Playoffs and priorities

PLAYOFFS AND PRIORITIES Reports from churches all over the state of Texas indicate that attendance at worship services (especially those beginning later in the morning were significantly down yesterday. In some parts of the state, there was some cold temperatures to deal with, but for the most part, the weather wasn’t the issue behind the drop in attendance. Most church leaders are convinced it was the Cowboys/Packers playoff game with a noon kickoff time. If this really is the case, than there are a lot of “church people” that need to reexamine their priorities. Without being legalistic about church attendance, the Bible makes it clear that believers are to make worshipping together a priority in their lives. The Bible puts in this way in Hebrews 10:25: “You should not stay away from the church meetings, as some are doing, but you should meet together and encourage each other. Do this even more as you see the day of Christ’s return coming.” The point of the passage is this: gathering together for worship must be a priority in the life of every believer in order for us to honor God and help each other. When we gather to worship, our purpose is to FOCUS on the Lord. All during the week, our lives are so focused on so many things besides the Lord. We deal with work, school, family, money – we live with stress, anger, fear and worry – and we often lose sight of what is truly important in life. And it is worship – FOCUSING ON GOD – that helps to keep our lives on track. So if we miss church – or dismiss church – we are NOT focused on the Lord. Now, let me make it clear – there are sometimes very valid reasons why we can’t attend church