Connections 6-1-25 by First Southern Baptist Church

June 1, 2025

As Pastor of Worship, it is my job and my joy to put music together for worship each Sunday. Since Pastor Terrell is out of town Memorial Day weekend, I have the opportunity to write this article for the week. You know that I will want to talk about worship!!

WORSHIP! We put a lot of effort into worship each week in planning, practice, coordination, prayer, study, etc. I don’t know how much time is spent by Pastor Terrell in preparing for the message each week, but I know it is many hours. My Pastor in Bakersfield told me one time that he spent about 20 hours each week preparing the Sunday morning message, and another 15 hours preparing the Sunday evening message. My point is that getting ready for Sunday does not happen in a short amount of time! I spend approximately 5-6 hours each week planning and putting together the music of Sunday morning.

Each of you, if you are to worship God the way He wants to be worshiped, must spend time getting ready for Sunday worship.

But why do we do this? Is it because it is expected, and it’s what we “do” when we come on Sundays into the Worship Center? Do we come to “hear” the sermon, to “hear” the music, to “fellowship” with others, or “because it’s what we do on Sunday?”

from: https://biblehub.com

I’ve written before about worship as something we are to “do.” About bowing down, and the awe we should have toward God. This time, I’d like to share another aspect, and that is the Hebrew work ABAD (pronounced “avad”), which means “to serve.” Moses’ first request of Pharaoh is that the Hebrews might go out into the desert to “serve” the Lord. The point here is that the worshipper is the servant of God. We are doing something for Him that is of value to Him.

with Pastor Bart

How many of us ever think, on a Sunday morning, “I am going to church today to serve the Lord?” Normally, we think of a worship “service” as an event that will somehow serve us! Yes, we “serve” when we take positions of responsibility such as teaching, etc., but I’m talking now about the actual “worship service.” We “serve” the Lord as we fall down before Him, lost in wonder, love and praise. We are ”working” for God, doing something of value to Him, when we remind ourselves and the watching world who He really is, what life is really about, and what really matters in life. When we declare that He is the supreme value in the universe, we are serving His purposes in the world.

Try to think of this aspect as you come to church on Sunday, that you are here to please God, not to sit in a pew and enjoy yourself, or enjoy what someone else does for you up on the platform. You are here to “serve” God by concentrating on telling Him, and showing Him in all that you do and say, that you love Him, and are eternally thankful for who He is and all He has done for you. Yes, it’s OK if you go away saying to yourself, “I enjoyed the service today,” but your first thought as you leave, should be asking God if He enjoyed YOUR “service” today. When you concentrate on “serving” Him, your own satisfaction will increase as well.

Thank you for serving the Lord at First Southern Baptist Church. I look forward with joy to “serving” with you each and every Sunday!

Pastor Bart

Senior Care Home Ministry

Saturday June 14th 2 PM

Contact Gene Moore @ 928-350-8789