Lord willing, First Baptist Church of Robinson will resume meeting for Sunday morning worship in the church sanctuary this Sunday, June 7th.
The specifics of how our church will come back to worship logistically can be found here. As important as these guidelines are to ensure the health and physical well-being of our church members and guests, we must not overlook how we must come back to worship spiritually. That is, how to prayerfully tune our attention and affections toward worshipping God in a way that pleases Him.
These four descriptions will dominate my prayers for coming back to worship on June 7th. I will post the first two today, and the last two tomorrow.
Come Back To Worship Wisely
As excited as we are to open our doors (actually, only one door will be used as an entrance, but you know what I mean), please do not feel any pressure to come back if you are not yet ready. We have several church members who are at higher risk and we acknowledge that each individual and family must prayerfully seek wisdom in line with their specific situation.
No matter what that looks like for each, Christians should not judge a fellow brother or sister’s faith in the Lord by how quickly one feels comfortable resuming regular interactions with others. I can have faith in God and still (wisely) buckle my seat belt while in a moving vehicle, lock my house at night, and take the medicines prescribed by my doctor. These do not evidence a lack of faith, but the presence of wisdom. For some, not coming to worship this Sunday is the wisest thing to do. May we each pray that all would come back to worship, or worship from home, wisely.
Come Back To Worship Humbly
One of my teammates in college was Beamer Weems. With a name like that, he had to be good. And he was.
Before games he would catch balls effortlessly in all sorts of ways. I had never seen any other player even attempt to field like he did, much less do it with such grace. It was nothing for him to put his glove behind his back and bend down to field a batted ball between his legs, and then seamlessly take the ball out with his right hand and bounce it on the dirt in the form of a behind the back basketball bounce pass to someone standing on second base.
He made it look so easy every time. He was a great shortstop.
We sometimes speak of greatness like I speak of Beamer. That greatness is being able to do what other people cannot do. Which for baseball is true. But in the Christian life, greatness is different. Greatness in God’s eyes is not being able to do what other people cannot do; it’s doing what other people could do, they just choose not to.
Anybody can serve someone else in some way; just not many choose to. Anybody can humbly put the interests of others above their own. Yet even Christians can notoriously think themselves exempt from practicing what Jesus emphasized and modeled so well.
As we come back to worship, what a great prayer it would be for all of us to pray, “God, may I make this time of corporate worship first and foremost about you, and then about others. May I follow the example of the one I am here to worship, who said He ‘came not to be served, but to serve, and to gave his life as a ransom for many (Mark 10:45).’ May I come to offer you heart-felt and truthful praise, and others gospel-drenched encouragement, all because of what you have given us in Jesus and the Holy Spirit. I ask this by the Spirit, in Jesus’ name, Amen.”
Equipping the Found 