It doesn't matter if it's Saturday or Sunday. Those of the Jewish faith worship on
Saturday (the last day of the week).
Most Christian faiths worship on Sunday (in commemoration of Jesus'
resurrection). The point is to
take one day and do nothing but rest and focus on God. When we do this, we are restored both
physically and spiritually. As in
the time of Jesus, "sabbath" laws (or Christian Doctrine, in some
cases) have become more important than the sabbath rest itself. The definition of the word sabbath is
"a day of religious observance and abstinence from work". So, in fact, most of us could rightly
call our day of worship our sabbath.
One of the things I miss about Tennessee is that Sundays
were truly a sabbath. I'd arrive
early at church, have my "biscuit and gravy", socialize with my
church family, attend Bible study, attend the worship, socialize a little more
afterward, go home and REST for a while, and return for the evening
service. I was re-charged for the
week! Wednesday evenings was a
smaller worship service, similar to the prayer meetings I attended in the
basement of an African American church in the late 70’s, but not quite the
same. Those prayer meetings were
what brought me to Jesus and allowed me to be born again. There was nothing but praising and
singing and lots and lots of love!
I often miss those days – that feeling of acceptance, of love and
joy. I’d walk away from those
meetings filled with the Holy Spirit!
If you aren’t happy where you are, if you do not walk away with
the spirit of God within you, find a place where you can! If you aren’t comfortable in your
church, then maybe it’s not the one for you. Keep looking.
There are plenty of them out there – all different faiths and
denominations. Keep in mind one thing,
though. If it is not based on the
word of God (the Bible), if it’s made up of rules and regulations that you
cannot find in the Bible (or seem to be stretching or loosely interpreting it),
that, too, may not be the place for you.
If you truly are in touch with Jesus, you’ll know. I’ve attended all types of “churches” –
different sects and different denominations. One church had me bored to tears and falling asleep in the
pew. Needless to say, that was not
the one for me. Some of the “new
age” or “non-denominational” churches I attended seemed unfocused – no rhyme or
reason to their teaching or methodology.
Only one church I attended in all my years of life made me feel
welcomed, wanted and accepted, but even at that, man’s hand in God’s work (egos
and power struggles) managed to turn away many long time congregants.
So, I’m headed back to finding a church that revives my
spirit. I’m not looking for the
“perfect” church because, let’s face it, on this planet, nothing is
perfect! I want to worship and
praise, not worry about silly rules and regulations laid out by a group of men
(otherwise known as Pharisees) designed to set me up to fail and threaten to
send me to hell if I don’t abide by them.
I’m looking for love: the love of Jesus...the love of fellowship in HIM
(not in who has the best dressed family or who drives the most expensive
car). I’m looking for a place that
will allow me to raise my hands in praise, shout “AMEN” and sing hallelujahs to
my heart’s content! It’s time!
