Glad or sad ?

What’s your attitude about coming to church? Really?  Are you rushing around just to get there and then once you do your mind is in high gear and it takes a while to calm down?  Or are you dwelling on the past week or what’s ahead ?  Are you thinking, here we go again, same ole same ole?  Or do you really think like David does in Ps.122:1, “I was GLAD when they said unto me, Let us go into the house of the Lord.” !!  

I remember being dragged off to church as a small boy and sitting there “bored out of my gourd”, as they say. I was looking at the stained glass windows and figures of the apostles impressed upon them, I’d look at the various people, once in a while, I’d look at the minister in his white robes and try to understand what he was yammering on and on about, but to no avail. I wondered, why did people come here to be so bored every Sunday??

   Then in my later teen years I heard the gospel clearly and accepted the Lord. I knew I had to go back to church, so I went back to that same stained glass church and was “bored out of my gourd” AGAIN !   Hmm?  I had an interest but there was no spiritual life there, so I’d been invited to the first Baptist church I’d ever set foot in and for the first time heard Bible preaching.  I was GLAD to be there, I’d found some kindred spirits.   I had the capacity to worship God but hadn’t found the place that truly believed the Bible until then.  Now I was GLAD ! In Zechariah 8:21 the worshippers in the Millenium will be going up to the temple to worship God and he records prophetically they’ll say, “Let us go speedily to pray before the Lord and to seek the Lord of hosts. . .”  The Hebrew has a sense of urgency and fervency in it. You know, just how you feel on Sunday morning or prior to the midweek service !  Was that a joke or no?

Clearly, this gladness starts with the heart. It must be attuned to the One to Whom we are to worship. Salvation is the absolute starting point, then staying right before Him is a must.  Since the Spirit indwells us at conversion we then have the capacity for right worship.   But other things can interfere and disrupt a right heart attitude for worship.  I’ve talked to people in great churches who admit in so many words they are not glad to be there.

As another week begins, make sure your heart is where it needs to be so that great worship goes on and His house is a place of gladness to you !  It’s not a bad idea at all to take a little time to pray before you head off to church asking Him to help your attitude and your worship.   So be GLAD something GREAT can then happen in God’s house !!!