SpoonfulOfDreams

I've recently read the book of Esther. Its remarkable in that it is the only book of the Bible that mentions neither God, worship or prayer. It's an encouragement for those of us who acknowledge the Great Commission but feel uncomfortable bringing God into every conversation. I cringe at some of the words and phrases Christians dream up to claim ground for God. "Godincidence" is one of them. This is supposed to counter the idea that things happen by chance. Rather, God orchestrates our circumstances to bring about his plans for good. Far from bringing a fresh perspective it merely presents a narrow Christian world-view that is ill conceived and poorly constructed. I am fond of the idea of Jesus being the unseen guest. After all, Jesus said that where two or three of us are gathered together, there is he in the midst. On the other hand, it can sound a little spooky to think that an invisible person is constantly watching you. Nearly every book in the Bible brings a dif...

photo © Sarah Klockars-Clauser for openphoto.net CC:Attribution-ShareAlike This was written some time ago in response to a guest article and the blogger's response to that article. The point I'm trying to make is that worship is a gift of God and, like the gift horse, should not be examined clinically. What should be tested is not the attitude of worshippers but attitudes towards worship. At one extreme some worship is viewed as entertainment or merely emotional and at the other that worshipping in spirit and in truth necessitates informality or freedom from constraint. We are in danger of being guests at the party arguing over who has given the best gift. The following is the main body of my response: I feel sad that the author feels we "must be very careful how we worship". It was for freedom that Christ set us free, no longer to be tied to customs, obligations and ritual. I also find it pompous to suggest that it is all about God. In corporate worship we are to bu...