The Lord Be With You

"The Lord be with you."
"And also with you."

A little piece of Catholic mass.

Yet a sentiment that we Christians seem to lose track of.

A classic Catholic mass is a very formalized worship service.

The Church is the Bride of Christ. ALL the Church.

Catholicism may be very formal, but unlike some of my evangelistic charismatic Brothers and Sisters in Christ, I still see Catholics as Christians, just as Christian as you or I.

Yes, I know, I hear people say, "My husband was Methodist and I'm a Christian," or something on the order of "Catholics aren't real Christians."

Oh my Lord, what is up with that?

We are ALL Christians! Every single one that accepts Jesus, whether in a formalized ritual or a free form charismatic experience, every single one of us is a Christian.

This divisiveness is not good for the Bride.

We may have differences in experience, in doctrine, even in which Bible we read, but it's all Christianity, it's all the Word.

We're all Christians.

"May the Lord be with you."
"And also with you."

The Lord is with each and every one of us.

The larger Body, the Body of Christ, has many parts and each has a function. And honestly, some parts don't function at all. But that's a matter of individuals not choosing to serve.

"The Lord be with you."

That is not the question. The Lord is always with us.

The question is, "Are you with the Lord?"

Jesus might be your homie, but where are you taking Him in your day-to-day life?

Ummmm, oops.

Are you taking your Homie with you when you sin?

Ummmm, yes.

Are you taking your Homie with you when you act in an unChristian way?

Ummmm, yes.

The Lord is with you. Everywhere, every day, in every thing, the Lord is with you.

Do you REALLY want to take Jesus with you to the bar, to the movies, to work, to play?

Yes, of course you do. That's part of being a Christian. We don't turn Jesus off on and on like we turn on the shower.

He's already washed us, cleansed us of our sins, made us new inside.

But maybe you should take to heart those simple sentences in a Catholic mass:

"The Lord be with you."
"And also with you."

He is always with you, so maybe it's past time to consider where YOU are in your life, your worship, your service. You may be new on the inside, but if you don't start working on the outside, you're going to stay stuck in that old sinful rut.

"The Lord be with you."

Simple, yet effective.

"The Lord be with you."

Whole sermons are written around that simple phrase.

"The Lord be with you."

My prayer for you today is that you absorb that into your mind and spirit, that your soul be uplifted in knowing that the Lord is with you. And you reflect that Spirit to the world.

That you become a better and more effective part of the Body, of the Bride.

And you willingly and joyfully walk in the Path the Lord has set before you.

"The Lord be with you."
"And also with you."