It’s the late sixties, and a mother
takes her young daughter to a new church in a new city they’ve recently moved
to for Sunday morning worship. But, even though it’s the same denomination the
mother has grown up in and—to date—raised her daughter in, this church is
different. “Strange” actually, according to the mother. Why does she label it
“strange”? Because nowhere in decibel range is the sound of an organ vibrating
the walls or a stole-clad choir harmonizing a two-hundred-year-old hymn.
Instead, there’s a longhaired guy playing (gasp!) a guitar, playing an
unfamiliar song! The service has a more relaxed feel than a high church
service. The mother endures the service but beelines out the door and goes
straight home afterward. No stopping to meet anyone else, or chatting with the
pastor. No enjoying coffee, punch, and cookies in the fellowship hall. And
that’s it. They never attend that church, or any other church, on a regular
basis again.
What happened?
Was this mom right in her assessment
of guitar playing being “strange” (and, consequently, just too weird to accept)
in a Sunday worship service? Or was she attending church with her own set of prejudices and overarching comforts and “likes” at the forefront of her
worship? Her ingrained perceptions and idea of “church”? Her comfort
pre-eminent in her decision-making.
The above recount is true. I was
that young girl, and the woman is my mother. Forty-something years later, it’s
still the same: congregants arguing about how service should “look”, what songs
should be sung, what instruments should be used during worship, what order the
service needs to be, who needs to do what, and who’s in charge.
If you missed last week’s post, I
recommend that you head back there to read that one before reading this post,
because we’re expounding on what was covered last week. We’re talking about
worship and whom it’s meant to be for. Hopefully you’ve had an opportunity to
do some of the exercises I suggested at the end of last week’s post, and also
had an opportunity to listen to Dr. Steve Ingino’s message on worship (and have
a good laugh!).
But if not, we can still move ahead
with some realities to ponder and carry with us this week, and into our
worship.
Who—and what—is worship all about, anyway?
I think maybe my mother forgot the point of worship. Or maybe, like so many church attenders, she never really knew what the point was. Is it social time, to gather with friends and catch up on the week’s activities? Is it weekly entertainment, or a pastor-driven encouragement “group” session?
When you get right down to it,
worship is a culmination of your (and other people’s) response to God’s word—its
revelation, the miracle and joy of the Gospel, of the person of Jesus Christ,
and the mercy and grace of God. And that means: “the word of God is the fuel
for the worship of God.” When we know the word of God—the rich history, the
stories, the losses and victories, the drama, the transforming truths—we have a
deeper worship bag to reach into for resources.
And the great news about that is
that listening to the word of God, or reading it, is an act of worship itself!
So when you’re curled up in your favorite chair, perusing God’s word, digging
into the stories and truths, you’re learning more about Him and growing closer
to Him. Like Mary in the New Testament, you’re sitting at His feet to learn. You’re
worshipping Him by listening to Him. You’re choosing the best, and that pleases
Him!
In the 12th chapter of
the Book of Romans, the Apostle Paul pleads with the believers to offer their
bodies as willing sacrifices to God. When you worship, you really are offering
yourself to Him as a sacrifice. You’re thanking Him for accepting you as a sacrifice, and for offering Himself so that you
could be praising Him like you are. You’re thanking Him for the gifts and
talents with which He has endowed you, and for the means to express them.
You’re thanking Him for the hope that resides in your heart.
While it’s always nice to feel
charged up, replenished, and filled by the music or the message, it’s really
not what we get out of worship but
what God gets out of it that matters.
Do we honor Him with what we say, the words we sing, the attitudes of hearts
that we bring—and offer—to Him? Worship is about Him being the center of your
life, and letting Him know that He is.
What kind of music should be sung?
This question—and response—has
caused raucous fights and church splitting. It is a perfect example of the
sarcastic joke: “When Satan fell from heaven, he ended up falling into the
choir loft.” Do you prefer modern choruses with repetitive verses, old-time
gospel songs, upbeat beats, or slow, tear-jerking dirges that make you feel
more holy and serious?
Before you look down your nose at
one method and mentally (and verbally) exalt another, let’s do a little reality
check.
When the Apostle Paul refers to
singing psalms and hymns, he’s referring to those used and written in the Old
Testament. Songs, poems, and praises used in Judaism for thousands of years.
Songs written by David and other Psalmists. Songs written and sung by Moses and
Miriam.
A quick flip in your Bible to the
last Psalm (150) gives us an overview of praising the Lord. It tells us to:
Praise God in both the
organizational building and in earth–inside and outside;
Praise God for His mighty acts;
Praise Him for His excellent
greatness (for who He is);
Praise Him with:
trumpet
sounds
lute
harp
timbrel
dance
stringed instruments
flutes
loud cymbals (see that
loud part!?)
clashing cymbals (more
loud)
Sounds like the combination of an
orchestra and a brass band! Lots of noise, to be sure. And dancing!! Oh, my,
how could we ever do dancing in
worship!? (For years many denominations didn’t allow their members to dance,
let alone consider doing it in their churches.)
To be sure, as Dr. Ingino says,
“Christianity is a singing faith,” as is the Jewish faith it’s built upon. (Attend
worship in a Jewish synagogue to hear the cantor sing Scripture. It’ll give you
goose bumps!)
