Heading Home

In the chilly dampness of the early morning hours, the woman gropes her way through the dark city streets of Jerusalem. Carrying only a small oil lamp to light her way, Mary Magdalene is joined by Joanna, Salome, and Mary, the mother of James. Leaving the city, they wend their way to the dew-moistened garden where Jesus had been buried.

Dressed in their mourning apparel and blurry-eyed from their tears of grief, they enter the garden of the tomb, carrying the spices to anoint Jesus’ body.

The first glints of sunlight peek over the horizon as they approach the tomb. The ground shakes violently as an angel appears and rolls back the large stone covering the tomb’s entrance. The angel says, “Do not be afraid; Jesus is not here. He is risen! Go and tell the others.”

Terrified, Mary Magdalene rushes to get Peter and John and returns with them to the tomb. With their hearts pounding in fear and lungs struggling for air, the men enter the tomb and frantically survey the surroundings until their eyes rest on the stone slab, where only the death cloths lay.

Seeing that the body of Jesus is not there, the disciples rush back to tell the others.

While the other women wait outside the tomb, Mary Magdalene stoops down to look inside. With tears streaming down her cheeks, she turns to leave and encounters a man, who asks, “Woman, why are you weeping? Whom are you seeking?”

Assuming him to be the gardener, “‘Sir,’ she asks, ‘if you have taken Him away, tell me where you have put Him, and I will go and get Him.’” (John 20:15 NLT)

“Mary,” He whispers compassionately.

Recognizing a familiar voice, she gasps, “Rabboni!” and falls at His feet in worship.

I have been a Mary Magdalene. . .a follower of the Lord yet not being able to find Him. I wandered around for relentless hours, with stinging tears spilling down my cheeks, weeping in pain, sorrow, and loss. I searched the tomb of the world and found it emptied of dreams, hopes, and purposes.

My restoration came when I realized my Saviour had stood beside me all along, compassionately whispering my name. When I heard His loving voice, I fell at His feet in worship.

Have you ever been a Mary Magdalene? Do you weep over loss of dreams, hopes, or purposes? Pain, sorrow, or circumstance? Do you stand at the tomb, wearing the grave clothes of mourning, wondering where Jesus is?


Just as Mary Magdalene met Christ in an unexpected way, so your Easter experience comes to you in your hour of despair. Jesus will be there beside you to comfort you, compassionately whispering your name and asking, “Why do you weep? Whom do you seek?”

Jesus always brings you hope of resurrection as on that first Easter morn. He comes to lift you up, to wipe away your tears, to release you from your pain, to remove your grave clothes of fear and depression.

Jesus says to you, “Do not wear the grave-clothes stained with the tears of grief. Come into My garden of beauty and I will give you the robe of Easter’s resurrection gladness. Take My Hand and let Me lead you along the path to life everlasting. I gave My life that you might live eternally with Me.”

He says, “I am the resurrection and the life. He who believes in Me, though he may die, he shall live. And whoever lives and believes in Me shall never die. Do you believe this?” (John 11:25-26 NKJV)

Do you believe this? Then, weep no more! Fall at His feet and worship Him!

May you know the power of Christ’s Resurrection Life in a deeper way this Easter season.

This is an inspirational video of celebration. I hope you’ll watch it.





Today’s post is part of the Christian Writers Blog Chain on the topic of redemption/resurrection. Check out and enjoy the other contributors’ posts in the left sidebar.

“I have something to say to you.” (Luke 7:40 NLT)

If Jesus said that to you, would you immediately put down your duster, turn off your computer, the radio, or TV, hang up the cell phone, or stop whatever you were doing and say as Samuel did, “Speak, for Your servant is listening,” (1 Sam. 3:10 NIV)?

Though I have learned to be still before the Lord, I sometimes fail to put that knowledge into practice. Allowing outside circumstances to overtake me, I listen to the multitude of voices or duties instead of the Lord.

I know I am not alone in this.

First, how many of us truly take time to be alone with the Lord, Whom we say we love? Second, even if we take five minutes to pray, we usually talk at God, treating prayer as a monologue and not as a conversation.

