Joyfully

When our church was in a discernment process for a vision and mission statement, we included the phrase "worship God joyfully" as one of the five components of the mission statement. Later, as we were discussing it with members of the congregation, one person suggested that we add the words "and prayerfully" to the phrase.

Try being Lay Leader and speaking against adding "and prayerfully" to a phrase. It sounds like you are against prayer. I'm not. I just think that we should be doing the entire mission statement "prayerfully." I also think that the person wanted to add "prayerfully" to the phrase because she believed "joyfully" meant loudly, and that "prayerfully" meant quietly. (I think that because that's how she explained it.)

I don't think either word is indicative of volume.

These people come near me with their mouth and honor me with their lips but their hearts are far from me. Their worship of me is made up only of rules taught by men. Isaiah 29:13

Nancy Ortberg, in her book Looking for God speaks about this passage. Her point is that our worship must be a reflection of our obedience to God. Believe in God? Then do what he commands? Develop a relationship with him; accept a relationship with him. Do we treat God as a stranger on the inside and then only act as if we know and follow him on the outside?

Does our worship reflect a relationship with God?

If joy is born of closeness to God, then joyful worship is worship which springs from that relationship. Of course it's prayerful -- I would think communication with God is a requirement of a relationship with him.

That joyful worship can't be pigeonholed by a particular volume.

Remember when I was talking about "Are you hungry? Then feed my sheep." We are hungry for joyful worship, which springs from a relationship with God, and we will experience that when we are obedient to God.

Not just when we worship quietly.

Image: Tree outside of GlenWood Park