“Shout joyfully to the Lord, all the earth.
Serve the Lord with gladness;
Come before Him with joyful singing.” Psalm 100:1-2
How many times have we heard this verse? For most us, hundreds of times. It’s a well-known one, and one that we often use to describe our weekly gatherings on Sunday mornings. The recent popular song released by Phil Wickham embodies this concept: “there’s joy in the house of the Lord, there’s joy in the house of the Lord today…” and you know the rest. But I feel that oftentimes, especially for those working in ministry, the joy of Sunday mornings can fade quickly. We drag ourselves out of bed before the sun rises, we have a million things that need to be done before service, we have to put out fires and manage complications, and everywhere we turn people are requiring our attention and assistance. It feels like a whirlwind, and then we arrive home after a morning (or sometimes a whole day) of serving, completely exhausted and spent.
But how sad is this? Perhaps those working in ministry are in the most danger of missing the presence of God on any given Sunday. We can go Sunday after Sunday without feeling a spark of joy, without lifting our head up and acknowledging the fact that we are part of God’s people, gathered to meet with Him. And honestly, this situation doesn’t have a quick fix-we often don’t get to choose our Sunday morning responsibilities and the amount of things we have on our plate. But what we can do is remind ourselves of why we are there. Why do we do church? To meet with God corporately with His people. To worship the One who gave up heaven and put on flesh, and then died and rose again so that we could know Him. The One in whom we have eternal security. The One who holds our hearts, who knows our deepest desires and weaknesses and loves us anyway. The One who sits enthroned on high, sovereign over all. And Scripture tells us that in His presence is fullness of joy (Psalm 16:11). And that is what we should be experiencing corporately each Sunday…the presence of God.
Perhaps those working in ministry are in the most danger of missing the presence of God on any given Sunday.
So if you have found your Sundays being anything but joyful, maybe it’s time to make a change, even if it is just a mindset shift. You- children’s workers in the nursery, media team behind the scenes, greeters and hospitality team, worship team-you are part of the family of God just as much as those in the congregation. You are to “serve Him with gladness” and “come before Him with joyful singing” just as they do. Press into His presence, and remind yourself of the One you are serving. The King of the universe wants to meet with YOU. He wants you to worship with His people this Sunday, and take part in the joy of His presence.
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