Censored Worship (A Continuation of Yesterday)

In John chapter 4, I said there were two things that stuck out to me. One was Jesus pursuing me, and the other, which I will speak of today, was worship. I have read this story so many times, and every time, I seemed to miss Jesus' big point at the end about worship. The woman and Jesus have an entire conversation on it, and somehow, I missed it.

I think there are a lot of misconceptions about worship. I'm not pinning these "accusations" down on anyone but myself, but I'm sure we can all relate, just like this woman at the well. As for me, I have always tried to limit the definition of worship. I was so used to worship being a Sunday morning thing full of singing, hymnals, and some radical people placing their hands in the air as they looked at the hymnals and sang the songs. And that's all it was to me. I knew that I was supposed to worship, and it was supposed to be a way to thank God and show him my love for him; but, I never saw it that way. I put worship in a box, my box, and became an observer of people who didn't seem very excited to worship in the first place. To me, this made worship seem very boring. Plus, I have a most terrible voice, well, I think so anyway.

Eventually, people bothered me about my lack of worship. At youth group trips, I'd be pestered about not jumping and basically becoming a "youth groupie" of the latest mediocre Christian band. Back home in church, someone, not many though, would occasionally ask why I did just stand there silently. Even I knew my excuse of "I hate to sing" would not be a suitable answer, so I had to come up with a new excuse, which wasn't hard at all; it's so much easier to find an excuse to NOT do something than it is to find a reason to DO something. So, my new excuse, which was so cheesy by the way, was, "I like to look at the lyrics and think about them." Ha, yeah right. I just didn't want to leave my comfort zone. I didn't want to sing a song that meant nothing to me. And sadly, this was the story of my life until recently.

My other problem with worship didn't end there. The definition I gave to the concept of worship was it was a Sunday morning thing, not just a "church" thing. Even at church, we didn't do any kind of worshiping at youth group, Bible studies, Sunday School, or for anything else. We saved that for Sunday morning when the kids sang "Jesus Loves Me" in the basement as the adults sang "The Old Rugged Cross" or something like that upstairs. I never considered doing any worshiping on my own, or at all for that matter. But when I did think of worship, it was for Sundays, and it was an obligation; nothing more.

Since then, I have changed my understanding of worship. I don't have a definition for it, though, because I don't think we can limit worship, or anything of or for God, to a mere man made definition. I realized that just as I cannot limit worship to a definition, I cannot limited it to a single action. Worshiping can be singing (Psalm 81:1). Worship can be screaming or shouting (Psalm 71:23). Worship can we writing or poetry (look at any Psalm!) Worship can be music (Psalm 135:3). Worship can be praying (Psalm 134:2). Worship can be anything!(1 Cor. 10:31) And I could continue to go on, but I think you get the point.

Another thing I realized is I don't need a group of people to worship. In no way am I saying that worshiping together isn't a good thing; it's one of the best things ever! I think the thing I liked the most about Hot Metal Bridge Faith Community was how we worshiped together. All of us would cram into our collapsible tent, which we called our zip lock bag, and we'd just worship. We did this on the hottest summer days, and on the coldest winter days. But it was so amazing! No mater what our circumstances were, we worshiped together anywhere! This morning, I got a text message from a friend who said her Sunday morning service was going to held outside on the college campus. I wish I could have been there to see X amount of believers shouting praises to God on this wonderful spring day in the middle of a campus. The church in Acts worshiped together all the time; but what I am trying to say is both are great and necessary! So if I am alone and feel like worshiping God, I don't have to wait until Sunday morning to do it, though it is something to look forward to. :)

So how is this a continuation of my last blog? Well, Jesus and the woman at the well talk all about worship. At first, she has her own misconceptions of worship. She talks to Jesus about the correct place to worship, and the right people to worship with. But right away, Jesus says, " Woman, believe me, the hour is coming when neither on this mountain nor in Jerusalem will you worship the Father. ²² You worship what you do not know; we worship what we know, for salvation is from the Jews. ²³But the hour is coming, and is now here, when the true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and truth, for the Father is seeking such people to worship him. ²⁴God is spirit, and those who worship him must worship in spirit and truth."

