Sunny.
Bright green
ocean.
Sound of
waves.
Our toes are
finally back in the sand!
Fun morning
walk on the beach.
Because of
the busyness of life (and this crazy rainy weather), we had not been on the
beach in a while. As we walked, we began describing the shells we were
passing. We even stopped several
times to pick some up.
“Look at this
one.” “It’s so big.” “It’s beautiful.” “It’s cracked.” “It’s broken.” “It’s almost
perfect.” “It’s so different.”
Those were
only some of the many descriptions we exchanged on our beach walk a few days
ago. Our conversation shifted
quickly to how these observations made us thankful for the God we serve. The shells reminded us of ourselves. We
are broken people…yet God has chosen us. He’s made each and every one of us different…yet
He loves all of us. We are beautiful in His eyes, despite our brokenness.
God continues
to teach us on a daily basis. It’s challenging to slow down long enough to hear
Him speak to us through His daily teachings some days though. Isn’t it awesome
to be reminded that God “chose you out of the world?” (John 15:19) Or that we are “God’s special
possession?” (1 Peter 2:9) Or how “God
is love” (1 John 4:8)? How awesome is it that He makes “everything beautiful in
His time” (Ecclesiastes 3:11)?
We would love
to hear what God’s been teaching and reminding you of lately through His word,
His creation, and the people He places in your life. Thanks for letting us share another way He’s been working in
our lives with you. So blessed He
put you in our lives. We love you…each
and every one of you.
“Vacation from Worship??”
In June, Kristin and I took a week off. Since on a weekly basis we don’t have the opportunity, Kristin commented about how wonderful it was to be able to worship side by side. We love our vacation Sundays because we can worship next to each other and experience worship in different churches. It made us think and wonder though about taking vacation and if we ever take a “Vacation” from worship. God commands us to take a day of rest. Sometimes, we think this means to sleep in and do nothing, don’t we? I think that is not the case. Jesus says in Matthew 11:28, “Come to me, all who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest.” How incredible is that! We aren’t to find rest by sleeping in on Sundays but actually rest in Jesus Christ. That rest comes from spending time with our Lord and WORSHIPPING him corporately as a body of Christ. The church is the Body of Christ so if we aren’t at church worshipping, then we are missing out on what God wants from us...Or actually what God commands us to do, because we are commanded to worship Him. Yes, we also worship from home, and worship Him through our actions, but they cannot be taken out of the context of corporate worship. If we aren’t being held accountable by corporate worship, then we aren’t following what God has called us to do.
One of the many many many things that I love being here at PIPC for is that every week we have vacationers, who know how important worship is, and they choose to worship with us on their vacation. I also love hearing about all of the churches that you, our members, go to on vacation! Isn’t it refreshing that we can worship on vacation at another church and it be a part of the same body of Christ?
I challenge us all to think about how corporate worship is not a request from God but a requirement, one that we don’t take vacation from, but find our rest in. We must make corporate worship a priority in our lives, not an option. What’s a better way to start our week than a weekly appointment worshipping our Lord and Savior?
