Living Stones, Active Worshipers

In one paragraph

Steve Baldock, one of the church's elders, brought a message built around two practical ideas for ordinary Christians: what it looks like to actively worship when you come to church on a Sunday, and how to build a simple, consistent quiet time with God. He spoke from his own experience as a blue-collar worker and longtime member of First B, and made clear he was talking to people in the room, not...

Read together

1. Jeremiah 17:7-8 opening reading about being blessed when trusting the Lord, like trees planted by a riverbank that stay green and fruitful even in drought
2. Psalm 19:14 Blake read it before prayer: let the words of our mouths and meditations of our hearts be acceptable in God's sight
3. Lamentations 3:22-23 read during the offering moment about God's compassions and mercies being new every morning
4. Ephesians 4:11-13 Steve's text on gifts Christ gave the church and the responsibility to equip God's people to do his work and build up the body
5. 1 Peter 2:4-5 the passage titled stones and sacrifices, describing believers as living stones and holy priests offering spiritual sacrifices that please God
6. James 4:8 come close to God and God will come close to you, used to introduce the quiet time section
7. Hebrews 11:6 it is impossible to please God without faith, and he rewards those who diligently seek him, used to motivate a daily quiet time
8. Revelation 6:15-17 kings, rulers, wealthy and powerful hiding in caves crying for rocks to fall on them from the wrath of the Lamb, read from Steve's journal entry dated 11/27/2021
9. Ephesians 3:14-20 Blake read it as the closing benediction about God empowering believers with inner strength and accomplishing infinitely more than we ask or think

Talk about it

1. Steve talked about the shift from seeing yourself as the audience at church to seeing yourself as the presenter before God. Has that idea ever crossed your mind before, and what would it change for you if you took it seriously?
2. Steve walked through praying specifically for different people in the room during a service, children, singles, married couples, older folks, and then himself. Which of those groups do you find easiest to pray for, and which do you tend to overlook?
3. Steve said he asks God to make him teachable and to push down his ego and pride so that when he leaves church he can be a little more like Jesus and a little less like Steve. What gets in the way of you coming to church in that posture?
4. The practical quiet time routine Steve described is built around three things: being intentional, keeping a routine, and repeating it. Which of those three is hardest for you to maintain, and why?
5. Steve read what he wrote on November 27, 2021, after reading the passage from Revelation: 'It is impossible to hide from God, Steve, so stop trying. Bow before me, confess your sins, receive my grace, get up, brush yourself off again, and follow me.' What would a note like that look like if God wrote it to you after your reading this week?