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March | 2007
Why Worship? Jn 9:38(NIV)
The way I see it, worship is pretty much a waste of time. I mean, really, come on. We are sophisticated, educated acculturated Twenty-first Century people. Isn’t this whole worship thing just a tad outdated? It doesn’t make any sense, I tell ya’. Get up early, on a Sunday for heaven’s sake, dress up fancy, drive to a place with inadequate parking, sit on hard wooden pews (Pews? Pews? We talkin’ ‘bout pews?), in a building that is either too cold or too hot, next to people we may or may not know, may or may not like, may or may not hold in active disdain, sing (One might submit the only two appropriate places for an adult to sing are in the shower and the car – with the windows rolled up) songs no one knows, or likes, or even can sing, while some guy wearing a dress stands up and talks like he is somebody, and the kids can’t sit still, and your rear hurts, and they want your money, and you’re tired, and it’s boring, and it takes too long, and that guy in the dress just won’t shut up, and seriously, what’s the dadgum point? If you wanted to torture yourself couldn’t you at least find more imaginative methods? Why would anyone do this? Especially when you could be relaxing with a cup of coffee, or hunting at the deer lease, or watching the five-and-a-half hours of NFL pre-game coverage, or SLEEPING? Give me a break. It’s ridiculous. I mean, sure, you might see a cute girl or two. Or further cement some business contacts with a shake and a nod. And the little kids can be kind of cute. And, yes, you might bump into a person or two whom you actually enjoy seeing. But that’s hardly worth it. Might be worth it if you get something out of it. Which really says something about you, doesn’t it? You know, if you’re one of those people who gets something from worship, then the worship better be good and exciting and powerful – lots of flashy lights and fast music and maybe some dancers and professional speakers who really know how to wow you, some freshly cut and deeply poignant video clips which segue directly into the carefully crafted message, you know something to make you feel good all over. Who wouldn’t get something out of that? Kind of like a rock concert and a Spurs game and a self-help seminar all wrapped into one. And I get Easter. And Christmas. The hats and carols and pageantry. Big Woo-Woo Jesus Days. Sure. That kind of makes sense. But regular ol’ Sundays? Every Sunday? Each week? For the whole entire year? Nah. Why bother? Shoot, if I wasn’t paid to be there, I probably wouldn’t show up half the time. Unless… There’s only two good reasons I can think of for worship. Obedience. Response. Obedience because God tells us to worship Him (and only Him). Explaining that we’re going to worship someone or something. We are. We do. It’s how we’re made. He knows this because He made us. So rather than worship that which doesn’t deserve it and cannot sustain us, God lets us worship Him. Response because God loves us first (1 Jn 4:19), and one of the ways we love Him back is worship. We worship God because he does deserve it for all the power and mercy and love and forgiveness and transformation he so freely gives us. It’s the least we could do, to say thanks. Oh yeah, funny, but when we do worship God, in obedience, out of response, then our souls are filled and fed and overflow with joy and peace and meaning. But really. Why bother? ~Father Jay
The Blessing of Lent My dog B.J. is probably the best dog in the world. He’s everything you could want in a dog: loyal, protective, wonderful with kids, always ready to take a walk. When you look into his eyes, you can see intelligence there—dog lovers out there know what I’m talking about. B.J. is the definitive good dog. Last month, there were several wet and windy nights when the temperature dropped well below freezing, and so naturally, even though B.J. is strictly an outside dog—and he likes it that way—I wanted to him to spend the night inside. We carried his favorite old blanket and his food and water into the little shop attached to the carport, thinking B.J. would feel safe and cozy there, away from the biting wind and cold. But he was not appreciative, to say the least. I literally had to drag him into the room. It didn’t make sense to me: he looked miserable sitting out in the cold, and yet when I tried to give him some comfort, he dug his claws into the ground and let me know in no uncertain terms that he’d prefer to stay outside. It was as though this intelligent dog had decided to suffer. Voluntarily. For reasons known only to himself. I may never fully understand the mentality of my dog, but this whole situation led me to think about the season of Lent—a time when Christians the world over choose to fast or sacrifice or suffer, voluntarily, privately, for reasons known only to them. Let’s face it: this isn’t the only instance where the actions of Christians don’t make sense to the rest of the world. I’ve observed people who I know are struggling to make ends meet bring food to the Christian Cupboard. Does that make sense? I’ve stood outside Walmart at Christmastime, ringing that bell for the Salvation Army, and been deeply moved by the generosity and pride in the faces of children offering that coin which, in a few more steps, could’ve been spent at the gum machine. I’ve seen the busiest person I know make a decision to lay aside important commitments just to be able to spend time with God every day. I have watched in amazement as people have forgiven enemies who don’t deserve to be forgiven; freely given away possessions they must surely have held dear; set aside their own needs in order to cook meals, baby-sit, build houses for people who need them—not because they had to. And certainly not because they wanted to impress anyone. Lent is a time when many of us do something that doesn’t exactly make sense in our society. We commit to giving up something that’s hard to give up, or taking on something that might be a pretty tough struggle. Why would we do a thing like that? This wouldn’t make any more sense to the outside world than it makes sense to me that my dog won’t go inside when it’s freezing. But when we decide to follow God, when we make the choice to take on a life of faith, we live for something bigger than ourselves. We stop following the call to get busy and follow instead the call to be still and listen for the guidance of the Holy Spirit. Amazing: you’d think we’d be taking on a real burden by making this commitment. But ironically, the weight of the world is lifted off our shoulders in the process And that’s the surprise of Lent. In making sacrifice, we realize that it is God who made the sacrifice. In struggling to go without whatever it is we’ve given up, we more clearly come to see Jesus struggling to carry his cross. In welcoming burden, we stumble upon freedom. Freedom from the expectations of the world. Freedom from death. Easter. ~Tracy Aubin, Editor
Youth Corner While moving through our Youth Discipleship series one thing has become overwhelmingly clear. Though there are limitless opportunities to serve our Lord, with widows, and orphans, the poor and homeless, people just down and out, and the list goes on, but with all this and more as opportunities, there is still one vitally important thing our Lord calls us to do. This was illustrated a few weeks ago by looking at a tree in our lesson. What was essential for the tree to bear fruit was for it to draw nutrients from the root. Become severed from the root and not only does the fruit dry up and die, but the tree also will eventually die. With Jesus as our model, think of how many times we find Him in a garden or on a mountain off away from everything to be near His Father, to cling to the Root . Time is a precious commodity in our lives today, and yet if being His disciple is our aim and bearing fruit in our lives, with Jesus as our model, we must find time “or make time” to cling to the Root . ~Clark Niles, Youth Minister
Spring Softball Season Begins! Men of St. Andrew’s, dig out those bats and gloves, because it’s softball season again! If you are a man age 18 or older, you are hereby drafted. You are picked. You’re on the team! (Oh yeah—the cost is $30 per player, but that’s nothing compared to the fun you’re going to have.) The deadline to sign up is March 4th, and our first game is Monday, March 12th. Give Quint Alexander a call at 830-560-1975, or email him at qalexander@satx.rr.com to sign up.
Children's Choir
forming for Lent
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