Ecclesiastes 3:1 says “there is a season for every activity under heaven.” Just like spring makes way for summer and fall is nature’s way of preparing the world for winter, the teenage years are just a preparation time for young adulthood, and the physical and mental changes of middle-age are just part of getting ready for old-age.

Our focus last week was on restoring our worship to right side-up through a relationship with Jesus. It’s only through Jesus and a faith-based relationship with Him that we can worship God properly. Today we’re going to look at corporate worship – why we should worship together, what worshiping together does, and how we should do it.

When we talk about worship, most people think of it as a space-time event - something that happens in a particular place – a church – and at a particular time – say, between 10:30 and 11:30 a.m. on Sundays. Is this what God had in mind when He said, “Remember the Sabbath day to keep it holy”?

Painful thoughts are not unusual for a Christian to have. The emptiness of unanswered prayer, pain that you can’t describe or that you’re afraid to share, loneliness. That feeling like you’re going to have to quit the Journey, that you can’t make it to the finish line. How do you keep going then? How do you find endurance to finish the journey when you feel alone or worn out or are running hurt?

For the next three weeks we’re going to be thinking about how and why to embark on a spiritual Journey with Jesus, how to enjoy the Journey, and how to develop endurance for the Journey. In Luke 15, Jesus told three parables to drive home the point that “lost people matter to God."

The purpose of the Bible is to record how God is working out His redemptive plan through human history. God graciously called Abram into a covenant relationship to show that salvation is about God’s blessing rather than man’s effort. During times of confusion, doubt, and uncertainty, we can have confidence that God is at work.

There is a “law” of unexpected consequences. You’ve probably experienced it. You face a problem and endure it for a while. Eventually it comes to a point where you have to make a plan to get out of the problem. You rely on your experience and wisdom. Maybe get some advice. Maybe you even prayed. You execute your plan. But along the way, there are unexpected consequences to your plan. Abraham also experienced the law of unexpected consequences when he found himself “off track” in Egypt. Today we’ll learn some important lessons to help us get back on track.

Abraham’s nephew Lot was a lot of trouble! But that didn’t keep Abraham from loving him. Abraham was learning that God was calling him into a covenant relationship to imitate God’s character of love to the world around him.

In the test over Abraham’s son Isaac, God is asking, “Which is more important to you – Me or the blessings I have promised?” In the end, Abraham was commended as God’s friend because “his faith and his actions were working together.” (James 2:22) True faith will always show itself by your obedient actions.

For the next several weeks we’re going to concentrate on where our church is going and some things that are vitally important if we are going to get there. We need to keep the faith, live obediently, and maintain unity if we are going to stay true to our calling and enjoy God’s blessings.