So You Hate Rituals?

Every morning I wake up and put whatever clothes on I'm going to wear, pray, brew a cup of coffee. I break open my several devotionals, read, pray more, check the weather and some of my many emails and direct messages and so on.

One of my daughters orders a diet coke and ice water with two lemons each morning at the Micky D drive-through.

Perhaps most every Sunday you head to a local church (the same one most if not all Sunday's) with the same folks, etc., etc..

The English adjective "ritual" is: a ceremony, sometimes linked directly to religious law, and done in accordance with social custom or normal protocol.

It's that simple- or complex depending if you're really thinking or not.

You don't hate rituals, you have plenty of them just like all people.

"But Glenn, it's NOT rituals per say but spiritual-worship rituals, you know, doing things "by rote" as a sort of law in order to please God, a surface habit, unthinking and just a form without heart or substance to it". And I'll agree with you that nobody is a genuine disciple of Jesus simply by "going through the motions" but let's not be so quick to judge a neighbor, brother or sister in Christ (do you have a copy of the Lamb's Book of Life?) that they're simply caught up in a ritual without heart for God, loving God with their mind or soul unless we can literally read their thoughts.

Oh sure, there are gifts of discernment, words of wisdom and knowledge but often that's not where we come from in casting hard, blanket judgments because... wait for it... THEY AIN'T GROOVIN' ON THE SAME RITUALS AS ME AN' MY TRIBE ARE!

Yup. Right there sis and bro, right. there.

How often we park, camp, cement our own rituals as holy, precious, life-giving and pull a hard judge on another's customs while unconsciously following our own to the letter of our own custom, tradition, even in truth, a law we seek to drop on "those people over there".

Truth is you don't know what's literally in my mind, heart, soul as I go about my day, personal and gathered worship times, work and even during social/play events do you? And I don't know your motives and true focus of your desires do I?

GOD alone fully knows "the thoughts and intents of our heart", our true, deepest motives for doing what we do, repeating it over and over. Scripture, the Word of God and the Living Word does not come as a battering ram, an endless chamber of ammo with which to shoot those with whom we take issue -all the while wrapping ourselves in our own chosen rituals.

God give us grace to walk with humility and caution when we're tempted to judge or verbally castigate others in their relationship with or without You!!

And as always, I sincerely thank you for stopping by. -Glenn