Joy Let Loose

November 3, 2020

Worship in Spirit and in Truth

Worship in spirit and in truth

I haven’t led worship at my church for fourteen weeks. In fact, I’ve honestly barely used my voice to sing in all that time. It has been a season of silence for me, my worship so private and hidden from the world.

Worship in the quiet

I have worshiped more deeply and sincerely than ever before in the secret. No platform. No livestream. No lights. No one even singing, and yet, worship. In fact, I almost didn’t write this because it seems too public, but I feel prompted that someone else is worshiping in the secret too, and needs to be encouraged.

I have not been singing with my voice, but I have worshiped.

  • Making hot tea – worship.
  • Reminding of God’s presence – worship.
  • Choosing to laugh – worship.
  • Injecting pain meds – worship.
  • Processing hard news together – worship.
  • Motivating to try another step – worship.
  • Reminiscing – worship.
  • Changing bedding – worship.
  • Encouraging care workers – worship.
  • Holding weight when legs are weak – worship.
  • Not hiding from the reality of death – worship.
  • Telling that same story again – worship.
  • Choosing intentional conversation – worship.

Serving the vulnerable

Many people serve the vulnerable every single day, and worship Jesus through their service. But for the church worship leader, it can be easy to get so caught up in arrangements and production and scheduling and the skill of it all that our worship rings hollow.

I needed these fourteen Sundays. And I may need the next fourteen as the Lord reframes my perspective of true worship. For now, I choose to fix my eyes on Jesus and stay present in each moment as we walk my mom through her twilight days.

It’s here that I worship in spirit and in truth.

“And the King will say, ‘I tell you the truth, when you did it to one of the least of these my brothers and sisters, you were doing it to me!’

Matthew 25:40

How then will you worship?

Have you experienced seasons of private, quiet, hidden worship? Tell us about it in the comments!

Elizabeth JOY