Acts 2:42

Had a great time listening to and soaking in the Word last night with our students at FBC Birmingham. I must say, our youth pastor does a pretty excellent job of teaching the Word so that all can understand. And no, I'm not just saying that because I'm his wife. Anthony taught part two of a three part series on "Being a World Changer."

A proper view of worship. Last night he used text out of Acts 2 (NIV 1984) that says, "They devoted themselves to the apostles’ teaching and to the fellowship, to the breaking of bread and to prayer." Two things really stood out to me through this teaching. The first was that the believers devoted themselves to fellowship. The second, prayer.

As a good ole, born and raised, Southern Baptist girl, fellowship has for so long been associated with "dinner on the ground" or "fellowship meals" after church on a Sunday morning. You know what I'm talking about, every family brings a covered dish and you sit around eating and talking for half the afternoon. However, this is NOT what the passage in Acts is referring to. The translated word fellowship found in this passage is talking about the common life that the believers intimately shared with each other because of their common belief. It essentially means living life together, becoming a family or just being connected and involved in one another's lives. Oh how easy it is to find this kind of fellowship with friends, possibly even coworkers, those who serve in civic organizations with us, our neighbors...but when it comes to other church members, how open are we to sharing our lives with them? Honestly this is where I got a nice heavy pat on the back to remind me that it isn't all about me. I can't wait on others to take interest in me, getting to know me, wanting to spend time with me or even noticing me. Why? Because it isn't about me. Fellowship is designed for us to live life together for the goal of bringing glory to the Father. It is also an act of holding one another accountable for our actions, encouraging one another and supporting one another as believers. I dread this so often because of the "fear" that if someone got to know me they may not like me, may use my words against me or even worse, abandon me. However, there is no excuse found in scripture for NOT being part of the fellowship. As a matter of fact, fellowship is part of worship. And without this aspect of worship, I'm neglecting a very important connection with the body of Christ.

The second, prayer. The believers devoted themselves to prayer. Prayer - individually and corporately - was how they knew to stay connected to the Father. It was an intimate time of pouring oneself out before the Lord in expectation of Him to answer, give direction, bring healing and much more. These believers followed the example of Christ himself who made prayer a daily priority. How do I view prayer, as a chore or as a desire? If I said it was always a desire, I'd be lying. How do I view spending alone time in conversation with my husband, as a chore or as a desire? That is easy, it is my desire! Why then is prayer often a chore? Maybe it's because there is a lack of intimacy, a lack of reality when it comes to facing my Savior. What the apostles had that I haven't had was the opportunity to see Christ face to face, look Him in His eyes and hear Him with their ears. To see His dedication to the Father and the time and emotion He put into prayer. For them, prayer was much more than recited words and meal time blessings. So what will it be for me? Prayer must be more intimate and more desirable than any other conversation I have daily. Prayer isn't a way to get what I want, never will be. It is a way to bring glory to the Father and allow Him to display that glory in my life.

Verse 42 of chapter 2 of Acts is a wonderful outline of worship. However, if you keep reading down in verses 46 and 47 there is the outcome of this worship. I desire the Lord to change my heart, to give me a desire to share His Word with nonbelievers, to live in fellowship with other believers and to have a glad and sincere heart no matter my circumstances. What is worship worth to you?