Are You Listening?

Writer Charles Swindoll tells of a time in his life when he was particularly busy and stressed, working too hard and with too many commitments. One night as he was wolfing down his food before rushing out to another meeting, his daughter came to him and said, “Daddy, I want to tell you something, and I’ll tell you really fast.” Seeing her frustration, he responded, “You can tell me slowly, honey.” To which she replied, “Then, listen slowly.”

Listening is a significant human practice that is all too easy to forget. In a world that is filled with noise – background music in shopping malls and on our iPods, media playing always on TVs in restaurants, cars and homes, email, text messages and the internet always in our hands, traffic and the constant banging and blasting of construction sites all around us – we quickly learn to shut our ears, for the sake of our sanity if nothing else. But, in the process, we find that we stop listening.

True listening – not just hearing sounds, or words, but being attuned to their meaning, and being captured by their message – requires focussed attention, and we are all too easily distracted. True listening requires moving out of ourselves, and opening ourselves to another person, another reality, a different way of being. But, all too often we struggle to stay connected with ourselves, let alone with one another. And the impact of all this is being felt in our families, our relationships and our communities. When listening fails, people get isolated and suspicious of one another, society fragments and conflicts escalate out of control. Sometimes the most prophetic and healing thing we can do is just to be quiet and listen.

But, if listening is hard to do, it won’t come naturally to us. We will need to learn it – and it is a skill that can be learned. We need to move into practices and situations that challenge us to become focussed, that call us to stillness and that encourage us to open our ears and our hearts to our world, to others and to God. I can think of no better place to learn to listen than in the spiritual discipline of worship. Unfortunately, even our worship is too often allowed to become noisy and distracted. We fill the time and space with words and sounds, and, when silence does happen, we grow uncomfortable and even a little frightened. However, if we will heed the call to true listening, and if we will allow our worship to teach us, we can find renewed connection with ourselves, with others and with God.

How does worship teach us to listen? There are a number of ways it does this. To begin with, as we enter a worship gathering we discover very quickly that our agendas have very little place. The whole orientation of worship is toward a different reality, to a higher purpose and to a new way of being. Our role is not to demand or direct, but to submit, to open ourselves and to receive. This is the first lesson in listening – to release our agenda, and open ourselves to what may come.

The second way that worship teaches us to listen is through silence. In some traditions silence plays very little role, but more and more churches are discovering the benefits and blessings of incorporating times of silence into the worship gathering. When we allow our worship to be less ‘noisy’ and less ‘wordy’ and make more space for stillness and silence, we learn to listen for the ‘still, small voice’ of God, and we grow increasingly aware of the whisperings of God’s Spirit.

Finally, while I recognise the valid criticism of much of worship’s non-conversational nature, and while I recognise the need to allow people to participate and add their voice to the worship experience, the fact that we are sometimes forced to stop talking, to stop adding our viewpoint, and to just listen – whether to a prayer, a hymn or a sermon – teaches us the discipline, and the joy, of listening.

If we have the humility and the courage to allow worship to challenge and change us, we will find that these practices lead us into a new ability in, and appreciation for, listening. And, once we have begun to listen more and better, we will discover again the healing that comes from deep connection with God and others, and that is found in rediscovering our true selves.

__________
John van de Laar is a Methodist minister, liturgical consultant and the author of the book Food for the Road – Life Lesson from the Lord’s Table. He holds a Master’s Degree in theology from UNISA, and is the founder of Sacredise.com, an international worship training and resourcing ministry. John is married to Debbie, and they have two sons.

Visit www.sacredise.com for more articles by John, as well as resources for personal and public worship – music, prayers, liturgies, images and drama scripts.

Treasure

“It’s interesting that we don’t stand for prayer, but we do stand when the offering is received!” This comment, asked by a friend during a worship gathering, was spoken with some disgust and frustration. It was like all he could see was that money was being given more prominence in the service than God. In that moment I realised how the moment of giving is perceived by many churchgoers – and I can’t help but sympathise with them.

