Devotional - 7/29/02
“Childlike Worship”
Matthew 19:13-15
Then little children were brought to Jesus for him to place his hands on them and pray for them. But the disciples rebuked those who brought them.
Jesus said, "Let the little children come to me, and do not hinder them, for the kingdom of heaven belongs to such as these." When he placed his hands on them, he went on from there.
One of the places we went on vacation last week was a pool. It was Roy's first visit to the pool this year. Last year he was oblivious to the water, but this year he was emboldened, as long as his feet could touch the bottom! He knows just enough to be foolhardy when he's in the shallow end, so he got quite a few mouthfuls of chlorinated water. But whenever I took him in over his head, he was terrified and clung tightly to me. So my day was all about trying to inject some balance into his psyche:
"Be more reliant on me you're not over your head, and more trusting of me when you are."
Boy, aren't we that way in our spiritual walk. As long as we think we can handle things ourselves we parade around with our heads cocked way up, not even noticing how reliant we are on the Lord for our every breath. But then when God takes us to the "deep end," all we want to do is get out, and now! But in either place, the real trick is learning to keep the Lord close, relying on him, but learning how to tread the water respectfully but confidently, no matter how deep it is.
That's one aspect of childlike faith I wanted to explore. The other relates to worship. It's no accident that when I lead the children of the church in "Father Abraham," I make the adults do all the motions, too. Elaine tells me that I'd probably be a better worship leader for kids than I am for adults, because I expect the worshippers in my "crowd" to worship with the reckless abandon that is usually only reserved for little kids. And she's probably right.
And why not worship the way little kids do? They don't care about appearances or correctness, or the way things have been done before. They just want security and fun. The security comes when you can trust what you're doing, and the fun comes from a passion for what you're doing. These are things that we as worship leaders must cultivate in our lives if we are to lead the worshippers to the place God calls us to.
So when you lead worship, remember that it's not only allowed to be a little youthful, it's encouraged. And that doesn't come from me, but from the Source.
- Dale Haas