The priests were not able to continue ministering

And because of the cloud, the priests were not able to continue ministering, for the glory of the LORD filled God's temple. 2 Chron. 5:14 What brings this kind of presence? How do we get to that point where His Glory fills the temple? I believe there are two things that are needed to be done with excellence and reverence. Corporate Worship In our weekly services we seek to glorify and exalt the name of Jesus Christ, lead people to recognize his worth and celebrate His sacrifice, and prepare hearts to hear from God through the preaching of the his Word. We seek to accomplish this with an emphasis on excellence, creativity and authenticity, for we know God is worthy of our very best. We seek to worship God in spirit and in truth. Therefore we are careful to examine our worship elements in light of Scriptural truth, while also seeking to engage the heart and spirit. Personal Worship Worship is about connecting and communicating with God, and attributing worth to him. Our goal is to become worshipers, not just on Sundays, but every day of the week. Through quiet times, reading God's Word, family worship times and personal creative expressions that give God glory for who he is, we seek to become true worshipers. Sundays are a collective outpouring of what we practice during the week. Jerry Bridges writes, "The vitality and genuineness of corporate worship is to a large degree dependent upon the vitality of our individual private worship. If we aren't spending time daily worshiping God, we're not apt to contribute to the corporate experience of worship. If we aren't worshiping God during the week, how can we expect to genuinely participate in it on Sunday? We may indeed go through the motions and think we have worshiped, but how can we honor and adore One on Sunday whom we have not taken time to praise and give thanks to during the week?? If worship is giving all of ourselves to God, then everything we do is potentially an act of worship. So how we live our lives is how we praise God. Everything we do is worship when we do it for Him, displaying His face as we go. The question is not IF you worship, but WHAT you worship. Your calling is to turn your place in life into a place of true worship. To do whatever you do in a way that will reflect God's heart to those around you. It's to worship "as you live your life." Thanks to SCBC

Leading Like Jesus

Who comes to mind when you think of the word “leader”? People with higher salaries and assistants and more authority and influence than you? Power suits who fly first-class? People who are respected and who are listened to? People other than you? Check out the examples that Jesus gave us: Now that I, your Lord and Teacher, have washed your feet, you also should wash one another’s feet. I have set you an example that you should do as I have done for you. I tell you the truth, no servant is greater than his master, nor is a messenger greater than the one who sent him. John 13: 14-16 The greatest among you will be your servant. For whoever exalts himself will be humbled, and whoever humbles himself will be exalted. Matthew 23: 11-12 It’s easy to slip into a place of comfort as students and think we're above serving, or to think that someone else will get it done. We think we don't have enough time or money to do the things we picture ourselves doing to serve others in Jesus' name. During those times, God has a way of reminding me through others that serving is the most powerful way to lead—I’ll see my senior pastor being the last one to leave after a long event, a worship leader helping with tear-down, or a volunteer sitting and praying with someone. These are true acts of humble leadership, motivated out of a desire to help others and love genuinely. In God’s economy, leadership and servanthood are synonymous. People who are power-hungry and authority-obsessed might think twice about becoming God’s definition of a leader, because it wouldn’t sound too exciting to them, would it? It might mean serving when it’s not fun or convenient. It might mean sacrificing something precious to you, like your reputation or time. It might mean doing something menial and “beneath” you, like picking up trash or staying late to stack chairs, or…washing other people’s filthy, smelly feet. Jesus set the example of how to lead…by serving. And the leader that he is calling us to be will require things of us. When you help someone out, don't think about how it looks. Just do it—quietly and unobtrusively. That is the way your God, who conceived you in love, working behind the scenes, helps you out. Matthew 6: 3-4 So this is my prayer: that your love will flourish and that you will not only love much but well. Learn to love appropriately. You need to use your head and test your feelings so that your love is sincere and intelligent, not sentimental gush. Live a lover's life, circumspect and exemplary, a life Jesus will be proud of: bountiful in fruits from the soul, making Jesus Christ attractive to all, getting everyone involved in the glory and praise of God. –Philippians 2: 1-11. Servant leadership isn’t restricted to interns or volunteers, part-time or full-time staff, secretaries or senior pastors. It's not limited by our age, or resources. It's only limited by our reluctance, our pride, our doubt. Regardless of where we are, what position or title we have, we need to choose to have an “others first” mentality and value others above ourselves; it is with this attitude that we can serve humbly, without seeking reward or recognition, and “make Jesus Christ attractive to all.” God, help us serve in a way that others might experience your heart. Not to us, but to Your name be the glory… - Radicalis