The Lord called to Moses and spoke to him from the tent of meeting. He said, ‘Speak to the Israelites and say to them: “When anyone among you brings an offering to the Lord, bring as your offering an animal from either the herd or the flock.”’

LEVITICUS 1:1–2

‘When anyone brings a grain offering to the Lord, their offering is to be of the finest flour. They are to pour olive oil on it, put incense on it and take it to Aaron’s sons the priests. The priest shall take a handful of the flour and oil, together with all the incense, and burn this as a memorial portion on the altar, a food offering, an aroma pleasing to the Lord.’

LEVITICUS 2:1–2

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If you attend a writing course, the teacher will usually labour one point: you need a grand opening, a hook, something to quickly grab readers’ attention. The writer of Leviticus may not have got the memo! The first sentence is exciting – the Lord takes the initiative to summon Moses and speak! Yet what follows is rarely read by Christians today, as it goes into intricate detail of animal and other sacrifices, which seem strange and alien to us.

We cannot bridge the gap easily: we, today, are not Bronze Age farmers, or ancient Mesopotamian dwellers. We miss many of the symbols and values attached to the actions described, because we’re too far away. And yet… Leviticus’ people are people, like us, worrying about friends, family, survival, safety, war, birth, disputes, the economy, political systems, justice… We may not pray in exactly the same way, but the account of how God leads Israel, teaches them, and forms them as a community inevitably reveals common concerns.

Look at the first word of each command in both passages: ‘when’ – not ‘if’. When you offer a sacrifice. The assumption is that worship will happen. Wanting to offer something to God, out of the products of our work and lives, will happen. God is encouraging the community to take this for granted: to bring the whole of life before God, regularly, joyfully and freely.

Leviticus therefore opens with a vision of a community whose relationship with God is an integral part of life. Nothing is too small or ordinary to be brought before God; the stuff of life is brought before God – grain, animals, oil, honey – the things they needed to survive. There is something deeply embodied about this kind of worship: it is not just head, or voice, but it brings all the costly work of ancient farming communities before God. Worship gathers up the whole of life and places resources and offerings before God.

How do you bring ‘the stuff of life’ before God – not just the worries or petitions, or the thanks, but the routine, day-to-day stuff: working at home or outside the home, caring for others, cooking, eating, cleaning?

Revd Dr Isabelle Hamley
Isabelle is Principal of Ridley Hall, Cambridge 

Is there anything you might consider too small to bring before God? Spend some time lifting daily tasks before God, in openness for what God may show you in response. Can you do this together with other Christians, too?