This summer at FISH we'll be working through the topic "Created for THIS," and studying what we are created to be doing.
Last time we met we talked about this idea of certain things and activities being "life-giving." These things fill us up and bring us joy, and just give us the feeling that we are supposed to be here. The most life-giving thing is To Be Loved and To Love...we love the things that give us life, and the people who give us life are those who love us. This is why they are life-giving...true life cannot be separated from love.
God created us for these things: To Be Loved by Him and to To Love His creation (animals, object, other people...everything He has given us here on earth). He does NOT need us to love Him to be full-- He is the life-giver and is overflowing with love, but He still seeks a friendship of character with us. Meaning that we are in a friendship with God based not on utility (what we can do for Him), but on character (the giving and receiving of love between the two parties).
And so, if we are created to be in this space of giving and receiving love, what are we supposed to be DOING? What does this look like? On our end, it looks like being open to thankfully receiving God's love, and responding through WORSHIP.
Worship is not just music (although that is a form of it). We worship by adoring God through all that we do. Worship is the act of loving the Creator, Savior, and Sustainer. We worship when we act for the glory of God.
This summer we'll be looking at and experiencing worship through: Play, Fellowship, Service, Music, Prayer, and Seeking Justice.
Week 1: Worship Through Play
We give glory to God when we put our inhibitions aside and enjoy the gifts He has given us. We worship Him by embracing the joy that comes from no longer trying to look cool for others, but instead fully being present in the foolishness of play. In 2 Samuel 6:12-14, King David is so overjoyed that the ark of God was brought back to Jerusalem, that he danced in his linen ephod (little tunic) in front of the entire country he governed. In 1 Corinthians 1:25-27, Paul writes that the "foolishness of God is wiser than any man's wisdom" and that "God chose the foolish things of the world to shame the wise." And at the end of the parable of the prodigal's son, the father doesn't even notice that he is disgracing himself by running to his lost son because he is so caught up in joy.
We need to get caught up in the joy that comes from God. We are free to dance, run, and be foolish in God's creation. This week do not contain the joy of the life-giving God, but show the world God's foolishness and love that is too powerful to be confined to what is "cool."
