Are the 100 Days of Worship Becoming Monotonous?

Posted on November 13, 2013 by tdillmuth

Post by Pastor Tim Dillmuth – Our present life is not simply a precursor to a life in heaven, but rather preparation for an eternity of ruling and reigning with Christ!  And I was reminded this week that preparation is often done through the monotonous, dry and boring times of life.

In church this past Sunday, Pastor Foley shared an important difference between Saul and David in 1 Samuel 23:1-8.  Notice both David’s and Saul’s responses when faced with important questions.  Verses 3-4 say,

But David’s men said to him, “Here in Judah we are afraid. How much more, then, if we go to Keilah against the Philistine forces!”  Once again David inquired of the LORD, and the LORD answered him, “Go down to Keilah, for I am going to give the Philistines into your hand.”

And later in verse 7,

Saul was told that David had gone to Keilah, and he said, “God has handed him over to me, for David has imprisoned himself by entering a town with gates and bars.”

David inquires of the Lord (also in vs. 2), but Saul assumes he knows what God wants.  And we see this pattern time and time again in the lives of Saul and David.  1 Samuel 13 is another good example of this, whereby Saul sacrifices without Samuel, assuming that God would want him to sacrifice before he went into battle, no matter what.

Ultimately, this could be the most important thing that separated Saul from David.  Despite struggles, deceit and yes . . . monotony, David continued to inquire of the Lord instead of assuming that he knew what was right.  And this is one of a few things that qualified David to reign as King of Israel for so many years.

For us, “asking God” is one of the many things that goes by the wayside when our Christian life becomes monotonous.  The “100 Days of Worship” campaign is a good example of this.  I’ve talked with a few people that have shared that their daily family worship has become a bit to tiresome and monotonous.  And as much as I’d like to chide them, I fully understand what they expressed.

At times, there are lots of things more exciting and exhilarating than being faithful to the monotonous work of leading your family and those in your sphere of influence in family worship.  And I’m not just talking about the common distractions of our multi-media culture, but we can even replace worship with good things like Pastor Foley mentioned in his last post.

But God trains us to reign in each and every situation, including the boring and monotonous ones.  This marked David’s early life, (before he was chosen to be King) as he worshiped God in the midst of the monotony of keeping his father’s sheep.

As the 100 Days has now gone beyond the halfway point, your daily worship in the common places may be becoming routine.  But instead of being discouraged by the routineness, look at it as an opportunity to model the North Korean’s faithfulness that they have exhibited over the past 60 years through monotony, repetiveness, persecution and even death.

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Why We Are More In Need Of 100 Days Of Worship Than 30 Days Of Thanks

Posted on November 11, 2013 by Pastor Foley

WLO_worshippingOn the face of it, taking time to be thankful for what we have is a no-brainer–a straightforwardly non-controversial good idea. After all, thankfulness beats ingratitude hands down as a desirable character trait among one’s conversation partners.

But after reading the daily thanks posted by my Facebook friends as part of their participation in the 30 Days of Thanks campaign, I have begun to wonder whether ingratitude–and the remedy of thankfulness for what we have–might fit more in the category of first world problems. When I remind myself to be thankful for my doggie or my kittie whom I otherwise might take for granted, I am by definition in a position where I have the resources to make it through an average day rather adequately without awareness of my constant reliance upon God.

Worshiplessness is a different matter entirely–the great equalizer of rich and poor. Whereas it is unlikely that you will suffer from thoughtless ingratitude if, for example, you are subsisting on a diet of tree bark, you may find that worship comes with great difficulty in such circumstances. It is worth noting that the book of Job is not a reminder to be thankful for what we have but rather a (stark) reminder that humans are to worship God in the absence of any seemingly sensible reason to do so:

13 Now there was a day when his sons and daughters were eating and drinking wine in their oldest brother’s house, 14 and there came a messenger to Job and said, “The oxen were plowing and the donkeys feeding beside them, 15 and the Sabeans fell upon them and took them and struck down the servants(1 )with the edge of the sword, and I alone have escaped to tell you.” 16 While he was yet speaking, there came another and said, “The fire of God fell from heaven and burned up the sheep and the servants and consumed them, and I alone have escaped to tell you.” 17 While he was yet speaking, there came another and said, “The Chaldeans formed three groups and made a raid on the camels and took them and struck down the servants with the edge of the sword, and I alone have escaped to tell you.” 18 While he was yet speaking, there came another and said, “Your sons and daughters were eating and drinking wine in their oldest brother’s house, 19 and behold, a great wind came across the wilderness and struck the four corners of the house, and it fell upon the young people, and they are dead, and I alone have escaped to tell you.” 20 Then Job arose and tore his robe and shaved his head and fell on the ground and worshiped.

As a life form, in other words, all of us human beings, regardless of whether we are rich or poor, may be more keenly in ongoing need of worship practice than thankfulness practice. Remembering to give thanks for Mr. Whiskers purring next to us on the pillow may prompt a helpful ooze of dopamine into our blood stream, but only worship can sustain us and fundamentally transform us when there is no pillow, no Mr. Whiskers, and, quite literally, no thing for which to be thankful anywhere in sight. Just ask Job, who emerges from his encounter with God not discernably more thankful but definitely more worshipful:

Then Job replied to the Lord:

2 “I know that you can do all things;
no purpose of yours can be thwarted.
3 You asked, ‘Who is this that obscures my plans without knowledge?’
Surely I spoke of things I did not understand,
things too wonderful for me to know.

4 “You said, ‘Listen now, and I will speak;
I will question you,
and you shall answer me.’
5 My ears had heard of you
but now my eyes have seen you.
6 Therefore I despise myself
and repent in dust and ashes.”

Oddly, it is possible to be thankful and prideful, thankful and materialistic, even thankful and self-centered. But it is not possible to be worshipful and to be any of these other things. Greater appreciation of Mr. Whiskers will not result in you despising yourself and repenting in dust and ashes, unless, of course, you discover that you have accidentally locked Mr. Whiskers in the garage for two weeks.  Only worship has the power to fundamentally transform us.

Which is why we may be far more in need of 100 Days of Worship than of 30 Days of Thanks, no matter what month the calendar happens to show.

Posted in 100 Days of Worship in the Common Places, North Korea, Worship | Tagged , , , | 1 Comment

Video – Bible Smuggling Into North Korea

Posted on November 8, 2013 by tdillmuth

We recently released a 35 minute, exclusive documentary on the ministry of Seoul USA.  The video goes into never before released detail on the different ways in which we get the Bible across the border into North Korea.

Below is a short clip from the documentary which captures the emotional reaction of Mrs. Foley, Seoul USA’s President, when she viewed the dramatic footage of our North Korean underground partners being accused of espionage by North Korea.  These Christians are shown praying and singing to God . . . before they were eventually martyred for their faith.

Watch the full North Korea documentary at www.seoulusa.org/100-days-videos.

Posted in 100 Days of Worship in the Common Places, North Korea, Videos | Tagged , , | 2 Comments