Understanding

Most of us are hesitant to participate in things unless we understand or "get it". I'm sympathetic to this. I get easily bored and tune out when I don't get the gist of what's going on. So what's wrong with that?

Somehow we've deemed it wrong to be bored or clueless. Boredom makes one look like a slacker; being clueless makes one look dumb.

As I see it, there's nothing wrong with being bored or clueless. I know they feel wrong because of the supposed perceptions of others. But, in and of themselves, they are not wrong. We don't have to be engaged in incessant activity 24/7. We all get bored. So what? We all have times of ignorance. So what?

Boredom and cluelessness are reasons people either don't read Scripture or attend worship. People tend to reject things they don't understand or don't find very exciting. They seem like such time wasters.

Listening to God speak, either in Scripture or worship, is never wasted time. It may feel like it, but it isn't. There's nothing wrong with being bored in church! There's nothing wrong with being clueless in worship! So, be bored and clueless! The only one who has to understand anything is God and what God gives. God's grace is not dependent on your moods and dispositions. God's grace depends on God alone. The Lord's Supper is a meal that is for you, not from you. It's a gift. You don't have to "get it". God "gets it", and that's all that matters.

If you're bored or don't understand worship, then that just may be your nudge to try to understand what's going on. It can be done. And it's not hard! Worship is participation in the reenactment of what God has done for us through Christ Jesus. God is the chief giver, and we receive what God gives. That's all there is to it! If you know this, then perhaps worship will begin to take on more meaning.