And the most frequently mentioned
instrument for praise use in the Bible is the lyre, which is a stringed
instrument that sounds like a guitar! Uh,
oh. Psalms are to be sung with the plucking
sound of a stringed instrument. Isn’t that some kind of heresy??? Yet, as Steve
Ingino points out, “We get so hung up on what instrument is used that we miss true
worship.”
Many would read this instrument (and
action) list and find it irreverent, or blasphemous. They’d argue vehemently
against the guitars, the dancing, the tambourines. One of the liveliest worship
services I’ve ever witnessed was at Glide Memorial Methodist Church in San
Francisco. The small band was composed of professional musicians who knew how
to toot trumpets, slide trombones, and swing saxes. The keyboardist was rocking
his keyboard stand, and the guy signing the worship songs practically put on
his own show of exuberant worship! While I wouldn’t support this church’s
theology, these people knew how to
praise, and they didn’t hold back!
And then there was another praise
and worship event I witnessed. I remember vividly back to a day on my Midwest college
campus, either late spring or early summer, when the weather was perfect and
the mood relaxed. It was a Sunday afternoon, and I was trudging solitarily across
the Memorial Mall, on my way somewhere. As I passed the library, a group of
young men and women caught my attention. They were seated in a large circle on
the grass, enjoying lively conversation. Then they stood in unison and joined
hands as one of them lifted a tambourine to play. As the instrumentalist
expertly rattled and tapped the tambourine, the circle moved clockwise and then
retraced their steps in a beautifully orchestrated rhythm and choreography.
They swayed and, with hands clasped, lifted their arms high in unison. They
drew together in a tight bunch and then enlarged their circle again.
I was mesmerized. If I closed my
eyes and imagined, they could have been Miriam, Moses, and the Israelites
extolling God’s miraculous parting of the Red Sea. They were clearly Jewish, (some
of their clothing revealed their faith), and lavish and happy in their praises
of the Almighty. And I was envious. Oh, how my heart and body longed to worship
with them, to at least know how to worship like
them.
And now I do know. And the more I
know about the Lord, the more songs I sing, with gusto. The more reasons I have
to sing! Sunday worship seems like a little taste of heaven to me—the gathering
together of other believers at the throne of God. All of us bringing our
individual joys and concerns before Him, our individual praises—raised as one
collective voice! My kids always roll their eyes at me when I do it, (and when
I required them to suffer me when they were young and go along, too), but I
nearly always attend worship whenever I am traveling or vacationing. I love to
see how the other churches worship in their communities; I love that little
taste of heaven I’m fed when I gather with other Christians and feel the shared
faith and hope that permeates our hearts, that draws us together before the
Lord. That makes us one, together, in His body. I LOVE feeling as though I
belong and am at home, even though I might be a thousand miles removed from my
“home” town. I imagine what it will be like when we gather en masse in Heaven
to worship before Him. I wonder how many of them I’ll run into in Heaven. Just
the thought of it makes me sing! And I smile at the vision of David dancing
before the Lord, banging on his tambourine, (just as he did before the Ark of
the Covenant), leading a mighty choir of angels and the rest of us in vocal tribute
to God.
There is just one final point to
consider, whether it is following a time of worship, your daily devotion time,
a time of fellowship with friends, or following a Sunday morning worship service.
Instead of asking, “Was it a good worship service today?” ask, “Was I a good
worshipper today? Did I honor God with my heart, my songs, and my prayers? Was
I pleasing to Him? Did He delight in my worship of Him?”
I hope your heart can answer a jubilant “Yes!”
Take-away points (nice reminders when you’re preparing for—and in—worship):
1. Worship is
for God. It’s all about Him.
2. Knowing God’s
word fuels your worship of Him! If that’s true, then logic tells us that if we
want to have deeper worship experiences then we need to spend more time in
God’s word. Make time for that precious word and watch your worship expand and deepen!
3. Thank God for
all of the ways He’s given us to worship Him. Ask Him to open your heart to
styles and approaches that are pleasing to Him, not preferential to you. Can
you really imagine yourself angrily crossing your arms across your chest, scowling
and pouting because drums, tambourines, and a lyre were being played during a
praise time in Heaven!? Just because you
prefer a robed choir? Conjures up a silly, embarrassing picture, doesn’t it?
Who is worship
about, and for, anyway?
“Worship
is the submission of all of our nature to God.
It is the
quickening of conscience by His holiness,
Nourishment
of mind by His truth,
Purifying
of imagination by His beauty,
Opening
of the heart to His love,
And
submission of will to his purpose.
And all
this gathered up in adoration is the greatest of human expressions of which we
are capable.”
And I would add,
enabled by our faith in Him from His grace to us by His Spirit of truth because
of His love for us seen in His Son Jesus Christ.
William Temple, Archbishop of Canterbury,
1942-1944
________________________________________
The second
Monday in September we’ll be returning to our study of peace!
Until next Monday, may your week be
full of blessings that you receive and give, your heart be full of joy and
thankfulness, and your days be filled with laughter. Build a little heaven in
your life right now, and watch your heavenly garden grow!
And may your heart overflow with worship!
Blessings,
Andrea
When the eyes of
the soul looking out meet the eyes of God looking in, heaven has begun right
here on earth. ~ A. W. Tozer
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