Exodus 19:10-25
An overworked word comes to mind as truly appropriate for this scene: Awesome. And it comes as a sort of ‘in between’ passage. On one side, just past, is the commitment of the people to whatever the Lord says to them (verse 8). We are soon to witness the revealing of that word and will of the Lord. But now is a time of preparation, and it is very serious stuff. Neither the commitment already made, nor the Law to come that will flesh out what the people are to do and how they are to live, are to be taken lightly.
There was a time, I remember, when you went to worship well before the Call to Worship, you sat and let the organ prelude wash over you. People were ushered to their places (and I do mean their places), and you very quietly got out your Lifesavers, tried to get away with loosening your tie and wiping off the scuff on your otherwise shiny black shoes (polished Saturday night) with some spit on your finger.
The scene in my church today is very different – although in one way not so, because the older crowd are there first; and I think I know why. They’re not chatting; it is ingrained in them, rightly, that you allow time to prepare for worship. It must be a great inner discipline these days, because they don’t get much assistance with what goes on around them. There’s last minute arrangements for some special announcement; there’s the seemingly inevitable glitches with the projector or some other technical thing; lots of loud chatting; and even the pastor going around the pews greeting people already seated (he used to march to the back before anyone moved at the end of the service).
Before one guitar chord, before one slide appears, before any announcement or prayer, you can see at least two different mindsets about church on any given Sunday. There are advantages and disadvantages to both. But I think we need to give some intentional, prayerful thought to what happens as we gather to worship, especially out of sensitivity to those who are conditioned actually to use that time for preparation.
I have a great advantage. I have my own space right in the church building, where, twenty to fifteen minutes or so before worship I spend time in prayer with my door closed. We all need to do that, somehow, in our own way, and make it feasible for those who want to do it right there in the pew without having to block out what’s going around them like a pole vaulter blocking out the sound of the crowd before his/her accelerating run to the bar.
God is with us all the time. Yet I believe we ought to prepare, somehow, to be with him together as his modern day holy people. Does that sound old-fashioned? Sure. But I also believe it may witness to the reality and presence of God in our worship to any seeker or disillusioned God-fearer, more than any identifiable element of our worship.
Prayer:
God, you are great and awesome, and beyond anything we can control, manage, or even imagine. Help us to worship you in the loveliness and wonder of your holiness. Through Christ. Amen.
skip to main |
skip to sidebar
Reflections from Bible readings and discussion on anything.
2 comments:
prep time
i love the stillness of a quiet, empty church. sunday mornings are busy at knox, for me, as well as others.
but i try to find a 5 or 10 minute space between the sunday morning praise team practice and the worship service to pray. initially, i did that in the pews, but that's too difficult, so i find a quiet space and sit, or i go outside and walkabout.
otoh, i like the chatter in the church in sunday morning. for me it's part of teh gathering of fellowship and i feel more connected to the other members. it's a time of re-membering, eh?
but i sympathize with those who would prefer a quiet space in the sanctuary.
My parents used to encourage that kind of "preparation attitude" at home on Sunday mornings, before we left for church where my dad was the music minister. As teenagers, we thought it was silly to prohibit any television or secular music and we didn't particularly enjoy the "eat breakfast together and talk about how God had blessed us that week" but we did it anyway...because they were our parents.
Now as a parent I treasure those times we were "called to worship" before we ever got in the car. We were taught the joy of preparing our hearts to worship the King and by the time we made it to the church, what would follow was just an extension of what had already happened.
Old fashioned, you asked? Absolutely. And I love it!
I appreciate your unique perspective w/ this blog.
Post a Comment