In Deeper Praise, Reverence

Now we have elected to video our morning worship, I have the opportunity to do something I’ve never been able to do- watch myself in the pulpit. I cannot bear the sound of my own grating voice on audio recordings, so my likely response to the video was no more promising. For a start, I wave my arms around far too much, and I seem to do a lot of pointing at the organ. For the parts in which worship is led, I don’t particularly draw attention to myself, thankfully. I might describe this as reverent, reflecting the solemnity of approaching God’s throne. Others might call it formal, staid or sedate.

While others are now forming opinions about our ‘style’ of worship, I’ve had opportunity to assess others’. Here’s one, which I record as a script:

Leader: Good morning Church!

Congregation: Morning!

Leader: Come on you can do better than that. Good morning Church!

Congregation: MORNING!

Leader: Who’s ready to praise God this morning?

Congregation: Shouts and whoops

Leader: Let’s give it to Jesus. We are doing drive-in church again which is so much fun. Let’s lift his name high because he is awesome!

Congregation: Whoops and shrieks

Leader: Let’s give a big shout of praise to our Jesus this morning!

Congregation: SHOUTS and WAILS.

Leader: Let’s life up a shout of praise to the name of Jesus!

Congregation: SHOUTS and WAILS.

You’ve guessed this isn’t my cup of tea. If I want to attend a Billy Butlin holiday, I’ll pop down to Skegness. If I wish to partake of a North American summer camp, I’ll book my ticket. I don’t really like it in church. Is this just a matter of taste? I’m conservative and sombre, others are ebullient and lively- so worship in a style that best suits? Possibly. The psalms do advocate shouting in worship and it should be a sincerely joyful affair. I still feel at home among the old Pentecostal hymns, heartily sung with claps and tears of joy. Yet worship is not about making us feel good; our delight is not the hour’s raison d'être. We must ask whether God judges our approaching His presence as appropriate and enjoyable.

O worship the Lord in the beauty of holiness,

bow down before him, his glory proclaim;

with gold of obedience and incense of lowliness,

kneel and adore him the Lord is his name.

-JSB Monsell

Breathe through the heats of our desire

thy coolness and thy balm;

let sense be dumb, let flesh retire;

speak through the earthquake, wind, and fire,

O still, small voice of calm!

-J.G. Whittier

Image by Speedy McVroom from Pixabay