The truth is that the Church has often not handled money well. I remember watching a documentary about a well-known televangelist in which the pledge cards that were issued by his ministry were examined. The presenter noticed that the smallest amount that could be pledged (indicated by a check box on the card) was $5000! We have all heard the stories of wealthy pastors who stand before crowded congregations of people, many of whom struggle to make ends meet, and promise divine blessing if the worshippers will just give sacrificially into their ministry. The numbers of those who have left the Church because of such abuses is impossible to count.

In response, some churches have gone to the other extreme – removing the act of giving from worship altogether. But, I can’t help wondering if this practice doesn’t hurt worshippers more than it helps us. The act of giving is about far more than just the money that we choose to put in the plate. It’s about the extent to which we are willing to put our faith in God and God’s reign. It’s about the extent to which we really mean it when we say, “Jesus is Lord”.

We live in a world where money is the primary measurement of value of pretty much everything. Our bank accounts and wallets represent for us our security, our value and the potential contribution we can make in the world. Throughout the ages, those with lots of money have been treated differently from those with little. The wealthy have greater power, greater respect and a far greater variety of choices than the poor. It is extremely easy to get drawn into the constant quest for more wealth, but if we buy the message of the money-centred world, we inevitably lose our souls.

It is impossible to value a human being in financial terms. It is also very dangerous to estimate the value or contribution that someone can make by looking at their bank account. Does anyone really believe that Donald Trump would be a good president just because he has lots of money?

So, when we gather for worship and we share in the act of giving, we are doing a number of significant and prophetic things. First, we use money as the symbol for our giving because Jesus made it clear that we need to see money as more than just the metal and paper we place in the plate. “Where your treasure is, there your heart will be,” said Jesus (Matthew 6:21). By placing a representative proportion of our material ‘treasure’ into the offering, we are seeking to move our hearts away from our bank accounts, our homes and our possessions, and to a more lasting, life-giving reality – God’s reign.

Second, in the act of giving, we are proclaiming, against all that the world may tell us, that we don’t believe that money provides us with value, security or the possibility of a rich and full life. Rather, we demonstrate that we place our trust in God’s care and provision for us, and in God’s call for us to share what we have so that others need not go without.

Finally, as we place our money in the offering plate, we are symbolically placing ourselves – everything we have and everything we are – at God’s disposal. By giving generously, we make a commitment to God and to God’s people that we and our resources are available to be used by God for God’s purposes in our world.

This is why we stand (at least in my church) when the offering is received. In one sense, the act of giving is the most profound act of worship we can offer. And, if we practice it regularly and wholeheartedly, it will inevitably lead us to give of our time, our abilities, our resources, and our very selves to bring justice and healing to others wherever we may have the opportunity.

__________
John van de Laar is a Methodist minister, liturgical consultant and the author of the book Food for the Road – Life Lesson from the Lord’s Table. He holds a Master’s Degree in theology from UNISA, and is the founder of Sacredise.com, an international worship training and resourcing ministry. John is married to Debbie, and they have two sons.

Visit www.sacredise.com for more articles by John, as well as resources for personal and public worship – music, prayers, liturgies, images and drama scripts.

Generosity

“I am so lucky! I have a job, wonderful friends, and my faithful guide dog to lead me around. I am so very grateful!” These words were spoken during a radio interview by a blind woman who had clearly learned what gratitude means. In contrast, a recent study revealed that the group of people most likely to feel deprived and longing for more is the so-called “middle class” – those who have much, but tend to watch the wealthy folk around them with envy, and, as a result, fail to recognise what they have. Gratitude, it seems, does not always collate with our circumstances.

