how the conversation might go:

"No, you don't need a building, but you do need to take the time."

"Well, I worship God in the car or when I'm showering or when I'm .... (fill in the blank with any form of 'doing something else')"

"I disagree. That's not worship."

"How dare you!"

"Well. it isn't. Worship takes time. You complain that I say it needs a special place or special people (like me as a pastor), but I'm going to argue now that another thing worship needs to be worship is time. You skip church services because you don't want to give up the time. I suggest that this means you are not giving God the time needed to worship Him in a way that He would recognize as worship."

"Time?"

"Yes, time. When we gather together in a building we give each other the gift of time set apart, or, if you will, made holy. I'm sure your times with God in the car or the bathroom are a blessing to you, but how can they be a blessing to God? Putting Him second by doing something else while engaging Him prevents your time with Him from being worship. No other person in your life would feel valued if, while you talked to him or her, you found other ways to be productive. Why would God?"

I'm not sure where or how the conversation would go from here, but I do know that Advent fits in this same category. These days before Christmas are not for shopping, they're for worship. Before we give gifts to others or ourselves, there's one gift that's the most important to give: our time to God. If you're in church services with the rest us next weekend and during the week of Christmas, you are putting God first, not second. You don't have to defend it as worship. It simply is. You took the time. You gave back the irreplaceable gift of time God gave you. You gave it to God and others seeking to worship Him too, instead of keeping it for yourself. You affirmed that worship for you is about sacrifice, not convenience. You don't call something worship because it honors your busy schedule. You call it worship because it honors God.

PRAYER: Lord, thank You for the ability to bless You. It is hard to imagine. Help us to resist our culture and our flesh. Help us to order our lives around You. Help us to help each other worship You. This Advent and Christmas, help us not waste our time by not having time for You. You matter more than anything else we want out of life because life is only a gift from You. It is about You, not us. Help us to give more to You and less to ourselves. Amen.

TOMORROW: Advent and Planning