Worship

Lord, teach me to seek you and reveal yourself when I seek you.

For I cannot seek you unless you first teach me, nor find you unless you first reveal yourself to me. — Saint Ambrose

“We are God chasers,” said the lady I’d just met.

A friend had invited us to his house for a night of fellowship. This was my first time at this gathering. I didn’t know anyone, so as it is my practice, I began to go around the room, asking the other guests questions about themselves after introducing myself. 

It didn’t take me too long to realize that most of those present were either about to leave their churches, had already left them, or were in transition, looking for new churches to attend. It was at this point that I came across the above lady. Her response clarified some things for me. 

But I don’t believe she and her friends were chasing God as much as they were seeking a product to meet their needs.  

Let me tell you why. 

I believe many Christians, even those who say that they are chasing after God, like good consumers, choose which church to attend the same way they decide where to buy their groceries. For example, I like the convenience of shopping at Walmart for most perishables. With only two of us in the house, a large quantity of perishables could spoil before they are consumed. But when it comes to products like toilet paper, boy, howdy, Costco is king. Buying toilet paper at Costco is definitely worth the 30-minute drive.

Like the CEOs of Walmart and Costco, pastors know what consumer-oriented churchgoers seek; they look for churches that best meet their needs. If they’re singles, they want an excellent singles fellowship. The parents of toddlers look for a qualified daycare. If you have teenagers, you want a church with an outstanding youth group. Married couples look for married ministries, and the rest want a spirit-filled worship that they hope is accompanied by a fog machine and strobe lights. The Pentecostals/Charismatics look for a place to have a spiritual experience. Of course, never forget dynamic teachings. 

Before I go any further, I should make one thing clear. There’s nothing wrong with wanting to meet the above needs. Singles need a safe place to fellowship and potentially find mates. Parents of toddlers need to worship in peace, knowing their young ones are in good hands. Married couples desire to keep their marriages strong or save them from shipwrecks, and so on. But in doing so, they are NOT seeking God, but something to meet their needs. When their expectations are not met, they move on. 

So, the challenge for most pastors is improving their products’ quality and nuances to appeal to and attract more members. In the same way, Walmart and Costco compete with each other in appealing best to the needs of their consumers as millions of Americans leave churches.

We can learn much from the early church’s reason for the assembly of believers. According to Gerald Sittser in his book The Resilient Faith: 

They (The Early Church) viewed worship (church service) as a bridge between the divine and human worlds, as if in worship Christians stepped into a liminal space between heaven and earth. They saw themselves not primarily as consumers who attended worship to hear a good sermon and sing a few familiar songs but as beholders of the unspeakable glory of God. How they viewed and practiced worship not only ushered them into the very presence of God but also prepared them to return to the ordinary life of market, home, and neighborhood as disciples of Jesus.

I wonder how many of my “God chaser” friends consider the church service a threshold between heaven and earth. If they don’t, the issue may not be with them but with church leaders. What if pastors create that “liminal space” at their church services where people may have an ongoing encounter with the Divine rather than having to chase HIM? 

Lord, may we not become caught up in all we have and yet be found wanting in the most important element in our church life! May we understand that true success comes from the intimacy with You that we experience in true worship. Amen — ^[1] Tozer on the Almighty God: A 365-Day Devotional