Sacred Assembly 2024
Helpful Links:
- Overview Video about Sacred Assembly
- Preparation Message #1
- For more updates and resources, text SACRED to 888-744-0761
This past weekend we called ourselves as a church to a special season of seeking God. This season will culminate with a Sacred Assembly service on January 18th (Rock Bridge PM) and January 21st (Sunday services) and a Day of Fasting on Wednesday, January 24th.
We are moving forward in faith that there is MORE of God than we have currently grasped while offering God MORE of ourselves than we have currently yielded to Him.
Right now, we are in a time of preparation as we ask God to give us a hunger for Him, a renewed passion for Him, and a genuine desire to seek Him. In this blog, I want to answer a few general questions about this season.
What Can I Do to Prepare?
- a) Pray daily that God would give you a hunger for Him … for WHO He is more than what He can do.
- b) Give God “permission” to search your heart and change your heart. Open up your heart to His presence.
- c) Be okay with uncomfortable and commit to consecration. As we said this weekend in church, “The path is rigorous because the goal is magnificent!” And the goal is MORE of Him!!
How Do I Seek God?
We all know—to some degree—how to seek God FOR something we need (or want). But what about seeking Him just for Who He is?
- Seeking God requires a mindset that is opposite of drifting and requires vigilance in the face of distractions.
- We must put our mind on God in His glory and with His amazing attributes. This glory and these attributes are seen most clearly at the Cross and in the life of Jesus. Those are places to start to “see” Who God is and treasure what we see as we embrace the promise of Psalm 34:8 to “taste and see that the Lord is good…”
- Remember: God is not lost but He can be unseen or unperceived. Additionally, He can be undervalued by our hearts that are prone to idols and wondering. Therefore, seeking God requires us to go through channels and around obstacles.
- Channels: God comes to us through things such as Creation, His Word, the Gospel, the church (His people), and His Spirit’s illuminating our minds. So we seek God through those channels.
- Obstacles: some things in our lives can blind or dull us to the presence of God and so those must be dealt with intentionally. A simple question to ask ourselves is “What things in my life tend to make me insensitive or unaware of God?” Then resolve to deal with those things.
The Sacred Assembly service (January 18th and 21st) will be different. What does that mean?
We can expect our order of service to be slightly different. For example, we anticipate having more opportunities to pray corporately and individually. The design of the service will be to help us remember that our worship is first and foremost for God, not us.
We are also encouraging everyone to arrive a few minutes earlier than usual and to enter the worship venue with a posture of expectancy, faith, and reverence.
Besides the Sacred Assembly, what other things are taking place?
- The service next weekend (January 11th and 14th) will continue to encourage, edify and equip us in this season of seeking the Lord.
- Starting Monday, January 15th we will be sending out daily devotionals and daily prayer points. By doing the same devotionals and joining together to pray, we will demonstrate our unity as a church family and that God and His Kingdom are our first priority, His gospel is of first importance, and that our love for Christ is first at Rock Bridge!
- On Wednesday, January 17th, we are having an Elder Prayer Service at Rock Bridge Ringgold Campus. This will begin at 7:00 pm. Our prayer teams from all campuses will be coming together for this time to seek the Lord.
- On Wednesday, January 24th, we are having a Day of Fasting and Prayer. We will be fasting together. Each campus will have unique prayer opportunities available.
- On our website, we have a “ToolBox” page rockbridge.cc/sacred that offers some great resources to help us seek the Lord and strengthen our walk with Him.
Rock Bridge, God has invited us to seek Him and promised when we do, we will find Him … more of Him … more of His majesty to captivate us, more of His grace to forgive us and favor us, more of His love to define us, more of His power to strengthen us, and more of Himself to satisfy us with fullness of joy!
Therefore, we can truly say that when we seek the Lord, the best is yet to come!!
Isaiah 55:6
Seek the Lord while He may be found; call to Him while He is near.