 “O LORD, my heart is not lifted up; my eyes are not raised too high; I do not occupy myself with things too great and too marvelous for me. But I have calmed and quieted my soul, like a weaned child with its mother; like a weaned child is my soul within me. O Israel, hope in the LORD from this time forth and forevermore” (Ps. 131 ESV).
 Last Tuesday, I auditioned for a worship team. I played my guitar and sang. I felt confident about my audition until I had to sing harmony.
I struggle with harmony. It’s difficult for me to mesh my voice with others because I’m so accustomed to leading songs on my own. Believe it or not, this isn’t a message about music. It’s a message about life. There are times when God messes with the rhythm of your life. You’re dancing to the beat. Tapping your foot. Clapping your hands. Until, all of a sudden, God grabs a drum stick and starts a new rhythm. That’s what He is doing to me.  That’s not a good thing. We’re called to worship.
“But the time is coming—indeed it’s here now—when true worshippers will worship the Father in spirit and in truth. The Father is looking for those who will worship him that way” (John 4:23 NLT). One way we worship is by investing our God-given talents, skills, and gifts.  Twenty minutes – that’s how long I’ve been sitting in front of a computer screen trying to think of something to write. To be honest, I’m not sure how long my eyes have been fixated on this outdated version of Word. Maybe it’s been fifteen minutes. Maybe thirty. I should have tried harder in keeping track of time. But if I don’t move-on, I’ll be lingering in the abyss of worry until midnight.
 I'm sure you've had your share of conversations involving this question. It's an open-ended question - one whose answer depends solely on the outlook of the person being asked.
And what better time to be asked the question than New Year's Day? |