Friday, September 19, 2014

Selling Yourself: Worship As A Way Of Life

I found this post that has been in draft form for about 7 years. Maybe I'll go ahead and finish it and then finally put it up.

I appeal to you therefore, brothers, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to God, which is your spiritual worship.

Romans 12:1

I'm guessing that at some point in your life, you've probably been on one end or the other of a sales presentation. Perhaps it was in person at your home or it was over the telephone or through the mail (or even spam email). When considering reputable sales presentations, there are perhaps a few commonalities, which though not universal, that may be ubiquitous enough to consider truths about sales presentations:

  1. The seller had something they thought had value that they were able to offer
  2. The seller had a target audience to which the offer was being presented who had interest in the offer
  3. The seller was seeking to maintain an ongoing relationship with the intended audience

What do I mean by this? Let me illustrate by reflecting on when my wife and I had a new deck built. Each company that came to give us a bid had experience building decks as well as the manpower to build the deck (#1). They were making their sales pitch to someone who owned their own house - not someone who was renting a 10th floor apartment (#2). They were hoping that not only would we choose them to build our deck but also that we might have other projects for them (patio, fence?) and that we would refer neighbors and friends to them if they too wanted a deck built (#3).

So how, then, does this relate to worship? When I read Romans 12:1 and get to the word "present," it made me think of a sales presentation.

What do I have to offer to God in worship? Not just my amazingly adequate bass and guitar playing, but my whole life: my family, my job, my belongings, my activities, my busy time, my "free" time, all of it. It is living sacrifice. I'm presenting it "at the altar" and yet I don't have to kill it, drain the blood, sprinkle the blood, burn it up or any of those other those things that were required in the Old Testament of the various sacrifices and offerings. I sacrifice it and yet it lives on. Not to be a new sacrifice on some other day, but to be continually sacrificed and offered to God. Because of Jesus' death on the cross for my sins, what I am presenting is made holy and acceptable.

Who am I presenting to? I am presenting to God. I know that He will accept it, because He asked for it and He made it acceptable. Of course, I need to remember to "worship in spirit and truth" and make sure that what I am offering is appropriate. I need to keep focused on His Truth as revealed in His Word and to be actively seeking His will. As a good salesman, I need to be remember what it is that my target audience wants from me.

Do I want to maintain an ongoing relationship with God? Absolutely! I am not selling some cheap product. I want my God to use me to bring glory to Himself. I want Him to transform my family, myself, and others around me to be more like His Son. I want to finish my life and hear the words "Well done my good and faithful servant."

So, dear reader, don't sell yourself short, but offer your living sacrifices to God and worship Him in spirit and in truth!

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