Click here for today's Bible reading: 2 Samuel 5-8; Proverbs 14:12-24.
Perhaps you have witnessed something like this in your church. Perhaps this describes how you sometimes feel when you come to worship . . .
On the left side of the aisle, three people sat stiffly in the pew. When the congregation stood to sing “Shout to the Lord,” they kept their arms folded across their chests. On the right side of the aisle sat a man in a wheelchair. When the congregation stood, he needed help getting up on his feet, but then he willed his weak arms toward heaven. As the song swelled to a crescendo, he closed his eyes and tried to make his mouth form the words of the song; the three on the right stared straight ahead, their lips sealed.
Obviously, I do not know the hearts of anyone in this story, but I cannot help but see myself in it. I sometimes do more pouting than praising in church. Instead of concentrating on the God I worship, I criticize the way others are worshiping.
When King David worshiped the Lord exuberantly, his wife called him shameless. David said, “I will be even more undignified than this, and will be humble in my own sight” (2 Sam. 6:22). David knew that a proper “God-consciousness” could not co-exist with prideful self-consciousness.
Taking worship seriously means taking ourselves less seriously, for worship is not about holding onto our dignity; it’s about letting loose our praise. —Adapted from “Let Loose Your Praise.”
Click here to see the complete one-year schedule.
No comments:
Post a Comment