John 4:9, 23-24; Hebrews 10:24; Jeremiah 29:13
Do you attend a church meeting regularly? If you do, what motivates you to go? Do you feel it’s your religious duty–it proves to God and people how devoted you are? I was raised feeling that way. There was no question on Sunday mornings, we were going to church. Aside from what part of the Bible was read from, the service was basically the same every week. I followed along with everyone else and left feeling I had made God happy and had witnesses to prove it…then I was off to live my life, until the next Sunday. “God is spirit; and worshippers must worship him spiritually and truly.” That was not the kind of worship I did. I did corporate worship but it never lit the fire inside me.
Each of us has an individual encounter with God in different circumstances. I thought I was close enough to God (I didn’t realize then that I will never get there in this life), until one morning in my garden, tending the snow peas, praying to encounter God and know my purpose, I felt something inside me “speak” with authority and undeniable truth. I felt a little like the Samaritan woman at the well must have felt–quizzical–why would my Lord speak to me? I never expected to know his presence like I did right then. “When you seek me, you will find me, provided you seek for me wholeheartedly.”
“But the time is coming–indeed it’s here now–when the true worshippers will worship the Father spiritually and truly, for these are the kind of people the Father wants worshipping him.” Because God desires personal, spiritual worship, we are able to go on about our days while still seeking and speaking with him.
So, if the Father wants spiritual worship, is it important to still meet together? “And let us keep paying attention to one another,…not neglecting our own congregational meetings,…but rather, encouraging each other.” God wants individual worship, multiplied. The next time you meet together bring with you stories of your personal encounters with the Spirit. Someone near you is feeling lost and alone. How can you encourage them? Share your own experiences. What have you seen, heard, felt, smelled or touched that you knew was a message from the Lord?
