Devotional - 8/26/02
“Jaded Worship”
Charm is deceptive, and beauty is vain, but a (person) who fears the Lord is to be praised. Proverbs 31:30
The lamp of the Lord searches the spirit of a (person); it searches out (their) inmost being. Proverbs 20:27
Last night, some of us visited a local church for their monthly Youth worship service. Although some of the musicians were older, most were teenagers. They did a ton of music (nine songs!) and of course they had as much enthusiasm for the last one as they did for the first one. I'm sure most of us tried to worship but found ourselves somewhat distracted by what they did differently than us. It's hard not to make comparisons, even to pass judgments.
I found myself in that trap, and was humbled by my brother Wayne, a relatively new convert. After the service I passed him in the hall and said, "Yeah, they were "good," huh?" I left myself open, not knowing whether he would make a comment about the loudness of the songs or the tempo of "You're Worthy of My Praise." Instead, he replied in that wonderfully sincere voice of his, "Dale, it's ALL good."
I knew what he meant. For him, experiencing sincere worship by a dedicated group of young people is enough. Forget the "correctness" of the tempos and the precision of the execution. Those kids wanted to praise God, and they weren't afraid to get up on a platform in front of their peers and elders and express it with heartfelt abandon.
Oh, may we jaded ones turn around and return to that place where the Lord is. May we seek the heart of worship, that inward place where our God is looking. For He doesn't see the shine on the gear, or hear whether or not that major-seventh chord locks in perfect harmony. He divines our spirits, our attitudes, our sincerity, and our dedication. That's what makes Him smile, or shed a tear.
- Dale Haas