Worship

Here in the Bible belt, there's a church on almost every corner. Anytime we go somewhere, we pass a variety of them. My oldest daughter and I were headed to our own church tonight for a meeting when we saw a church we've passed countless times. As we drove past, a man was walking toward the church, carrying a guitar case. As he neared the church entrance, we gasped as we saw him fall to his knees. My first thought was that something was wrong with the man, and he was falling to the ground. Upon further inspection, we realized he was kneeling in front of an angel statue, bowing his head in prayer.

I have no idea what denomination the church is or what the significance of kneeling in front of the statue is. But in my passing, as I watched the kneeling man in my rearview mirror, my heart was pierced. His worship was obvious and with abandon. I was convicted of my lack of worship lately. I remembered how it feels to worship with abandon. And I miss it.

Sometimes I'm a slave to my flesh, especially in the summertime. Before I even realize what I'm doing, I start to worship relaxation, rest and summertime fun. My mornings go awry, and days later I realize I've not touched my Bible or prayed. Summertime entertainment has become my "little-g" god.

I'm reminded of the saying, We all worship something. It's true. Every day, every minute, we all bow down to something or someone:

work
spouse
children
parents
freedom
entertainment
money
church
busyness...

It so easy to get distracted and worship the here and now, the visible. It sometimes takes reminding ourselves that God is the giver of every breath, and He alone is worthy of worship.