Jesus. That about says it all, according to Matt Redman. It was in the late 1990s, and Redman says “The Heart of Worship” was his reflection on what the pastor and the rest of that church discovered when they turned off the technology, and essentially became “unplugged”, with no microphones, no magnified sound from instruments.
I suppose I could ask myself ‘Is He on my mind on Monday morning, as I wade through work assignments?’ But, according to Redman, the challenge that his Watford, England church’s pastor issued was not about the other six days of the week, but really Sunday. Sundays had apparently become an exercise in consumption, not offering. Apathy prevailed. Does that say something about the human psyche, about my nature as I reach out to Him in worship? Redman’s words say ‘yes’. I cannot watch, certainly, and no one can do this for me. But, even if I mouth the words myself, without musical accompaniment, it’s empty if the heart’s not engaged. Heart disease is one of the most common physical maladies, often treated with something called a bypass. Redman’s song suggests the spiritual dimension of this ailment can be cured too, but it’s not a bypass. It’s more like …what would you call it?
I suppose I could ask myself ‘Is He on my mind on Monday morning, as I wade through work assignments?’ But, according to Redman, the challenge that his Watford, England church’s pastor issued was not about the other six days of the week, but really Sunday. Sundays had apparently become an exercise in consumption, not offering. Apathy prevailed. Does that say something about the human psyche, about my nature as I reach out to Him in worship? Redman’s words say ‘yes’. I cannot watch, certainly, and no one can do this for me. But, even if I mouth the words myself, without musical accompaniment, it’s empty if the heart’s not engaged. Heart disease is one of the most common physical maladies, often treated with something called a bypass. Redman’s song suggests the spiritual dimension of this ailment can be cured too, but it’s not a bypass. It’s more like …what would you call it?
What’s inside? Deep down, stuff that maybe only a diary knows. Sharing one’s heart is intense, because you’re vulnerable. You can be wounded so easily. Sound familiar? Maybe that’s what makes worship so tricky. Sometimes my human relationships injure me, frankly, and so I’m conditioned to be cautious. ‘I might get stomped on’, I tell myself. What about God’s heart? His was wounded too. Did He do this, this exposing of His great heart, I wonder, because He knew the same would be hard for me? And so, my weak, timid, little heart reaches out for His. I need His courage. Everyone around me has the same affliction, I can remind my spirit, even as I cower. My heart to His heart, not a bypass, but a booster shot of the divine. Feel that? That’s worship. That’s the cure for apathy on Earth.
The entire story of the song “The Heart of Worship” is at: http://www.crosswalk.com/1253122/
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