The six months of my life that I spent in Philadelphia were a high point in my spiritual life. The church I attended there throbbed with vitality. The congregation grew weekly. The offering baskets overflowed as we poured out our love and gratitude to God. The preaching was uplifting and challenging. The unity of Christ’s body was real.
After the words of the benediction on Sunday evening, we always sang together, “Take the Name of Jesus with You.” Then we’d part and go our separate ways, wishing we could set our spiritual instruments on auto-pilot so we could go out and live just as we’d worshiped.
But we couldn’t. It was a lot harder Monday through Saturday than it was in church on Sunday. We each had to make personal choices throughout the week. Should we do this or that? Go here or there? Speak or be silent? Stay on schedule or stop to help someone? No pastor was there to remind us of God’s Word. But God Himself was there, just as He is for you and me each and every day, directing us in the way we should go.