The ordinary…the day-to-day routine of September is nearly upon us. All the activity, travel and fairs of the summer have gone. Now the ordinary returns . . . Did you fill each of those moments with family and friends and with “memory-making”
moments? Did those moments this summer add to your life rather than take away from it? (The way the ordinary day-to-day monotony sometimes does.)
Sundays are often spent with family and friends enriching relationship and celebrating God’s beautiful world and life. But now, it’s over and we return to the ordinary routine and ordinary Sunday and worship. Someone asked me once what I was going to do to ‘rev’ us up on Sundays so it’s not so ordinary – to hype us up in the “quo·tid·i·an” moment! Do you know the meaning of the word: quo·tid·i·an? Look it up…I dare you.
This Sunday, a week before ordinary September, we are going to kick off a new kind of September. We are going to look at the power of the phone you carry in your pocket – that you live with or are married to – experience God in the day-to-day. It’s going to be good!
Most of us want to balance life and responsibilities. We often give up the God moment first then try to push God into our full lives. And when there is no time left in our busy lives, we just set God aside…besides, God is loving and He will understand. He loves us. But, what we fail to understand is that we just “threw the baby out with the bath water” and the pace of life goes south. We just threw out the very thing that will keep us sane and balanced. Bad choice. 2 Corinthians 4:16-18 The Message (MSG): So we’re not giving up. How could we! Even though on the outside it often looks like things are falling apart on us, on the inside, where God is making new life, not a day goes by without His unfolding grace. These hard times are small potatoes compared to the coming good times, the lavish celebration prepared for us. There’s far more here than meets the eye. The things we see now are here today, gone tomorrow. But the things we can’t see now will last forever.
So this Sunday, I’m launching a new one – a new “rev” in the midst of our ordinary quo·tid·i·an moments. Look . . . we celebrate God’s majesty on the mountaintops and draw upon God’s strength in tragedy, but most of our life is spent somewhere between the extremes. How can we live our daily lives filled with God’s power and presence? How do we find God in our day-to-day situations? Matthew 28:18-20 The Message (MSG): Jesus, undeterred, went right ahead and gave His charge: “God authorized and commanded Me to commission you: Go out and train everyone you meet, far and near, in this way of life, marking them by baptism in the threefold name: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. Then instruct them in the practice of all I have commanded you. I’ll be with you as you do this, day after day after day, right up to the end of the age.”
I have a modern day solution, an in-the-midst-of-my-busy-life answer. Show up this Sunday. Let me repeat that: “Show up this Sunday!” Those in attendance will be in on the landing and celebrate. Don’t be left behind. That hour starting on this Sunday can put balance back in your life. This hour can add to your family life of living fully in the ordinary moment.
You are invited. Listen to the Pastor. He’s been listening to God (which is one of his job description
responsibilities). We can have some deep, meaningful fun with this beyond Sunday mornings and into the
ordinary daily week.
This Sunday, 10:45 AM. Bring the family. Pray now to set the expectation high. God will not let us down but put us back on the path of seeing God in the ordinary quo·tid·i·an moments. Seriously, look it up… God does most of His work in the quo·tid·i·an moments. So we can share a story or two of God sightings. Some small groups may spin off. Text someone and ask them if they read my article here. Stir the pot of interest!)