Part two of our discussion on balance…
And today’s issue is:
WORSHIP: How do we go about balancing contemplation with celebration? As Christians, we seek to grow in our faith by being in a relationship with God. But, like any relationship, we share joy together about the good things. Then, we speak more seriously about the things that aren’t so good – both inside and outside of us.
As we learn more about God, it becomes clear how unlike us He is. We are sinful – He’s not. We need – He doesn’t. And so on… We learn what He wants of us, and how to take (baby) steps in His direction. We see how serious this business is, so we sing songs of confession and remorse, songs of pleading and humble supplication.
But, as I said before, being in a relationship with God does not just mean learning about Him – I can know all about someone, but if I’ve never met them or communicated with them, we have no relationship. This particular relationship is one where the other One in it with us is responsible for every good that has ever been in our lives (even our very existence). That’s worth celebrating! So we do the uptempo songs, songs about joy and gratitude.
It’s easy to over-focus on one or the other. I think a lot of worship leaders tend to want to stay in the more intimate mode, because they equate intimate with more spiritual. That’s where the real depth is, right? Here’s the problem… By doing that, it sometimes easy to get lost in ourselves, rather than God. The focus becomes OUR pain and OUR problems and OUR feelings. We forget how great God really is. So don’t forget to celebrate our incredible God!!! We need both sides of the relationship – a full relationship.
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