Grandpa Joe and Grandma Sylvia have an ongoing feud related to what time to go to Church.  Sylvia considers herself to be late if she is not the first person in the sanctuary so she plans to leave an extra ten minutes early instead of waiting until the last possible minute to rush out the door.  Grandpa Joe on the other hand wants to schedule himself time in the morning before church to write a heartfelt note of encouragement to someone different in the congregation each week, to let them know how much he appreciates the things that they do for the church.  He will get into his writing so much that Sylvia nearly has to drag him from his desk.  She asks, “Why can’t you do that the night before.” And he always responds, “Because it’s special if I do it when my mind is on it, and my mind is on it before we leave for church when I’m not tired after working all day.”

              Both are very concerned with time for different reasons.  For Sylvia it is important to be to church early because it is embarrassing for her to walk into church after everyone else is already there.  Being on time is a sign of respect and part of proper worship for Sylvia.  For Joe going to church is his opportunity to give comfort and support to another person.   The time he spends looking up just the right scripture and penning just the right words for his message shows his style of worship is in giving a blessing to another person. 

              Jeffery on the other hand puts in his time for his grandparents.  Like a worker watching the clock for 5 o’clock to roll around.  Counting each minute till he can go home. 

              But worship is all about time for another reason altogether.  People try to contain God within a church, but God cannot be contained in a building nor can He be contained on the earth, the Heavens cannot even contain Him.   But God created something that could contain Him, God created a time.  God created one day out of seven to be a gift of rest to mankind and a time of worship to God.  The 7^th day God blessed and sanctified in Genesis 2:3 during creation as a time for relationship building between man and God.  Worship is not about the hour when the minister preaches his sermon.  It’s about the whole day from sundown to sunset.  And there is no value in one day above another.  The value is in our love for the giver of the gift. 

              When Joe married Sylvia, almost 60 years ago, Joe gave Sylvia a gift, a diamond wedding ring that had belonged to his grandmother.  Years later, Joe came home to find Sylvia devastated, and in tears.  Joe asked her why she was crying, and she said, “The diamond came loose from its clasp on my wedding ring you gave me on our wedding day, I’ve looked everywhere for it and I can’t find it anywhere!”   Joe tried to reassure her, telling her, “Don’t worry, honey, I can get you another diamond, even bigger than the one before.” But this did not please her, “I don’t want another diamond,” she said, “I want the diamond on our wedding ring.” The value of the gift was in proportion to her love for Joe, and in honor of the special occasion in which it was given. 

              In the same way going to church and worshiping God on the 7^th day is honoring the value of the gift of our Creator and the occasion in which it was given.  God created a special time as God’s gift of love to us, a priceless diamond that cannot be replaced.

Discussion Questions:

1.  Discuss your attitudes related to church and the time you spend worshipping God? 

2.  What are some steps that you can take in order to improve the quality of time you are given to attend church and worship God?

3.  Does your relationship with Christ produce greater value in God’s gift of time He has given you for His worship?

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