Our worship services might not be what they used to be, and they might be a little uncomfortable for a while, but that might just be what we need to remind us that worship is less about what we are walking into and more about what we are there to do.
The world has changed. How could it not? So many things have happened in such a short period of time. No one could have predicted the strange events if they had all happened in isolation from each other, but they all came at us at once and with such a force that knocked us off of our collective feet.
Everything is different. Going to the store, going to work, trying on last summer’s clothes. Is it just me, or is the systematic shrinking of all our clothes a real thing? When our Church started to meet again, I was worried that it was going to feel like we were all coming to a funeral. I knew it was going to feel different, but anything was going to be better than preaching to an empty room again. Surprisingly, my fears were misplaced. Apart from the awkwardness of wearing masks and keeping six feet apart, it felt more like a reunion than a wake.
I can assure you that when I chose the theme “All Things New” for this year, I didn’t realize how it would actually unravel. Unravel being the key word. But maybe all of this change is a good thing. It certainly gives us a perspective that we haven’t had before.
The Dawn of a New Day
When we first got the announcement that the world was shutting down, we were in the beginning of our study in the Gospel of John. A passage that was particularly comforting to me was John 19:42, “Because it was the Jewish day of Preparation and since the tomb was nearby, they laid Jesus there.” Okay, it’s not the most obvious verse, but it caused me to reflect on how the disciples dealt with the loss of Jesus.
Their teacher was murdered. The comforts of the Sabbath must have felt like a quarantine. They were isolated in an upper room, unable to get away from the city for fear of persecution. All they could do was sit and wait for what must have felt like an eternity.
When the women, unable to isolate themselves anymore, ventured out to the tomb that Sunday morning, they found that it was empty. Christ had risen from the dead and the world was forever changed. What appeared to be the darkest moment in human history was just the night before the dawn of a new day.
A Necessary Disruption
I had also just begun a season of fasting when everything stopped. Talk about a confluence of events. I saw someone else post on social media, “I really didn’t plan on giving this much up for lent.” I’d say it was ironic, but really, I think it’s much more than that. God brings disruptions into our lives for a reason. Our hearts are prone to wander, prone to leave the God we love. Just like the people of Israel, we grow accustomed to the motions of worship that we no longer pay them any mind. The gospel becomes background noise and we easily tune it out.
There is no doubt that we love God, it’s just that there are so many other things requiring our attention. We’ve got work, school, shopping, hobbies, chores, and even ministry. It’s funny how the world keeps moving despite all of the changes to our routine. Maybe the attention we place on our daily patterns are not as important as we make them out to be.
Fasting is meant to bring controlled disruptions into our lives, but that’s like scientists testing a cure in a sanitized lab. It’s not a real world scenario. When God catches us off guard it is meant to give us a wake up call. It’s time for us to reconsider what it is we are here to do: worship God.
Leave the Golden Calf Behind
There have already been many correlations drawn between the plagues in Egypt with the pandemic and subsequent events that have dominated the news. The Children of Israel saw the hand of God as He disrupted their lives to free them from slavery and lead them to the promised land, but it didn’t take them long before they were complaining and saying they wanted to go back to Egypt. When Moses was away, they asked Aaron to craft them a golden calf so they could worship the idols of their previous oppressors.
The Israelites had left Egypt, but they couldn’t get Egypt out of their hearts. Let this be a lesson to all of us that as we gather for worship after a season away, we must bring back to God what He requires from His children. It’s time to throw out the non essentials of worship and hopefully get rid of a few golden calves as well.
An Audience of One
I grew up singing out of a hymn book every Sunday. I like a lot of modern worship songs too, but there is something special and familiar about singing the songs I’ve sung since I was a child. To me, there is nothing better than being at a pastor’s conference with hundreds, if not thousands, of voices singing a classic hymn in acapella. It’s an exhilarating experience that gives me goosebumps.
It's unlikely that we will get to experience our ideal worship service every Sunday. That is a good thing. Don’t lose sight of the fact that worship is more than our surroundings. It’s not just an experience, it is an offering that we bring. We are coming before the God of creation, the judge of the universe, and the architect of our salvation. What are we bringing that is pleasing to Him?
Our worship services might not be what they used to be, and they might be a little uncomfortable for a while, but that might just be what we need to remind us that worship is less about what we are walking into and more about what we are there to do. This is a chance to get back to the heart of worship. Let’s not miss this opportunity.