This morning in church it seemed like our children were more active then usual. They ran around , fought and played nosily with toys. Whenever there was a pause in worship, meant of course for reflection and deep thought, I would hear these little voices. I would know each one and the cause of it (our family and a friends family sitting near by) - there were some giggles, raspberries blown, shrieks, angry crying, talking and just general noise. We would have to get up and hunt a child down or stop them from fighting over a toy or horsing around. I was thinking of how eternally distracted I was (and I wasn't the only one) by my children and wondering if I would ever be able to focus on anything in church again when God reminded me of the story about Jesus feeling "indignant" that children were not wanted around, and He welcomed them...right on to his lap I imagine (Mark 10:13). The refrain of the song we were singing "Your love is here " had a new meaning for me.
God's love is here, with my children. And it's OK that they are distracting now and that they don't have much of a clue as to what is going on at church. It's OK that they are noisy and slightly misbehaved. God accepts and loves them as children - noise and all , and I think He feels happy that they are a part of the service.
Thank you Jesus for sticking in teachable moments in the craziness that is now my life :)
Sunday, 19 January 2014
Thursday, 16 January 2014
Audience of One
One night as I was reading "Our Daily Bread" I was lost in reflection after reading a story about Bach. Which you can read on the link provided. There were many people in history who did great things and completely attributed them to God. I always assumed they did this to look good at the time, and maybe some of them did, but I never thought to apply this to my own life....in a way that made sense anyway.
How would my life be different if God were my only audience? If I knew Jesus was in the house , probably playing with my kids , maybe I would play some praise and worship cd's instead of the radio. I would likely give more thought to what was on the TV - I don't think He would like the evolution propaganda grafted in many of the kids programs. When driving , if He was in the back seat, I think I would go the speed limit.
I know that David used his creativity to write songs ...just for God.(I'm reminded of the Big Daddy Weave song as I write this) I have creativity as well but I never thought to paint or draw for God alone. I guess the "audience of one" theme is only a theme for Sunday worship in my mind. How would I change that as I load the dishwasher, fold laundry or separate fighting children? There has to be some way God can be more involved in my life . What would you do differently and how?
How would my life be different if God were my only audience? If I knew Jesus was in the house , probably playing with my kids , maybe I would play some praise and worship cd's instead of the radio. I would likely give more thought to what was on the TV - I don't think He would like the evolution propaganda grafted in many of the kids programs. When driving , if He was in the back seat, I think I would go the speed limit.
I know that David used his creativity to write songs ...just for God.(I'm reminded of the Big Daddy Weave song as I write this) I have creativity as well but I never thought to paint or draw for God alone. I guess the "audience of one" theme is only a theme for Sunday worship in my mind. How would I change that as I load the dishwasher, fold laundry or separate fighting children? There has to be some way God can be more involved in my life . What would you do differently and how?
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)