A Kindled Fire

  “I can worship outside among nature just as well as I can inside a church building.” That claim is especially common during the summer, when church attendance tends to decline.

  Certainly it’s possible to worship and talk to God among his creation. In fact, George Washington Carver called nature “an unlimited broadcasting station, through which God speaks to us every hour, if we will only tune in.”

  Yet corporate – or church – worship is still vital. Martin Luther noted: “At home, in my own house, there is no warmth or vigor in me, but in the church when the multitude is gathered together, a fire is kindled in my heart and it breaks its way through.” When we’re away from God’s house, we miss blessings and opportunities including communion, fellowship and support. So this summer, spend time in nature but don’t neglect “to meet together”!

Let us consider how to stir up one another to love and good works, not neglecting to meet together, as is the habit of some, but encouraging one another, and all the more as you see the Day drawing near. Hebrews 10:24-25 ESV