Worshipping God - At a Stock Show

Last Sunday our family was at a goat show in Oklahoma City. It is the Oklahoma Youth Expo, which prides itself on being the Largest Junior Livestock Show in the United States. The goat show was held on Sunday and Monday and scheduled to begin on Sunday morning at 9:00 a.m.

Now, I would prefer the event not be scheduled on a Sunday, myself, but unfortunately, it's out of my control. However, having events such as this reminds me of the story in the Bible when the Samaritan women encounters Jesus and He asks her for a drink of water. He offers her the "living water" that only He can give.

Jesus knows all about this woman's life - that she has had five husbands, that the man she now lives with is not her husband. She's not too comfortable with this man, Jesus, knowing all about her life, so she changes the subject! The woman asks Jesus about worship:

"Our fathers worshiped on this mountain, but you Jews claim that the place where we must worship is in Jerusalem." Jesus declared, "Believe me, woman, a time is coming when you will worship the Father neither on this mountain nor in Jerusalem. You Samaritans worship what you do not know; we worship what we do know, for salvation is from the Jews. Yet a time is coming and has now come when the true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and truth, for they are the kind of worshipers the Father seeks. God is spirit, and his worshipers must worship in spirit and in truth." John 4:20-24

So, while we were at the livestock show and unable to assemble with fellow Christians to worship as usual on Sunday morning, our family, along with several other friends and youth, gathered in one of the empty goat stalls and worshipped God together - in spirit and in truth.

I think it is an important lesson to remind ourselves, as well as to teach our children, that true worship is about God and not about entertainment or how we feel or the building we are in at the moment. The Greek word for worship is proskyneō and means to kiss the hand towards in token of reverence or to bow down. It is telling and showing God just how much we love Him and how much we appreciate all that He has done for us. He gave us His Only Son, Jesus!

Thank you, God, for special times such as this that you have given us to worship you in spirit and in truth. It is wonderful to realize we can worship You at any time - even at a goat show!
In Jesus' Name,
Amen