Pursue being AMAZED
Today we visited my childhood church. My sister and her husband went with Tom and me and we sat with our brother, Bill, who still goes there.We grew up there as a family, Tom and I were married there. It holds lots of memories for us all. That being said, as time has a way of doing, much has changed over the years.They call it a new abbreviated name, Shades, for short.The music has changed. The drop down screen has replaced the hymnals, as it has at many churches.A few familiar faces but many new, which is a reflection of how old we are getting!!But, as I notice these changes I am reminded of the reason we are there and that never changes.We listened to the senior high pastor preach since it was a day to honor the recent graduates who he had been with these last years.I listened at first, just trying to take it in and figure out his line of thinking. But as he continued and made his points, over and over, I began to take notes.His main point of the sermon was to be inspired to dive deeper in the word, into your relationship with God. If you get content, go to church, and go about your life, and are not burdened to know God better, you may be missing the point.Pursue being "Amazed" by God, and how He loves youFind people who are "amazed" by God and let them pour into YouThe deeper you go into the word,the less you know,and the less you know,the more you find God and worship Him
He spoke to the graduates of what people fear when these young people go off on their own to college... getting with the wrong group, drinking, drugs, pregnancies, taking the wrong path. He said that his main fear for them was that once they were gone and on their own, that they would continue to hear the gospel and walk on, hit the wall, becontent in life and not let it effect them.PURSUE BEING AMAZED BY GODAsk God to build in you a heart, that can`t get over HimAsk God to intrigue us FOREVERWow, such powerful words to hear especially for these young people.We need to be desperate for HIM, not just on Sundays where it is easy to worship with like minded people, but as we leave the church and go out on our mission fields in our everyday life.As the service was coming to an end, we did stand up and sing some more songs up on the screen that were not familiar to me, but still worshiping Him, and then it happened... HOW GREAT THOU ART!!As we sang that song, and with the sermon words still fresh on my mind, I thanked God for choosing that.. I am sure it has meaning for many people but for me and my siblings it is extra special. It was sung at our Daddy`s funeral, at Bill`s wedding, and the last time we were all together and heard it, was there at "Shades" almost 5 years ago, at our Mother`s Celebration Service. Just a little gift He handed out this morning, to show He cares about even the smallest things... a song, but it meant the world to me to hear it there, with my sweet family, just like we heard it those years ago, as we were saying good bye to our Mother...So, in closing, yes, changes happen. Church buildings come and go, music changes, the way of worship may change but the message is always the same. He loves us enough to send His son to die for us. What are we willing to do for HIM?It was a great day of worship and now, I pray for that heart of mine, for God to not let me ever get over the wonder of HIM, living in me.So, tonight, as I look at my notes from today, I am drawn to sketch a little girl. when she is finished, I will add the words and it will be called, "Pursue being amazed"Have a great new week!!Love,Jane
