THE service at Crediton Methodist Church on Sunday, July 14 was led by Pam Murphy and her theme was “Now is the time to give your heart”.  

Pam said if I ask what is the most precious thing you possess – I wonder what you would say?

How many of us have little precious things that have maybe come down through the family – things that are kept in a drawer or the attic, sparking a moment of nostalgia when they are rediscovered, but then they are returned to their out-of-sight and out-of-mind places for safe-keeping?

I’ve got things ranging from a bangle my youngest grandson made me to some of my son’s school and scouting badges that I keep in drawers – but the memories they evoke mean a lot to me.

The Ark of the Covenant had always been precious to Israel – regarded as the holiest object that Israel possessed.

It contained tablets of the law given by God to Moses and it symbolised God’s presence with them.

All that very difficult time they were in the wilderness, the Israelites had carried the Ark with them until, unfortunately, when they chose to take it into battle against the Philistines, the Ark was captured.

Soon, however, the Philistines were only too pleased to be rid of it because they found that all sorts of calamities started happening while it was with them.

So they sent the Ark back to Israel and for some years afterwards it was kept in an ordinary house and looked after by the son as a precious thing, kind of stowed away.

Now, with the new city ready, David brought the Ark to take its place once again in the heart of Israel. God was to be the cornerstone of David’s city of Jerusalem.

David and the people danced, sang and played instruments.

No holding back – their worship pronounced their joy and their looking forward to some stability in their daily lives with the Ark in their midst after so many years of struggles with their enemies.

David honoured God through his offerings and his generosity to the people.

“Come, now is the time to worship. Come, now is the time to give your heart”.  We heard in our reading those words are like the way David worshipped God – from the bottom of his heart – as the precious Ark of the Covenant arrived at its new home in Jerusalem.

Since David’s time, God has moved things on and we know His presence with us and within us through His own Son Jesus being born to Mary some thousand years later – born a descendent of King David.

In Christ Jesus we know God’s presence through thick and thin; through the good times and in hard times; alive in our hearts and filling us with hope and joy that, come what  may, we cannot be separated from God.

So, how do we celebrate God with us now today and tomorrow? Maybe you really do long to get up and shout and sing to show your rejoicing just like David did.

Or maybe we feel it is not really in our nature or we have not yet found the courage to express quite so openly and outwardly that innermost joy of our hearts in such a way – but that does not stop us from having that wonderful feeling of being close to God and the joy of being in a good and beneficial relationship with Him.

However we express our joy, God knows our hearts. God knows whether any of us give our hearts to Him fully or partially, or are even so distracted that a heart is not given at all.

We began by thinking about our precious treasures that get stored away in drawers, occasionally seeing the light of day and stirring our memories. 

We thought about King David getting out of storage the precious Ark of the Covenant - wherein was the presence of God – and taking it to a new home in Jerusalem.

Now, let us think about what is precious to us in our faith in the 21st century – thinking about our worship together on Sundays – building up our faith and trust in God and strengthening our love of Him – God the cornerstone of our lives – our solid rock to stand on when life around us can feel like quicksand.

God building up our fellowship and friendship and love for each other – will we be taking that precious thing with us as a treasure at the end of our time here this morning?

What will keep us going during the coming week? Or do we leave it all here, stored away until next Sunday when it will be given another airing?

Here’s another thought for us: do we recognise that even out there in the big, wide, secular world that the way we dedicate and live our lives for Jesus is in itself a way of worshipping – of giving worth and value and respect to our precious Lord?

That we will be radiating God’s love as we walk alongside any and all folk; or as we serve their needs in the multitude of different ways we interact with other people.

All of these folk are God’s creation and precious to Him.

I doubt that we will dance our way down the street – but that smile on our faces, our offering a listening ear and a kind word of compassion or encouragement, and acts of generosity; these are precious indeed in God’s sight.

Come, now is the time to give your heart.

Bronwyn Nott