Conversing with the Lord implies that we listen to Him. He says, “Oh, that My people would listen to Me.” (Ps. 81:13a NKJV) Do we really make a conscious effort to sit down and listen for those precious whispers of the Lord?

Always in a rush, we put in our requests and rush out the door, not waiting to hear what God has to say. God does not have carry-out service like a drive-thru Taco Bell, and we don’t get to return what we receive if it isn’t prepared the way we want or to complain if it isn’t served as fast as we would like it.

If we unscramble the word ‘listen,’ what do we get? Enlist and silent! When we enlist in prayer, our priority should be more than just handing God our grocery lists of wants and needs; we should be to silent and listen.

God says, “Be still, and know that I am God.” (Ps. 46:10 NKJV) We must be still, for God is a Gentleman and does not force His way through all world’s racket buzzing around in our heads.

David said of being in the Lord’s presence, “That’s the only quiet, secure place in a noisy world, the perfect getaway far from the buzz of traffic.” (Ps. 27:4 Msg)

Other psalms give us comfort in that secret place, “You called in trouble, and I delivered you; I answered you in the secret place of thunder.” (Ps. 81:7 NKJV) and “He who dwells in the secret place of the Most High shall abide under the shadow of the Almighty.” (Ps. 91:1 NKJV)

Even Jesus Himself spoke of that secret place, “But you, when you pray, go into your room, and when you have shut your door, pray to your Father who is in the secret place; and your Father who sees in secret will reward you openly.” (Matt. 6:6 NKJV)

In the Lord’s presence is that secret place where no outcries of earth intrude, where no ghosts of years past interrupt, where no outside opinions interfere, where no urgency of decisions impede.

If we were still enough, we would hear all those messages of love, comfort, peace, guidance, and, yes, even discipline, that we long to hear. God is a Gentleman and will only speak to us when we shut out the racket of the world and stop talking. If we do not still our senses and hush our hearts, how can we hear heaven’s music?

Oh, to hush each intruder attempting to thwart the calm necessary for our weary and restless souls that we might experience that sacred silence in His presence, that secret fellowship with Him. Do we desire this more than the wooings of the world?

The Still Small Voice has no destination if there is no listening ear.

* Is intimacy with the Lord missing in your life?
* Do you take time to be still in His presence?
* Do you follow after Jesus seeking something from Him as the multitudes did,
* Or do you lean upon His breast as John the beloved did, just to be near Him, or sit at His feet as Mary did, just to serve Him in worship by pouring out your thanks and your tears as fragrant oil upon His body?

It only costs us our time to listen but it costs us our quality of life not to listen!

Jesus has something to say to you…will you listen?

Enter to Worship - Exit to Serve by Ronald K. Gray (Xulon Press)

Today, I bring you an interview with Ronald K. Gray, author of Enter to Worship – Exit to Serve. If you would like your name entered for the give-away of the book, please leave a comment at the end of this post.

About the Author

Ronald Gray serves the Kingdom of God through sharing the uncompromised Word of God. He has been faithful to his call since 1974. He is on the board of International Outreach Ministries and Charles Simpson Ministries. He is the Director of Mission Growth for IOM leading short-term teams to various countries in the world.

Ronald began his ministry with Gulf Coast Teen Challenge in Pensacola, FL. He has served as an Associate Pastor and Senior Pastor. Ronald and his wife Sharon have lived in the Mobile, AL area since 1995. He and Sharon have two daughters and four grandchildren.

Ronald has traveled extensively in the United States and in over 38 countries, spreading the message of the Kingdom of God. Many people have received salvation, healing, restoration, and deliverance in their lives.

What is the book about?

While the book’s title puts it in the praise and worship section in book stores, the book is more about the total life of the believer. Nehemiah10:39 is the core scripture for the book’s teachings.

Nehemiah had gone to Jerusalem to rebuild the walls and also rebuilt the temple, restoring worship to the people. Worship was centered around sacrifice. I use the different groups pictured in Nehemiah to talk about fundamental areas of the believers life.

The scripture says they would not forsake the temple of God. We have forsaken the house of God today. We are so busy with our agendas, we have left the true reason for worship. God is looking for something real from our lives, not just our words.

