Dutch, Irish, and a bit of English. That's a small portion of my heritage. It's no wonder that I like tea.
My Southern Mississippi "roots" lay claim to the iced version with lots of sugar and a slice of lemon, while the rest of me is perfectly content with a coffee cup full of hot tea.
My sweet husband knew that, so years ago he bought me a beautiful copper tea kettle to make my tea in. I have to admit that he picked the perfect gift for me.
All I had to do was fill it up, turn on the back burner, and wait for the whistle. That sounds like it would have been easy, but several times I waited and waited, and there was no whistle! I guess in my hurry I had not noticed that the burner had come unplugged from the stove, so there was no power getting to it. Therefore, no heat, and no hot water for the tea.
I remember waiting for the tea kettle to start whistling and thinking, "Leave it up to me to walk through my kitchen and see an example of Christians in the church today, or should I say NOT in the church today!" Things have not changed in the years since.
Christians today are still the same. It's amazing how quickly Christians come "unplugged" for one reason or another and lose the connection that offers such a wonderful resource of support and knowledge in our relationship with Christ.
Faithful followers who attend church, will for one reason or another, suddenly quit coming. Most of the time it's something personal happening in their life. Other times it's something very trivial. And then there are the absolutely ridiculous reasons.
Regardless, the problem is nothing new. That's why we are reminded in Hebrews 10:25 to "not forsake the assembling of yourselves together as the manner of some is..." There is a reason for church. There is a reason for fellowship with other believers, and it far exceeds the reasons why people continually fall away from church.
We are commanded to “Remember the Sabbath day, to keep it holy." (Exodus 20:8) In light of the world that we live in, in order to keep ourselves grounded in our faith, we need the structured routine of Christian fellowship.
It not only helps us to build our faith, but it helps us to form relationships with other believers who become a support system in so many ways. We are told in Matthew 18:20 that "...where two or three are gathered in my name, there am I among them.”
What on earth could be greater than having a place where you can come and worship in the presence of Almighty God, than at church? It's the place where you find the love, the support, the friendship, and the fellowship that you need.
If you have found yourself in the place in your spiritual life where you have come "unplugged" from your church, now is the time to get back connected to that source of power.
It's time to stop "forsaking the assembling of yourselves together..." Don't give yourself an excuse, for even if you believe the reasons are good enough, you will never convince God. Disagree? Read Hebrews 10:25 for yourself. There is no exception to the command.
Forsake not the assembly....STAY PLUGGED IN!
