Hebrews 10:25 Encouragement

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Remember the Sabbath day by keeping it holy. — Exodus 20:8

Like most of you I have been TDY or deployed more times than I can count—away from my own family and my church family. One of the temptations during those times apart is to “excuse myself” from opportunities to worship. . . because I want to “relax” or “don’t know what church to go to” or “afraid of different worship styles.” However, those of you who love your local fellowship, as I do, know that to miss a Sunday is like missing a meal. It makes you hungry for the next opportunity to worship God with your Christian family. And when I am in an unfamiliar place, I have found that God is faithful and will provide for my spiritual needs if I rely on the Holy Spirit’s guidance. Because I have developed this discipline of finding a church in which to gather with fellow Christian brothers and sisters, I was recently blessed with one of those unique opportunities to get out of my “comfort zone” and experience a wonderful time of worship and fellowship while on the road.

The value of corporate worship: “Let us not give up meeting together, as some are in the habit of doing, but let us encourage one another—and all the more as you see the Day approaching.” — Hebrews 10:25

I prayed that God would lead me to a house of worship on Sunday in New Mexico, and He blessed me beyond my expectations. Although an unlikely “match” from the outside, inside the church I entered felt like home. This fellowship seemed to be an incredible reflection of my church in Georgia. I saw and met people who were very much like the people back home. I saw one older gentleman with a ready smile and a kind word who obviously loved all the beautiful children running around and I said to myself, “That is Brother Ron!” I saw a man who was hugging and greeting everyone and I said to myself, “That is Brother Dave!” It was obvious to me that these people were part of God’s family and I felt right at home even though the demographics and style of worship were vastly different than at my home church.

God’s faithfulness and goodness: “The LORD is my shepherd, I shall not want. He makes me lie down in green pastures, He leads me beside quiet waters, He restores my soul. He leads me in paths of righteousness for His name’s sake. — Psalm 23:1-3

Have you known people who float around and never take root in a local fellowship because they are trying to find a place that fits their expectations? When I got married 8 years ago, I tried that approach to finding a church and it was a miserable failure. I was putting my preconceptions about what worship should look like ahead of listening to where the Holy Spirit was trying to lead me.

There is one thing that I finally got hold of which changed my life. Jeremiah 17:7 says “But blessed is the man who trusts in the LORD, whose confidence is in Him.” I started to trust the fact that God wants what is good for me. He wants to lead me in the paths of righteousness. He doesn’t want me to wander in the desert of ineffectiveness. He wants me to be in fellowship with Him and other believers and He provides abundantly when I ask. As Jesus said in Matthew 7:11: “If you, then, though you are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father in heaven give good gifts to those who ask Him!” And finding a church family is indeed a good gift!

Obey and receive the blessing: “Do not merely listen to the word, and so deceive yourselves. Do what it says.” — James 1:22

So learning how and what to ask for is only the first part. The second part is the action flowing from our trust in God’s love for us. Did I want to get out of my comfortable bed, get dressed and go to a fellowship I knew nothing about? Did the temptation exist to just go back to sleep. After all, who will know? I’m not affecting anyone except myself, right? To be honest, I did give it a second thought. But these rationalizations are all straight from Satan. Look at the blessing I would have missed had I sacrificed Christian fellowship for a few more minutes of leisure! I can only receive the blessing when I listen and do as the Holy Spirit directs me. Let me encourage you—when TDY or deployed—look for a community of Christ-followers with whom to worship. Perhaps this will be at the chapel where you are deployed. Remember this verse from Isaiah 58:11: “The LORD will guide you always; He will satisfy your needs in a sun-scorched land and will strengthen your frame.” Whether in the desert or traveling on a TDY, trust God to lead you to worship.

Questions to share:

1. During this deployment, have you prayed and looked for Christian fellowship opportunities?

2. Is there an area of your life where you have not fully trusted God and His plan for you?

3. Do you need to pray for the strength and courage to do the work God has laid out in advance for you to do?

4. An added benefit to worship while away from home is that your new experience will give you something to share with your spouse—by email or phone. Take a moment to exchange memories of a time of worship away from home.