Living for Eternity

Ok, now cyberspace has stopped eating my posts, and my brothers are otherwise occupied, lets get going with this.

On the first night of newday, I was struggling to engage with the worship, I kept being distracted and I couldn’t bring myself to that place where I’m in awe of how awesome he is, even with 6,500 young people around me singing Gloria to the king. Then my favourite hymn of all time started, bringing me out of my solipsistic stupor.

The first verse goes thus;

Before the throne of God above
I have a strong and perfect plea.
A great high Priest whose Name is Love
Who ever lives and pleads for me.
My name is graven on His hands,
My name is written on His heart.
I know that while in Heaven He stands
No tongue can bid me thence depart.

and it really struck me that I had got it wrong. Somewhere I had decided that whether or not I can approach him depends on me. But Jesus is my priest and sacrifice, making me clean and speaking on my behalf. And, even better, this man stands before God himself and is praying for me. Whether I worship or not doesn’t depend on my own emotional state, but on his standing before God, and that has not changed; “Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, and today, and forevermore.”

So worship isn’t about “feeling God’s presence”, which is often what it seemed like to me, but about honouring our father who planned all of this.