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Wednesday, February 08, 2006
Exodus on worship
Tonight, as is customary on Wednesdays, we had our chapter summary Bible study meeting. The group's in Exodus right now; tonight's study was on Exodus 15. I had a hard time elucidating my thoughts on this chapter before the meeting (in other words, I showed up with a half-done homework assignment, which felt so much like high school that I almost thought I should put on a bubble skirt or some British Knights or something, before I went). During the meeting, however, a few things occurred to me. I still didn't do a great job discussing them. I'll blame the sinus infection I have right now, which makes it difficult to do a good job discussing anything. Anyway. I thought I'd have a try at making them clear here, at least.
The first, what, 21 verses of the chapter consist of this song that the Israelites are singing as they walk away from the Red Sea into the desert. It's a long song in praise to the God who had just delivered them in a pretty spectacularly miraculous way from the Egyptians who'd been enslaving them for over four hundred years. It's energetic, it's heartfelt, and I have this mental image of these hundreds of thousands of people all walking along leading their children and their animals, raising their hands and singing together to God. Logistically I'm not sure how well that would work, but doesn't that seem like it would just be the ideal for corporate worship? Nobody ticked off because the songs are too fast or the drums are too loud or these are old FOGEY hymns, nobody rolling her eyes because of the egregious errors in spelling and punctuation on the overhead screen (*ahem* who me?), nobody even really thinking about him or herself, or what would be good for us as individuals. The focus is all on God and on the wonders He has wrought on behalf of His people. Wow. Bummer that that can't happen on a Sunday morning, eh?
Then, of course, a scant three days after this wonderful worship, the people seem to have forgotten all about how great God is, and they start grumbling again (and there's a lot more of that, and worse, coming). And if that isn't just like humans the world over, I don't know what is.
Comments
Ha, ha! So true, on every level.
Posted by: jenn at February 9, 2006 02:22 PM
