I would argue that adults have a greater capacity to glorify God, because of the enhanced capacities to do so that emerge in adulthood. Consider, e.g., a 7-year-old child singing a worship song in a children’s choir. It is precious and God receives glory (“out of the mouth of babes”!). But the child does not have the capacity to deeply “enter in” to the words. In contrast, consider the 30-year-old who has suffered a great deal and is painfully aware of his sinfulness and also of God’s holiness and then of Christ’s love and compassion for him, dying on the cross. For that person to praise God in that song, mindful of all these complex realities—doing so as a little child—is to do so with a greater depth of heart, perhaps with bittersweet tears of joy, so that the older person is able to glorify God more, is able to be an image of God more fully, than the child. We might consider this the existential quality of Christian faith that in part is what distinguishes adults from children.
This morning I got up early and felt pretty tired as I started my day. On the way to work, a couple hymns came into my mind and before long I found myself singing them out loud in the car. It was a great way to wake up and wake my soul up to the beauty of the gospel that I need so desperately. Here’s a couple lines that really stayed with me from the hymn, Crown Him With Many Crowns:
Crown him with many crowns
The Lamb upon his throne
Hark how the heavenly anthem drowns
All music but its own Awake my soul and sing
Of him who died for thee
And hail him as thy matchless king
Throughout eternity
My friend, Will Turner, gave me something to meditate on during this season of Lent …
I don’t know why I have never thought about this before: Jesus sang. For some unknown reason, I have always missed this. Sometimes I wonder if my view of Jesus is so warped that I fail to realize and process simple things. I am thankful that Scripture stands as a helpful corrective.
After partaking of the Passover meal with his disciples Scripture says, “After singing psalms, they went out to the Mount of Olives” (Matthew 26:30). Jesus was facing death. Yet, there were certain things which needed to be set in motion before he faced the cross. The Lord ’s Supper was inaugurated (Matt. 26: 26-29) and they worshipped together. For some reason I have a hard time comprehending the Lord of the universe singing. But the text says, “after singing psalms.”
The Psalms they sung were more than likely the Hallel or Passover Psalms (Ps. 113-118). These Psalms were sung in celebration of the Passover when the Lord redeemed his people from out of Egypt. Picture Jesus singing with his disciples and remember they are sung in the shadow of the cross:
I will offer you a sacrifice of thanksgiving and will worship the Lord. I will fulfill my vows to the Lord, in the very presence of all his people, in the courts of the Lord’s house – within you, Jerusalem. Hallelujah! (Psalm 116:17-19).
I called to the Lord in distress; the Lord answered me and put me in a spacious place. The Lord is for me; I will not be afraid. What can man do to me? With the Lord for me as my helper, I will look in triumph on those who hate me (Psalm 118:5-7).
I will not die, but I will live and proclaim what the Lord has done. The Lord disciplined me severely but did not give me over to death (Psalm 118:17-18).
Jesus sings about himself. He sings about the salvation of Israel from Egypt. He sings about the salvation which he is about to procure for his people on the cross. He will not die, but he will live and through his resurrection he will proclaim what the Lord has done. The Lord will discipline him, putting him to death on the cross, but he will not abandon him to the grave, nor let his holy one see decay. On the third day he will raise Christ up from the grave. He will not give his son over to death. Jesus sung about his death and resurrection.
I like Mark Driscoll’s approach to solitude — get away, connect with Jesus in creation, and sometimes do nothing:
I schedule at least one day a month to get away and connect with Jesus. Because every minute of my day is normally scheduled, I don’t plan these days but just wake up and go wherever I end up. I do not answer my phone, do not meet with anyone, and usually get out of town. During a few hours of driving I do a lot of praying and sometimes worship God in song by myself. I like to drive until I am out of the city and find a small town or hidden secluded place in God’s creation. There, I do whatever I feel like. Sometimes I go for long walks and hikes alone to get fresh air, think, and pray. Sometimes I check into a bed and breakfast and take a nap and then go out to dinner. And sometimes I don’t do anything.
As we approach the season of Advent, I encourage you to check out Sojourn’s Advent Songs. Available now for free or pay-what-you-want. Here’s a description from the website:
The emphasis here is on the already/ not-yet tension of Advent, the season of waiting and anticipation before Christmas. Advent comes to us in the darkest season of the year — a season when the nights are long, the days are cold, and we look with anticipation for the return of the warmth in the spring. The songs have both a dark sense of anticipation and glimpses of light dawning in the face of the Christ child.
As we celebrate this season, we celebrate that our Messiah has come, and we look with longing to the day when he comes again. As St. John says, “Amen! Come Lord Jesus.”
