Tag Archives: Worship

WYWIWYB

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“we all… are being transformed
into the same image from one degree of glory to another”
(2 Cor 3:18 (ESV))

There is, in computer programming jargon, the following phrase “WYSIWYG,” pronounced “whiziwhig.”  It is an acronym for the term, “What You See is What You Get.”  I use a website program in WYSIWYG.  Rather than having to learn the website programing code HTML, I can simply place objects, pictures, text and links onto a page, and the program converts what I’ve done into the appropriate code, and it gets posted online exactly as I designed it (usually).  WYSIWYG is a great help, I figure knowing Biblical Greek and Hebrew and a few words in broken Spanish is all the language  training I need.

There is a Biblical truth that lies at the heart of the idea of WYSIWYG.  We might call it WYWIWIB – What You Worship is What You Become.  Think about this with me for a minute.

That which is most important to you, that which is at the center of your life, that which you worship (whether you call it worship or not), will shape and define who and what you become. 

If the most important thing in your life is finding financial security, wealth, and the accumulation of power, that will shape the decisions you make, the goals you set, and the way your treat others.  Your essential question in every situation will be along the lines of, “How does this benefit me; what can I can from this relationship?”

If you believe that the greatest truth in this life is found in the teachings of science, and particularly, evolutionary science, that will shape the decisions you make and how you treat those around you.  If we are all here by chance, and only the strongest survive and thrive, then compassion for the weak is only a luxury, self-preservation is the greatest good, and, since there is no afterlife (since there is no God who created life) all that matters in life is what you experience here and now.

But if we believe that we are created by a holy, sovereign, and gracious God, that too will shape who and what we become.  If we believe that there is a God at the center of the universe, a God who is the foundation of all life, then that God will also be the center of our lives, the foundation of our ethic and our experience.  Hughes Oliphant Old, dean of the Institute for Worship at Erskine College, once wrote “Those who worship the holy God become through that worship holy themselves.  When we worship, having our minds enlightened by the Spirit, our lives cleansed by the Spirit, our wills moved by the Spirit, and our hearts warmed by the Spirit, then our worship is transformed from being a mere human work into being a divine work.”  Worship is the workshop where we are transformed into the image of God.

I think this is at the heart of what Paul is saying in 2 Corinthians 3:18, “And we all, with unveiled face, beholding the glory of the Lord, are being transformed into the same image from one degree of glory to another. For this comes from the Lord who is the Spirit.”

Who are you becoming?  Are you growing in the likeness of Christ, being transformed into his image, maturing in the work of the Spirit?  Or are you becoming more and more like the world around you, blending in with the tone and temper of the fallen world?  Answering this question will begin to show you who or what is at the heart of your worship.

May you become more like Him who has made you!

SDG

Have you found Jesus?

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“Where is he who has been born king of the Jews?”
(Matthew 2:2 (ESV))

So, the Sayler house is decorated for Christmas.  The tree is up, with all of its trimmings (including brand new working lights – that’s another story).  The garland hangs from the fireplace mantel; the stockings are there too, awaiting a visit from jolly old Saint Nick.  I even managed to get the lights up outside before the wind and cold set in, which is saying something for living in NW Iowa.

Of all the decorations that we have out for Christmas, I think the little boys’ favorite must be the “Little People Nativity Set.”  It’s a little play set nativity, complete with Wise Men, Shepherd, various livestock, and of course, Mary and Baby Jesus (curiously, no Joseph – must have gone to the store for diapers).  The boys love to play with the figures of the nativity, right alongside their toy Superman, Batman, and other Super Heroes.  More than once I’ve seen the Son of Man, nestled in the manger, flying side by side with the Man of Steel – I’m so proud.

The one downside is, there are so many pieces, they tend to go missing throughout the day.  At lunch, supper, and bed time, we have a family search for the missing characters.  Recently, the most notoriously lost seems to be baby Jesus.  My house is beginning to sound like a Baptist revival.  “Have you found Jesus?”  “I found him, I found Jesus!”

Sometimes Jesus is hidden under the couch or radiator.  Other times he’s under the piles of Christmas Story books that get put out on the coffee table this time of year.  Then sometimes Jesus get hidden in toy baskets, under coats, and amongst the other clutter of the house.

As we were once again searching for the Christ child last night, I began to realize this was a great lesson for us as adults.  Is Jesus missing from your Christmas?  Have you found Him?  Are you even looking?  Did you even notice he was missing? 

Sometimes Jesus gets buried under the furious rush to find all the right presents, getting the Christmas cards written and mailed, and having the decorations just right.  Sometimes Jesus gets lost in all the busyness and chaos of a season that is supposed to be a celebration of the coming of the Prince of Peace.  All too often, without even thinking about it, we just push Jesus off to the side of our celebration, “I’ve got too much going on to worry about all that religious stuff too!”

At the risk of sounding cliché, it is so important that we keep Christ in Christmas.  If we can’t keep Jesus at the center of our Christmas celebration, is it really Christ’s mass?  If we can’t spend the Advent season developing a longing and expectation for the return of our King, will we ever?  If we lose Jesus at Christmas, how will we ever hope to find him throughout the rest of the year?

My encouragement to you this Christmas, and anytime throughout the year, is keep searching for Jesus.  Watch for Him, wait for Him.  See where He is missing in your life, and search for Him as if your life depended on it.  Turn to the Scriptures to hear His word again; His word of life, of hope, of righteousness and peace.  Repent and confess of those things which you have put before Christ, which have kept you from the joy of obedience to your Lord.  Make worship, privately and corporately, a priority, so that you may find yourself where Christ has promised to meet us.

My prayer is that in all of your celebrations this season, you will find Jesus again and again.  That would really be a Merry Christmas.

SDG