Enjoying the service today with the
Anaheim Vineyard (10am). Worship, with
Kathryn Scott leading, was glorious, and the message by Alan Scott is inspiring
me well as challenging me to engage in my world as a follower of Jesus Christ. I am not a fan of “online” church, but given
the situation we have been in, it is a reasonable thing for me at this
time. There are many flavors of church
expression, and you, no doubt will see some you enjoy and some, not so much.
That is OK. For me, the Anaheim Vineyard
embraces the values and engages the kind of worship and message that captured
me back in the early 80s and continues to speak to my heart today.
Worship is
not 17.5 minutes (or whatever the current figure is) that experts have
determined is the optimum time a person can engage before they need a change of
program. The message is not a specific
22 minutes, and no longer, because folks can’t listen to a monologue that
stretches that limit. It’s just the way
it is…it is how we are culturally programmed.
Sorry, but I don’t buy into such nonsense. When the Spirit of the Lord is in the place
and His people are crying out to Him in genuine praise and adoration, and when lives are in need, no one is looking
at the seconds to see if this portion of the program is about over. Doesn’t happen.
Are there “up”
and “down” Sundays? Of course. However, it is not because we didn’t do the
program effectively and punctually. We come with our head and our hearts open
to what God wants to do in us, and through us. And, we come to honor and praise
Him no matter what is going in and around us.
So, some of
us are more traditional, and some of us are more contemporary. That is just our preferences. The presence of
God is not about either kind of program or format. We don’t dictate to Him how,
when, and why He shows up in the place we gather. He is there because he loves us
extravagantly, and He invites us to give the same love back to Him. In that time and place, where the presence of
God is obvious, our slick programs,
music and floor shows are a poor substitute for His power, His mercy, His grace
and His love.
