They say that confession is good for the soul, so can I make a confession? I just love going to church. It’s like a free mini concert every Sunday. I mean there’s that stuff before the singing, you know, announcements, potluck plans and whatnot. But then it’s concert time. The worship team usually selects the three or four greatest hits of the church age, five if we’re lucky. I get to sing along and not worry if I can carry a tune or not. The best part is I don’t even have to think about what I’m singing. And if we are like super lucky, we get an encore after the preacher does his thing.
If you sensed a little sarcasm there, you would be discerning correctly. I don’t mean to knock worship, or those who lead it, but there are things I often wonder about. The first thing I find myself doing during worship is listening through whatever song has been chosen to see if can sing it in faith and truth. How do the words I am singing reflect in my life and on my life. Do I believe what I am singing enough to live it out every day and not just in the moment?
There have been songs I won’t sing at all simply because I cannot say that I uphold or actionably display what I am singing Sunday to Sunday. There are other songs which sound beautiful but can easily be sung by a non-Christian without them knowing it is a Christian song.
Has worship ion the church become a form of lip service without the heartfelt contemplation of singing to out God, our Saviour, our comforter? It’s time for real worship, honest to goodness led by the Spirit praise and worship. Enough of the show and more of the true spirit of worship. Meaning what you sing, living what you sing, believing what you sing. You are not performing for God, you are worshipping Him, praising Him.
Imagine what praise and worship would sound like to God if we actually meant what we sang for the reasons we say we sing. THAT would be a sweet, sweet sound in our heavenly Father’s ear. If you lead a worship team or sing on a worship team, I encourage you to lead in worship and praise and not in entertainment.
My prayer every week is for the worship team to lead our congregation in true worship and praise to God and not choose songs for the sake of entertaining the congregation. May it be yours as well.
CALL TO ACTION:
Consider the words you’re sing this Sunday and ask yourself if this is real in your life every day. If it is, then sing it to God like you mean it. If it isn’t, don’t sing until it becomes real in your life.
“‘These people honour me with their lips,
but their hearts are far from me.
They worship me in vain….” Matthew 15:8-9a NIV
I am visually impaired (legally blind). Creator of varied spice blends and hot sauces. Writer of poetry, fiction and non-fiction. Lover of life. Man of faith.