This was my devotion today from the book Tozer on the Holy Spirit a 366-day devotional. I thought it spoke to what God has been teaching me about holiness, sin, worship.
"The theory (of impromptu service planning) is that if the meeting is unplanned the Holy Spirit will work freely, and that would be true if all the worshipers were reverent and Spirit-filled. But mostly there is neither order nor Spirit... In the majority of our meetings there is scarcely a trace of reverent thought, no recognition of the unity of the body, little sense of the divine Presence, no moment of stillness, no solemnity, no wonder, no holy fear... The whole Christian family stands desperately in need of a restoration of penitence, humility and tears. May God send them soon.
We would do well to follow our old-fashioned forbears who knew what it was to kneel in breathless, wondering adoration in the presence of God."
I've always been a fan of Tozer and find his writings convicting and refreshing. Even though he wrote this decades ago, I feel like it's applicable to my life and to the church today.
very applicable. dad and i were talking this week how it really seems that our christian culture today has become obsessed with rock star worship and celebrity teaching. sunday mornings seems like more of a time to come and worship ourselves than to worship God. good thoughts from Tozer. thanks for sharing. p
ReplyDeleteI really enjoyed that you shared this. I struggle with the church culture of today and find myself wondering what the biblical church was really like.
ReplyDeleteMay we all be willing and available to learn from the One who made, and ultimately is, the church.
Beck,
ReplyDeleteThank you for finding such truth and beauty in these words, and thank you especially for sharing them. This helps put into words a lot of what I've been trying to "figure" out about contemporary church gatherings. I do not mean to stereotype, and I am well aware that my experiences are only my own. But this helps clears some of my confusion.
Love you,
K