Psalm 110:1-4
1The Lord
says to my lord, “Sit at my right hand until I make your enemies your
footstool.”
2The Lord
sends out from Zion your mighty scepter. Rule in the midst of your foes.
3Your
people will offer themselves willingly on the day you lead your forces on the
holy mountains. From the womb of the morning, like dew, your youth will come to
you.
4The Lord has sworn and will not change his mind, “You
are a priest forever according to the order of Melchizedek.”
Your people will offer themselves willingly, or as
another translation I read said, volunteer freely. This caught my eye. So often in the church we are looking for
volunteers. Sign up sheets are prevalent
for almost everything. And yet, so often
slots remain open. But when you ask
someone specific to do a task, more often then not the answer is yes.
I don’t believe that this psalm is referring to sign
up sheets, to volunteer to teach or go to an event, bring baked goods, or
anything else. This psalm refers to
offering ourselves, all of ourselves to the Lord. Yes, in some ways this is the work we do in
the church. It is also what we do in
everyday life as disciples. We offer
ourselves in worship, in prayer, in study, in giving and in serving. We offer ourselves, we open our full lives to
be transformed, to be changed, to be filled.
As we approach Lent, starting with Ash Wednesday
tomorrow, we need to recognize how full we are.
Like Fat Tuesday, we are full of things that don’t really matter, full
of things that are not healthy (or we will be, when we get our Paczki’s). Tomorrow we open ourselves up, willingly, to
be filled with the Holy Spirit, the giver of life.
At Ascension we begin Sunday recommitting ourselves
to discipleship practices. In addition,
a discovery worship center will be in “The Quest,” one of our Sunday School
rooms. In this room you will as individuals meditate, pray, and worship as you
discover and encounter Christ in new and different ways.
So enjoy Fat Tuesday, for tomorrow the real work
begins!
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