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
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 7th
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 7th 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: