Tuesday, August 16, 2011

Let's Worship Together

There is something very special about worshiping together with the locals in a country different than your own. The differences are sometimes big and sometimes small, but it is the similarities that bring us into that worshipful moment together. The unity wraps us up and lets us forget that peace isn't always a given. The sweat may be dripping, the chickens may be adding their voices to the praise or maybe the stained glass windows wash the congregation in a heavenly glow. We wear different special things. We pray different ways. We sing different songs, but the worship is happening and the worshipers are giving their best.

Heart = Full

Blessings are abundant when we join languages, traditions and cultural preferences into something sacred and meaningful. On my "must-do" list in any country I visit, is worship with a local congregation. It has always been such a HUGE blessing in the past and the choice continues to be a memorable and meaningful experience for my faith, my thoughts on worship, and my views of the world. My life has been enriched by the sights and sounds of worship from other bodies of believers around the world. Sometimes (most times) I have no idea what is being said, but the blessing doesn't alway have to come from the words. It comes from the welcoming smile on a warm and friendly face. It comes from recognizing a hymn and singing along in English. It comes from the most basic act of joining in worship with others who are strangers but brothers and sisters in Christ. Worshiping in Boboli, India was no different. The blessings were abundant. The worship was meaningful.

On Sabbath, we had the honor of joining the Sunrise Orphanage in worship. The HEARTSIGHT team was asked to participate in both their Sabbath School program and their worship service. Sabbath School was the best! So fun! I laughed and smiled until my cheeks hurt! Chris Terry and I were in charge of planning the program for the Kindergarten 2 class. Or so we thought. We were actually just on the program for the "feature talk" as it turns out. The kids sang Old McDonald as their special song, had a scripture reading, prayed and then asked us for a story. They love stories. We had planned to tell the story of David and Goliath while we had the kids act it out. It went so well! The kids had so much fun playing the parts while Chris told the most wonderful version of the story ever! Our "David" was a tiny adorable little boy. Goliath ("Go-lee-ath" is how they say it) was played by Rachel, a shy petite girl that had some trouble with Goliath's deep angry rants, but did a fantastic job trying. Adorable! We had so much fun with them...I think they had a pretty good time too!

The church was a room on the roof of the Seventh-day Adventist school in Boboli. Everyone took their shoes off at the door and entered the one-room sanctuary with a reverence that was refreshing. The boys sat on the left, the girls on the right with the little ones sitting on the rug down the center. The girls in the choir sat at the front ready to fill our hearts with the sounds of praise. There were streamers hanging from the ceiling. Hanging just perfectly in order to miss the fans who were working their hardest to tease us with the idea of being cool. Ben brought us the word with the help of a translator. The littlest guy in the front missed the point while he was fighting his personal battle against staying upright, but overall it seemed like people were listening and catching what Ben was throwing down.

The windows were broken on the outside of the church...the inside was full of brokenness too. Broken hearts of children who had lost their parents. Broken souls full of questions. Broken people who had come together to form the glue that heals only through a body of believers who understand that One can make us whole again. Love makes a difference...as cheesy as that sounds. Tyler loves to talk about love. It is one of his passions. But rightly so...love should be each of our passions. Love of a Heavenly Father, Love of a community, Love that transcends color, or race or religion...this is the glue for our brokenness.

Worship. Worship reminds me that I am broken. Worship reminds me that I have brothers and sisters all over the world. Worship brings me to a place of awe. Awe for the One who knows my hopes and dreams and fears...the One who loves me...the One who saves me...the One created me to Love just like Him.

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