Beauty for Ashes
By
Pastor
Draven
An online friend of mine was sharing some of his frustrations with being
a minister of worship on a time-schedule. Having led worship in several
church communities over the past 15 years, he reminded me of some of
what I had experienced.
I always thought it important not to have a "quickie" with God; that the
people needed to learn the presence of God, and learn how to worship in
everyday life. Why restrict worship to a once- or twice-a-week
sing-a-long? Can we not also worship in the quiet of our drive to work,
in the beauty of the sunset, on a canvas, in our writing, in the faces
of the busy streets around us? As a worship leader, I found it to be
vitally important that the people learn to be able to find the quiet
place within, even when the day seems like a freight train en route to
our central nervous system.
I've stood in worship for over two hours with a congregation before.
They were lost to themselves, and in the arms of God. I've also been
given 15 minutes, and prayed that God use every minute He could, and it
left the people broken before Him for a short time, and confused and
cold when it was time to move on to the next 15-minute segment of the
service. In the early ‘90s, I had a great teacher in a prophetess I
knew well. Whenever I would lead worship with "songs to cheer people
up", she would tell me that I missed the mark. Her words so lovingly
guided me over the years, until I learned to abandon myself in God. I
remember her one day saying to me that we
"touched
God".
It was then I knew what it was to truly worship; and that day set the
pace for a lifetime of discovering what it means to rest and be still
with my Beautiful Divine.
You see… worship becomes a place where we find rest in God, where we
can "be still and know that I am God."
When we abandon ourselves to Him, He gives us Shalom - perfect peace,
wholeness, prosperity, welfare, tranquility, safety, health,
contentment, success, comfort, and integrity; nothing broken, nothing
lacking. There is a great need for us to learn how to rest in God, and
let Him hold us and take care of us. There is a great need for us to
learn our true source of strength, and that no matter what may be going
on in the tempest that surrounds us day in and day out, we can find rest
in God. This is worship. The songs, liturgy, art
and
readings are merely rituals that help us to focus on entering into that
rest. They are a training, or if you will, taming of our spirit. Some
use the soft lighting of a candle or the reading of liturgy. Some use
songs pleasing to the ear or lifting to the soul. Others may use the
silent meditation of Lectio Divina. Even others use the feeling of clay between their
fingers, the stroke of a paintbrush across an empty canvas, or the force
of a pen spilling forth its endless thoughts onto the ever-wanting
parchment. Still there are others who have no need of a tool such as
these. They have taught their spirit the presence of God, and need only
a single thought to find themselves present before Him.
I have found that place within, the quiet place that is sometimes the
frightening reflection of myself that I have so often run from. I have
also found rest there, when I am still for long enough to hear its
gentle whispers.
How do you find worship throughout your day? Is there
something special that helps you find rest in the presence of your
Beautiful Divine? Is it an action, a certain item, or perhaps a
thought? Where is God amidst your tempests?
©
Pastor Draven 2005