Why Enter to Worship - Exit to Serve?

The life of the believer comes from our life in God. We bring to Him a sacrifice of our monies, our gifts, our fruits and lay them at His feet. The premise for most Christians today is what can God do for them instead of how can I worship God with all that is within me. The scriptures teach us that everyone has something to offer.

When we worship in the fullness of our lives, God then fills us to be able to affect our world. We then exit to serve God through proclaiming His Word, serving those around us and exalting His name in all the earth. Everything we do in church is to help us fulfill God’s calling on our lives in the world.

What do you think is the most important chapter of the book?

In over 35 years of full time ministry, I have never heard anyone else teach about porters. In Nehemiah 10:39, it lists porters between priests and singers. I thought that was very interesting and researched porters. It is basically a janitor.

Servants that do the basics, people who do ordinary things to keep ministries going. God wants servants. That is a concept that is lost in the big time world of church ministries today. Jesus came to serve. I believe that we can make a difference in our community, our neighborhoods, and our world if we are willing to lay our lives down to serve God.

What do you hope to accomplish with your book?

I hope that ordinary believers will recognize they have something to offer. We can bring our monies and touch the nations. We can bring our gifts and see the power of God touch people and their needs. We can offer our fruits and not wait for the pastors or elders, but be instruments to bring life to those around us who are seeking a relevant relationship with Jesus.

The five fold ministries of Apostle, Prophet, Evangelist, Pastor and Teacher were never supposed to do everything in the church. The church is supposed to be equipped for ministry. Everyone should be able to proclaim the message and everyone should have praise for the God we serve. That should not happen just on Sunday mornings between 10 a.m. and 12 noon. We should be able to give God praise in our homes and throughout the week. I truly believe this can be the church’s finest hour.

Are there other available resources connected with this book?

Yes. I taught my book at a conference and had it professionally recorded on video and audio. These sessions are great for small groups and Bible studies. There is a Study Guide to help the leader go through the sessions. The book and the video provide different insights that will help people to grow into maturity.

Where are these resources available to purchase?

You can obtain this book and many other resources on my web site at RonaldGrayMinistries.org.

“The true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and truth; for the Father is seeking such to worship Him.” (John 4:23b NKJV) “For it is written, ‘You shall worship the LORD your God, Him only you shall serve.’” (Matt. 4:10 NKJV)

‘Worship service’ is more than a phrase given to our church assemblies. Worship is service to God, as the priests of old worshipped God by their tabernacle or temple service. In Greek, one word for ‘worshipper’ means a temple servant, or one having charge of a temple to keep it clean and adorn it. Our word ‘worship’ is derived from the old English word meaning ‘worthship.’

We are all temple servants of God, doing our duty by taking care not only of the temple of the church building but also of the temple of our hearts. Paul tells us of the highest form of worship-service we can offer God, “I appeal to you therefore, brethren, and beg of you…to make a decisive dedication of your bodies [presenting all your members and faculties] as a living sacrifice, holy (devoted, consecrated) and well pleasing to God, which is your reasonable (rational, intelligent) service and spiritual worship.” (Rom. 12:1 AMP)

Our godly service then is keeping our temples clean and unspotted by the world, adorning them with acts of service, and having a lifestyle of holy living that honors the worthship of God. In all we do, we should “Worship and serve Him with (our) whole heart and with a willing mind.” (1 Chron. 28:9 NLT)

To worship the God of creation is to bow down in reverence to Him because He is worthy, acknowledging His divinity, to bow in humility and obedience, to bow to His will, His plan, and His purpose by relinquishing one’s own agenda, to bow in service to Him with one’s life, honoring Him as the One True God.

Do we seek the Lord’s Presence or His presents? Do we seek His handout or His hand? Do we always seek something from Him as the multitudes did, or do we lean upon His breast as John the beloved did, just to be with Him, to sit at His feet as Mary did, just to serve Him in worship by pouring out our thanks and tears as fragrant oil upon His body?

How lavish is your worship of the Creator’s worthship?

Prayer: Father, as You desire and seek true worshippers, may my words, my actions, my total life, be a service of true praise and worship that honors and glorifies Your worthship. Amen.