Every day, people eat, sleep, work, play, love, and hate, but they do not know why. Not knowing where they come from or to whom they are going, they lack the ability to make their lives meaningful.
Consequently, our culture is filled with “successful” people who are mired in anxiety and confusion because they do not know the point of all their toil. But the gospel reveals Jesus as Lord over all of life, who infuses even mundane tasks such as dishwashing with meaning as acts of worship.
This also makes me think of Stephen Curtis Chapman’s song “A Moment Made for Worshiping.” When you first hear the title of that song, you think he’s talking about a mountain top experience or miracle moment where everything is going so right that you can’t help but worship.
But instead, the first line of the song is: 6:30 Monday morning.
In other words, the ordinary moments of the everyday are the moments made for worshiping. Everything we do can and should be done as an act of worship. This infuses even the most mundane activities with meaning.
And, ironically, it rescues the more amazing moments from futility as well, for it turns out that even those moments derive their meaning not from themselves, but from God.
“So then, whether you eat or drink or whatever you do, do all to the glory of God” (1 Corinthians 10:31).
“Whatever you do, in word or deed, do everything in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him” (Colossians 3:17).
My friend, Eric Schumacher, along with David Ward of Reformed Praise, finalized a new hymn on orphans and adoption. It, along with a learner recording and sheet music, may be downloaded here (for free, of course).
I love how they blended together deep theological truths with a simple, child-like tune; it reflects our Father’s love so well.
Recently I started something new for our family devotions. Instead of reading from the Jesus StoryBook Bible, I got out a real Bible and opened up to the book of Mark. I told my girls to go get their Magna Doodles and sit with me on the floor. They were excited as I explained to them that as I read from the Bible they could draw pictures of what they hear. So I started reading about John the Baptist and Jesus getting baptized. I stopped after this section and asked them to tell me what they drew. Then we talked briefly about John the Baptist and the reason why he came and why Jesus was baptized. After that I told them to erase their pictures (which was really easy on their Magna Doodles) and start a new picture as I read some more. So I continued on and read about Jesus being tempted by Satan and then Jesus calling his first disciples to himself. Once again I stopped after this section and asked them about their pictures as we discussed together about how we can be tempted to sin and how Jesus wants us to follow him just like his original disciples.
I’ve only been doing these “Magna Doodle Devotions” for a short time but they have proven to be fruitful for our family. As a former teacher and Christian Ed guy, I’m always looking for ways to make the truth stick into my kids’ lives. I know that only God can ultimately bridge the gap between head knowledge and heart change, but he uses means. And one of those means is employing the various senses in the learning process. I have one girl that is more of an auditory learner. She began reading at an early age and hears something once and doesn’t forget it. My other girl is more of a visual and kinesthetic learner. She likes to see it and do it. So hands-on activities are best for her. My little boy is only 1 1/2 so he’s all over the place! All that to say, these Magna Doodle Devotions have provided a way for my kids to be engaged in the stories of the Bible. Plus it’s fun to see their creative side come out as children made in the image of a creative, Creator God.
One more thing. My girls will often take their Magna Doodles to the worship service with them on Sunday. I encourage them to draw pictures of what they hear during the sermon. Sometimes they end up doodling, but that’s okay… they’re kids! Plus these Magna Doodles are less messy than the pens in the pew and you never have to worry about them dropping and rolling all the way to the front of the sanctuary!
How many of our thoughts about music and worship revolve around what we like, what we prefer, what interests us, and what we find appealing? And how often is that attitude passed on to the next generation, who then focus on what appeals to them?
I suspect this may be one of the reasons churches develop separate meetings for different musical tastes. In the short run it may bring more people to your church. But in the long run it keeps us stuck in the mindset that musical styles have more power to divide us than the gospel has to unite us. (my emphasis)
How do we pass on biblical values of worship to coming generations when we can’t even sing in the same room with them?
We have to look beyond our own generation, both past and future, if we’re to clearly understand what God wants us to do now. Otherwise we can be guilty of a chronological narcissism that always views our generation as the most important one. As Winston Churchill insightfully wrote, “The further back you can look, the further forward you can see.”
Enough thinking about ourselves and what kind of music we like to use to worship God. God wants us to have an eye on our children, our grandchildren, and even our great grandchildren. We have a message to proclaim: “God is good, for His steadfast love endures forever.”
Let’s not allow shortsightedness or selfish preferences keep us from proclaiming it together.
Here’s a short, powerful devotion. Drop what you’re doing and read Psalm 106. Then check out this great video from the folks at Mothlight Creative. After viewing it, read the Psalm again. God spoke to my heart and my head. I’d love to hear your thoughts.
