Sunday morning is not the main event

Marc and Alan in Omsk, Siberia, Russia. I have no idea what they are standing in front of, but I thought it was a good pic of both of them.
The daring duo somewhere in Siberia. They had a great time together--it was a real blessing to have Alan here for a while.

As the deer pants for streams of water, so my soul pants for you, O God. Psalm 42:1

A hunger for the inner life seems unproductive in a mega-church world. It does not seem to bring souls to the altar or provide a framework on which we may hang the ambitious programs of the church or denomination. Some may actually be suspicious of a oneness with Christ so absorbing that people might fail to keep the congregational machinery whirring. Machines do not make a kingdom. A king does. At the center of true Christianity lies communion with the King. This communion, whatever we call it, is simply prayer. But it is fervent, ardent prayer. It is passion of desire. It is the thirst of a deer panting after water. A Hunger for the Holy, Calvin Miller.

Many of you know that our pastor, Alan Floyd, was here for the last ten days or so. He and Marc went on a trip to Siberia, touring a city a day and working on Engage Russia. We really enjoyed our time with Alan, and I think he had a good time, too. It was certainly wonderful to have a little piece of home here, even if it was just a few days! We told stories and laughed, and he and Marc had a great time on the train, traveling around to see what God is up to in Siberia.

Of course, whenever someone comes to visit from the States, I always wonder--can they tell how much I've changed? Do I seem like the same old Kellye to them? Because I know that inside, I am a completely different person, but I don't know how much that shows outwardly. I am definitely a work in progress, but I almost don't recognize myself from the person who left the States a couple of years ago. And one way I have definitely changed is in how I view church.

I hate to say this, but I was one of those people who went to church to get something. I tried never to participate in the pastor-bashing that sometimes happens after a particularly hard-hitting (or not?) sermon--not difficult to avoid, because Alan is a great, great preacher. But the discussion often centered around what I "got" out of church that day. And I know A LOT of people like that, people for whom Sunday morning is about getting their weekly fix of God stuff, and then they can go out to lunch and feel okay about themselves for another week. Now, admittedly, as time went on and I matured as a believer, I was less concerned with that and more concerned with giving, but I still saw Sunday as the "main event." That has definitely changed here. Definitely.

The "main event" spiritually happens every morning at the kitchen table, where I spend time in reading God's word (reading Leviticus right now, and I know way more about how to sacrifice a bull than I ever thought I would), time in studying God's word, and time in prayer. It is here that I commune with God. It is here that I spend time listening, something I rarely did in the States. If church is meaningful on Sunday, that's great, but my spiritual tank is full before I get there. If church isn't particularly meaningful, it's not the end of the universe, because I have already talked to the One I worship. And what I'm finding is that my attitudes about life, about service, about motherhood, about being a wife...these all flow out of that daily time I spend with the Lord. Of course, I hope these line up with my church and my denomination--I do, after all, work for a denominational agency--but the guidance for life is not found in church, in a person, in a denomination. The guidance for life is found only in the One who created life, and He can be found by opening the Book and spending time with Him.

Well, I'd better run and make breakfast--Marc and John are on their way home from a Scout campout, and they sound mighty hungry. Please pray for my kids this week--it is finals week, with all the pressure that entails. We are so grateful that Daddy is home for this important week--he just makes things so much better. Wherever you are in the world, I pray that you love your church, but love the One who created it more, and that you are ready for finals week, too. Blessings to you and yours!

His,

Kellye