Encouraged and Refreshed by the Lord's Day

Overcrowded days, demands, schedules, responsibilities — they are part and parcel of the American culture that can produce much good. But their drain on the physical, emotional, mental, and spiritual power grid can leave us quite tired and questioning if the best way to recover is to “take a day off” from worship to recover before all the good things resume their demands for the coming week.

In God’s kingdom, regular Lord’s Day Worship is appointed as the way to rest, recover, and refocus on Who is priority and what is of ultimate worth for the investment of our lives. God and his kingdom are preeminent — He is the best.

In evaluating where we invest our time and energy and what reward it brings, we may need to ask if we are trying to fuel and restore our souls through means God has not appointed while forsaking what he has appointed. The sweet and encouraging communion of the Church in reading scripture, prayer, singing praise, speaking to one another in Psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, and hearing the proclamation of God’s word are the means of grace God has given to nurture and refresh the soul. We are encouraged as we partake of the feast God has prescribed and prepared for the Lord’s Day.

In the press and perturbations of last week’s good things, fatigue can lead us to misread both the problem and solution in preparing for the coming week. We can be fooled into thinking that the main solution for the weary soul is horizontal positioning of the body. Or boating, or some other created substitute we imagine to be better than God’s prescription. Freedom under grace certainly holds at bay legalistic church attendance so that we don't labor under guilt if difficult circumstances necessitate a day in bed. We hold that in one hand, while in the other we check to see if what should be unusual has become the norm — and demands that we regard it as such.

In a regular rhythm of weekend exhaustion, Lord’s Day worship isn’t the problem — it’s the solution. If I’m regularly drained by the events of the week and find it difficult to get to the feast of Lord’s Day worship, it’s the over-demands of the previous week that are leaving me impoverished, not worship.  God’s provision for the care of my soul is not what I need to cut back. I may, instead, need to engage with fewer of the good things that expend energy so that I can choose the best — that which is truly worthy, revitalizing, and satisfying.

Prioritize God's provision! Place yourself in the wise path of worship. Be encouraged, restored, refreshed, reoriented through all aspects of worship this Lord's Day! Come expecting to hear God’s voice through the reading and proclamation of his word, the singing of his praise, and the praying of his saints. Shape and manage your Saturday to put down the phone a little earlier, schedule one less activity, do one less good thing so you can choose the best. Go to bed a little earlier, turn the light out a little sooner. Come to grips with the reality of human limitation and embrace God's blessing and empowering through the gathered Church. It may well mean a long term change in how Monday through Saturday plays out in your schedule. That's probably a good thing. It might even be best.