So what's Jesus saying here? Well first of all, he doesn't limit the location of worship. It can be anywhere and at anytime, for worshiping is a mater of the spirit. So how does that conenct to Jesus pursuing us? When I reread this passage, I saw that Jesus didn't automatically say, "Hey, I'm God; worship me!" Instead, he showed her what he had to offer; an eternal relationship which will quench her thirst and longing. Only then does worship come up. After all, how are we supposed to worship that which we don't know? It's only after we let Jesus pursue us taht we can really begin to worship him. After we begin this relationship with him, we have a real personal reaon to worship him.The worship Jesus wants is not that of some distant deity demanding tribute and praise; instead, he becomes close and personal, wanting us to have a fullfilling life and relationship with him.

"I Will Possess Your Heart"

Recently, I've been spending a lot of time in John. And just a couple of days ago, I read the story of Jesus and the Samaritan at the well (John 4:1-26). One thing I've been doing lately when I quietly listen to God through the Bible is try to read carefully and between the lines. We all probably want to try to accomplish this, me especially as an English major :), but it doesn't always work out so well. While God's Word is clear, we often muddy it up with our own ideas, our own interpretations, and just the simple fact that we've heard these stories so often. That's probably my biggest problem. I turn a perfect, God inspired piece into a short story which I've heard hundreds of times. Stories like Jesus at the well can "lose" their significance to me simply because I've heard them so often, and because of this, I know what is going to happen. It loses its trait of suspense and with it, my full attention. So now, I am trying to reread these stories, and the whole Bible in general, with new eyes, God's eyes.

Before, I thought this passage in John was a nice little story. I summed it up as Jesus reveling himself to this woman and telling her of how her thirst can only be quenched by him. And this, of course, is true. But there is so much more to this story.

(Please read John4:1-26 now, so I don't have to explain the whole thing in a tiny blog; besides, God words it better than I would. For your convience, here it is on line: http://bibleresources.bible.com/passagesearchresults.php?passage1=john+4&version1=51).

Particularly, in this reading of John, I saw a few things; Jesus going out of his way to have an intimate relationship with this woman, and their thoughts on worship (I'll save the worship blog for another day). The beginning of this passage starts with, " ⁴ He had to go through Samaria on the way." But did he? I looked at a map and did a little brief research, and concluded that geographically, Jesus DID NOT have to go through this town. In fact, most Jews tried to avoid this area; plus, it was out of his way, and a fairly difficult travel. But Jesus, seeing the bigger picture, knew that he did have to go through this village, not for travel reasons, but for this woman. He went out of his way for this one woman just so she could know him personally.

2000+ years later, he still continues to do this. Each day, I am continually amazed at how Jesus goes out of his way just so he can have a relationship with me; just so he can listen to me both complain and praise; just so he can talk to me. Even when I am trying to ignore God, he still goes out of his way to bring me back. And why? Why would the Creator of the Universe go out of his way for me? Why would he want that relationship in the first place? And besides, wasn't Jesus' coming to earth and sacrifice enough? The disciples, in verse 27 had the same question.

Even though he has done more than enough already, he still is seeking me, even when I am not seeking him. Jesus wants this close relationship with me, with us. He gets so much joy from it, but more importantly, he wants this relationship because he knows we need it. When left to ourselves, we become thirsty; we become lost into the darkness of our problems and the world. And though my relationship with Christ doesn't eliminate these problems, it gives me something even better. It gives me a God who listens; who really cares; who doesn't let me down; who truly knows me.

He would, and has, done everything to pursue me. Sometimes, he uses other people to reveal himself to me; other times, he shows me himself by leading me to certain passages.

This reminds me of Death Cab's song, "I Will Possess Your Heart." I like to picture Jesus singing about how he will, against all odds, possess my heart after all of his pursuing, and after all of my rejections; and he's still willing to do it, regardless of how long it will take.

How I wish you could see the potential
The potential of you and me
It's like a book elegantly bound
But in a language that you can't read
****
There are days when outside your window
I see my reflection as I slowly pass
And I long for this mirrored perspective
When we'll be lovers, lovers at last
****
You reject my advances and desperate pleas
I won't let you let me down so easily
So easily