Our great call is putting our lives and the lives of those around us in a position to hear God call. Without a doubt, God is a caller and there is no calling without a caller. How great is the freedom to which you are called! Right at the start of the Rule, St. Benedict had the vivid image of a crowded marketplace and the Lord calling out very loudly, trying to get the attention of passers-by in the crowd to what is an offer. This is an open invitation, a general offer to anyone who cares to stop and listen. It’s not selective at all; in fact it is addressed to each of us personally. The Bible of course, presents us with some spectacular calls: Moses was alone in the desert, Samuel was dragged out of sleep, and Paul was blinded. But we have some calls that were quite ordinary in Scripture; Simon, Andrew, James and John were merely at their usual daily jobs, fishing and mending some nets, and Amos was doing what herdsmen and sycamore tree dressers do. We moderns have gotten good at listening to a message, a podcast, or even the sermons without encounter, without genuine experience. Sometimes during our services here at Lakeview, I throw my hands up in praise and thanksgiving really in encounter. God is calling us to worship, a deeper worship. This is the season of seeking Jesus and His will for our lives and for our church. By not coming much to worship, you are denying this season of going deeper still. You are putting your life in a position to pass by God without really noticing Him. It requires obedience to come each week. Let me paint some depth to what I am saying; the word Obedience comes from the Latin word oboedire which shares its roots with audire , which means to really hear. So true and deeper worship starts with obedience. Yes Lord, I will come each week to worship! Then you begin to hear on a greater level what God is saying and where God is taking you as an individual and us as a Body. It is then that you are caught up in something much bigger than yourself and as you decrease, He increases. You see it is then that your cup is filled for the calling to reach others with the goodness of what is happening here.
You are being called to deeper worship and to reach out to others and invite them to the Lord’s party here.
There is no calling without a caller.
It’s party time.
Chris
Leave a Reply