Good morning, friends.
Our verse for today comes from Acts 3:20, “That times of refreshing may come from the presence of the Lord, and that He may send the Christ appointed for you, Jesus.”
I dare say you have an appointment on your schedule for today. And if not, you had one yesterday, or will have one tomorrow. If it involves the dentist or the auto mechanic, then dread and anxiety may rule the day. If, on the other hand, you intend to meet a pal or girlfriend for lunch or a movie, then already the day has a certain pop and sizzle to it, even before you fix your hair. And if it further includes time by the pool or spa, then that sizzle will carry you right up to the time it dissipates into a dreamy state of relaxation and refreshing. We are both culprits to and victims of a society where schedules and calendars and appointments drive us from the moment we wake to the moment we finally turn off our phones or computers. Countless of you have to schedule times within your day or week for just yourself, where you can preserve a few minutes without the interruption of anyone else’s calendar. Now when it comes to church, some of us have a pretty full calendar there, too. But more and more of us are finding it easier to drop an appointment there from time to time. In our need to reclaim some of the 168 hours that get exhausted and consumed each week, we are becoming more comfortable with getting them back on Sundays and Wednesdays.
And I think, among other things, that a good bit of the reason is that we are not experiencing times of refreshing from being in the presence of the Lord. Too much of something else is going on in our hearts so that it robs us of the majesty of being refreshed as we worship the risen Savior. And you know within your soul what those might be. Because we don’t or won’t come to church to focus solely and wholly on Jesus Christ, when we do come we are left lacking, and when we don’t come we feed the very issues that our dear Lord calls us to bring to Him as a part of His body on this earth. An appointment at church is good, but an appointment to be refreshed by the Spirit of Christ is divine. You have such an appointment, and whether you keep it affects not only you, but the rest of the body that longs to be refreshed as well. So keep your appointment and ask God to make His presence real to you.
As we seek Him today, make an appointment to not only be in church, but to seek refreshment in the presence of the Lord.
Have an invigorating weekend.
#4 Rich Holt
Dad of Ripken, Koy, TrishaJean, Samantha, Kakie Holiday and Raleigh
Happy is the man who has his quiver full of them.
