Psalm 122:1 // I was glad when they said to me, “Let us go to the house of the LORD.
While it’s tough to admit, there was a time in my life when going to church was not something I would look forward to. Those dreaded words “let’s go to church” would always make me sad because I did not understand the joy and the power of worshiping God with other faith-filled believers in one place. Several decades later, 1 am so glad that church is now a part of my life.
When I finally committed to putting God first in my week and discovered that true success in the Kingdom starts on Sunday, it set a tone of joy for my life and for my entire family.
Did you know that there have been a number of scientific studies conducted on the benefits of attending a weekly worship service? It’s been proven that people who faithfully commit to worshiping weekly with a community actually live longer, and also believe they have more of a sense of fulfillment and purpose concerning their lives.
And while we appreciate that science shows us living longer lives when we do, we know that as believers, that is not our primary motivation for going to church. We go to church because we are invited to draw near to God. We go to church so we can magnify the Lord together. We go to church because we are commanded not to ever forsake the assembling of ourselves together.
One of the reasons we believe and often say that success begins on Sunday is because over 2,000 years ago, the original founder of the local church, actually walked out of a tomb on a Sunday!
Although dead on a Friday, He was made alive on a Sunday!
Every Sunday morning, you and I have been given a weekly opportunity to proclaim throughout the world that Jesus got up and conquered death, hell and the grave.
No matter what we may have faced during the week, Sunday is our chance to come together and lift up the name of Jesus, a name that is above any other name. By coming together every Sunday, we are reminding each other that since His tomb is empty, ours can be as well. This is something we are commanded to do together, because we are simply better when together.
You and I belong in the house of the Lord, and when we commit to doing so each week, we are well on our way to not only leading a God first life, but helping others to do so too.
Day 7 of 21 Days of Prayer
*This devotional is from A God First Life, written by Pastors Michael and Charla Turner
