the beauty of simplicity

47  years ago at the age of 22 I was a college student at University of Md. I was deeply and wonderfully in love for the first and only time in my life. As Christmas approached, I easily burst into song as I went from class to class and when  I was with a group singing carols, I had extra energy to push out those notes. For the first time that I can remember people would tell me what a nice singing voice I had. What happened? My voice has always been too unpredictable and usually dependent on the singing skills of the person singing next to me. For this season of my life, my voice took its proper place as it reflected my joy at God's new gift to me.

For the past few years my husband has been attending various churches often with me by his side as he preaches or talks on outreach. One thing seems clear. Far too often people just aren't singing. If they are singing they have their noses in their hymnals and they look more like they have a bad case of indigestion or they are remembering an argument with a loved one. Rarely is the wonder of the lyrics they are staring at reflected in their faces or voices. Just as I expect a pastor who is preaching to some how communicate a wonder in response to the great truths he is stating, I also think those who are singing about those truths should also approach worship with energy and joy. Too often we are afraid to be like other Christians in churches where the emotional response far outweighs  the truth of the message being presented.

Perhaps our lack of joyful worship results from fasting from worship during the week. We come to church on Sunday expecting a feast and instead we find digesting what we hear difficult. Too many of us have problems focusing on the sermon, some expecting deep theological truths.

 Perhaps we need to be gloriously satisfied  with simple truths. A hymn states the saving power of God's work for man and the inadequacy of man's work for God. A sermon highlights the sacrifice Jesus made for us or the faithfulness of God towards his people. May we each pray that God would awaken our minds to what we sing and hear, rejoicing in each revealed truth, understanding what we can and patiently waiting for God to reveal the rest. May our response to worship reveal  grateful hearts of those who experience the love of their heavenly father.


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