Articles
OUR PREFERENCES IN WORSHIP?
In our earlier years, my younger brother and I were very competitive, especially in the sports
arena. Well, we may still be very competitive today, but unable to get around as well as we used
to. I remember playing against him in basketball, football and hockey (you can do that in the
northeast!). We weren’t on teams, just competing against each other from day to day. But, there
were days when one of us just didn’t have our heart into the game, which was infuriating to the
other. We wanted to be pushed, we wanted to hit, we wanted to see how good we could be. But,
when one chose to compete half-heartedly, it just wasn’t the same.
I fear that in our worship from week to week, we may very well fall into the same trap of
“half-hearted” worship. There are many “excuses” as to why this is so, but I want to focus more
on what I would identify as the root of the problem. It really isn’t about the preacher or song
leader or even the attendance numbers. The problem is rooted in our lack of recognition of the
Almighty God, who demands our total reverence and awe (Heb. 12:28-29). It is this same God
who demanded reverence of the Israelites while they gathered around Mt. Sinai looking at the
fire and smoke and hearing the trumpet sound (Ex. 19). It is this same God who struck down
Nadab and Abihu for their lack of reverence and obedience of God’s commands (Lev. 10). It is
this same God who struck down Uzzah when he touched the ark of the covenant, showing a lack
of reverence and awe for the Almighty (2 Sam. 6)!
I read the following post this past week, “It’s very important to have your preferences
accommodated in the worship service … if you’re the one being worshipped” (Ralph Ruffin,
Facebook, Feb. 23, 2019). Sadly, we have become a people demanding our own way of worship
and even determining for the Lord what He will accept (visions of Nadab, Abihu, and Uzzah).
We may scoff at the Israelites for their stubbornness (I heard those very words in class last
week!) to be obedient to the Lord and recognize His greatness with reverence and awe. But are
we any different?
I want to encourage each of us to take a little time to look more closely at the time we have
set aside for worship to God. Are we prepared to come before His throne of grace? Are we
physically rested for our time of worship? Have we really put aside all of the outside interference
as we worship the Lord (yes, phones fit into this category)? Are we prepared to participate each
week as we sing and pray to Almighty God, lifting our voices to Him in reverence and awe?
God, forgive us when we allow other things to get in the way of our praise to You!
~P.Mowrer
