Centenary Church - THIS SUNDAY'S WORSHIP

You can sit in the pew every Sunday and praise God. That is a gift and will be valued by God, never to be underestimated. God is honored through this gift of worship just as much as any other gift, but I am provoked by the stories of Jesus’ healings. After each, he demanded action. In some cases it was to tell the world of what just happened. In another case it was to pick up the mat and walk. Still in others, Jesus commanded persons to “go and do likewise,” even letting the disciples themselves know that the power of God enabled them to do even greater things.

In the Christian life, various valid ways are available to experience the divine. A million and one tests exist to determine your spiritual type, your spiritual gifts, your parachute color, your personality type… the list goes on and on. These tests are designed to tell you about you in a way you may not have thought of before. Tim preached on the story of Mary and Martha a few weeks ago and affirmed the role of both the dreamers and the doers, but ended with this line: “If you harshly censor Martha, she stops serving which would be an incredible tragedy. If you praise Mary too much, then she will sit there forever.” Are you a dreamer? Are you a doer? We need both.

The point I’m trying to make is this: there’s as many ways to serve God as there are people in this congregation. We all come bearing our own gifts. All gifts are valued. What gift do you bring? After being healed by Jesus, are you taking up his challenge to go and tell? How so? Come to the Opportunities Fair on Sept 5 and Sept 12 right after church. If you don’t find something there that fills your longing to serve, let us know and we’ll work on incorporating your gift. If you’ve felt an incredible experience of the divine, you can’t but respond! Pick up your mat! Follow the One who beckons us to find our place in the kingdom, bringing others with us on the journey!

See you Sunday! Stacey