2 Chronicles 30:21- 31:1

Give God the gift of time (21-23): I noted on New Year’s Day what I consider to be a disturbing trend in contemporary church life. Many Christians seem increasingly reluctant to devote significant time to corporate worship events. They clutch their ‘personal’ time tightly to their chests and don’t really want to hear challenges about it. How amazing then, to read about God’s people going to Jerusalem for a seven day meeting, and then deciding to spend another week at ‘church’ on top of that. When the feast and festival…were over, the tables cleared and the floors swept, they all decided to keep going for another seven days! The Message. Furthermore, you find that all this took place within an atmosphere of music, song and great joy. There wasn’t a hint of: ‘Let’s get this over with then we can all go home and watch telly!’ They celebrated exuberantly. The Message. In fact, after the decision was taken to go into ‘extra time’ …they just kept on celebrating, and as joyfully as they began. The Message. Jerusalem was bursting with joy – nothing like this had taken place in Jerusalem since Solomon son of David king of Israel had built and dedicated The Temple (26). The Message. Remember this was all centuries before the coming of Jesus, His death on the cross and mighty resurrection. It was the era of ‘shadows’ when the ‘substance’ still lay far ahead of them. Even so, they had a glorious seven days of worship… The Message. Then they went into ‘time added on.’ (It is important that our singing should be to the LORD. Let’s teach ourselves to sing every day. We also need to remember that even the musical instruments played are the LORD’s (21). It’s all for Him. We must not fall into the trap of wanting church music to be about our tastes and preferences. We then make it a self-centred thing; a contradiction of the very essence of worship. When this happens people end up falling out over musical styles. It is sad, unnecessary and downright wrong.)

Give people the gift of encouragement (22): Hezekiah commended the Levites for the superb way in which they had led the people in the worship of God. Whether it’s musicians playing in worship gatherings, or others serving in often less obvious ways, everyone needs to hear words of encouragement. I believe it is part of leadership’s role to vocalise such words. We need to be quick to say ‘thank you’ and do it often. There is a Biblical way to encourage a person that glorifies God whilst honouring the individual and their gifts. We don’t want to encourage the expansion of someone’s hat size (!!), but there is a way of expressing appreciation that will enlarge hearts and is likely to expand Kingdom contribution.

Give heaven the sound of your prayers (27): There is much teaching in the Bible on the efficacy of prayer. But especially in yesterday’s reading and today’s there is big encouragement to leaders to pray for their people. And God listened, listened as the ascending sound of their prayers entered his holy heaven. The Message. (See also 18-20). Church leaders often confess that they are too busy to pray. I believe it was Martin Luther who said he had so much to do the next day that he would need to rise early in the morning to spend several hours in prayer. He was ‘too busy not to pray.’

Give your world a transformed you! (31:1): They all went home and resumed their everyday lives. The Message. But they didn’t go home from ‘church’ as the same people. They had a ‘smashing’ time (quite literally!) as they dealt radically with sin. Our greatest need is not for long and lively services, but for meetings with Almighty God that change us.

Prayer: Lord, may I never forget that worship is all about you. It’s not about me, as if you should do things my way.