I am glad to know that last Sunday’s message is sticking with some people. I preached part one of The Nearness: Responding to God’s Presence. The topic is worship and I am trying to increase our awareness of God and how we react to Him.
I guess I got a little pushy when I told the people that if we believed that God was actually with us in our worship experiences, we would not stay home or do other things besides be involved in worship. I actually said, “if we really believed that God is here, we would not come in late or go to sleep during the service or daydream about the Superbowl”. It is nice to know that people are paying attention. I have received several comments this week, people wondering if I was mad or frustrated. I think this results from people not being accustomed to being confronted. My preaching has apparently been out of balance. I need to speak more directly about issues that need to be addressed and corrected.
So, I promise to be nicer tomorrow. By “nice”, I don’t mean I will make everyone feel good about themselves. By “nice”, I mean that I will be careful how I express what is on my heart. I won’t beat people up. I won’t be rude. I will not use the Bible as a club.
But I will speak the truth, will confront when necessary and I will not worry about whose feelings get hurt. Although I will be nice, I will also be direct. Directly nice. How’s that?
Join us tomorrow for part 2 of The Nearness. I plan to continue a deep look into Romans 12:1-2.
It will be a nice experience.
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