You never leave Church!
Jesus’ Great Commission to us in Matthew 28:18-20 is where He tells us to “go and make disciples. . . teaching them to obey everything I have commanded.” He concludes this tall order with the words: “And surely I am with you always. . .” That certainly goes along with the promise given us in Deuteronomy 31:8: “The LORD Himself goes before you and will be with you; He will never leave you nor forsake you. Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged.”
God is not a Sunday-morning-see-you-at-church sort of God. He’s an “I am with you always” sort of God! The Apostle Paul tells us in 1 Thessalonians 5:17 to “pray continually.” Why? Because every waking moment (and every sleeping moment for that matter) is spent in the presence of God. Jesus said it, and He meant it. We are never out of Jesus’ presence. Never.
We gather on Sundays for worship, for a message from God’s Word and for community and communion. We go from there into our week and re-group from time-to-time throughout the ensuing seven days for Bible Study or prayer or worship or fellowship or all of the above. Then we come back together on Sunday – and repeat the cycle over and over again with few adjustments. No wonder church can sometimes seem boring! We’re stuck in the rut of showing up and expecting something, when we should be overjoyed by the fact that we can come together to tell each other about what Jesus did while we walked and worked and talked with Him throughout our week!
Church doesn’t begin and end on Sunday. The truth is that we never leave church! We walk into the gathering on Sunday morning – and walk out again at its conclusion – in the presence of the Savior. Jesus never leaves our side. Church goes on 24-7-365 because Jesus is with us always.
I don’t know about you – but that is a powerful thought for me. That frame of reference should change your life to its core. Every word you say, every feeling you feel, every deed you do, every person you touch – Jesus is there to witness it. Think about how life can change if you include Him in every conversation, every emotion, every action, and every interaction of life. Think about how your worship experiences will change when you realize that your worship never ends – it just changes from private to corporate on a Sunday morning, then goes back to private and personal on Sunday afternoon.
I encourage you to read the small but significant book “The Practice of the Presence of God.” In it you will find ideas and techniques for living every moment in His divine presence. As you wash dishes, take out the trash, shop for groceries – you can be aware and blessed by walking in His presence. Worship never ceases. Prayers start and stop always in His presence. The Savior is available all the time. You will learn to speak to Him and hear from Him and learn from Him at every moment – not just when you find yourself at church on Sunday or at your D-Team during the week.
Max Lucado calls this having a “God-Intoxicated heart”! You can have an intensely excited and overjoyed heart when you learn to be in Jesus’ presence moment by moment by moment. Let’s learn to be “under the influence” of Jesus’ presence!