One of the features of the 21st century world is the culture of accumulation. Our whole society is oriented around the desire to have more. Linked with this is what seems to be a growing sense of entitlement among people in the developed world. We don’t need gratitude for what we have, because we believe on some level that the world owes us a “good life”. Whatever plenty we may possess is not enjoyed, but expected, and whatever we think we lack is a failure on the part of the universe to give us what we “deserve”. And so we fall, all too easily, into a cycle of complaining, bemoaning what we don’t have, and ignoring the abundance that surrounds us.

I wonder, for example, whether we would have landed in the economic crisis of the last few years if we had developed a culture of generosity and gratitude, rather than accumulation and expectation in the western world. I wonder whether the “happiness quotient” of people in developed countries would be higher if we spent less time striving for more stuff, and more time enjoying and sharing the stuff we already have. I wonder whether, in some not-so-mysterious way, the contentment I wrote about last week, is to be found in the twin disciplines of thanksgiving and generosity.

Saying thank you is a good and important practice – both in spirituality and in human relationships. But, it can often feel like it’s not enough. The words are too easy to say, but to try and repay whatever gift we’re thankful for can diminish the gift and seem like an insult to the giver. This is where generosity is such a powerful practice – and one of the reasons why giving is such a significant act of worship.

I’m reminded of the movie “Pay It Forward” in which people, who have received some gift from another – often a stranger – are told not to try and repay the gift, but to “pay it forward”, to do something else to benefit three other people as a way of expressing gratitude for what has been received. This principle reveals a basic truth – giving and thanksgiving are inseparable. The glory of developing a lifestyle of giving and thanksgiving is that we find ourselves becoming increasingly aware of the goodness, the beauty, the truth and the abundance in our lives. And, as we share our plenty with others, through simple, daily acts of giving, we increase abundance and wealth all around us. They key, though, is to give mindfully – not thoughtlessly, just checking a box on a list or salving our conscience, but with a real concern for what the other person actually needs, and what gift will most benefit them.

All the great faith traditions of the world have robust teachings about giving. All the great spiritual teachers have recognised that it is not having that brings joy and fulfilment, but enjoyment. There are those who have much, but, through their lack of enjoyment, will always be poor, and there are those who have little, but through their capacity to enjoy, will always be wealthy. The best way to develop the ability to fully and intentionally enjoy the gifts we have been given is to give them away – to practice thanksgiving through generosity, and to share the abundance with others.

This is why, whenever followers of Christ gather for worship, we take up an offering. In practicing the discipline of giving, we are opening ourselves to the gift of enjoyment and abundance, and we are saying “thank you” in the most profound way. And then we inevitably learn the truth of the Scripture that says, “It is more blessed to give than to receive.” (Acts 20:35)

__________
John van de Laar is a Methodist minister, liturgical consultant and the author of the book Food for the Road – Life Lesson from the Lord’s Table. He holds a Master’s Degree in theology from UNISA, and is the founder of Sacredise.com, an international worship training and resourcing ministry. John is married to Debbie, and they have two sons.

Visit www.sacredise.com for more articles by John, as well as resources for personal and public worship – music, prayers, liturgies, images and drama scripts.

Where Your Treasure Is…

“It’s interesting that we don’t stand for prayer, but we do stand when the offering is received!” This comment, asked by a friend during a worship gathering, was spoken with some disgust and frustration. It was like all he could see was that money was being given more prominence in the service than God. In that moment I realised how the moment of giving is perceived by many churchgoers – and I can’t help but sympathise with them.

The truth is that the Church has often not handled money well. I remember watching a documentary about a well-known televangelist in which the pledge cards that were issued by his ministry were examined. The presenter noticed that the smallest amount that could be pledged (indicated by a check box on the card) was $5000! We have all heard the stories of wealthy pastors who stand before crowded congregations of people, many of whom struggle to make ends meet, and promise divine blessing if the worshippers will just give sacrificially into their ministry. The numbers of those who have left the Church because of such abuses is impossible to count.

In response, some churches have gone to the other extreme – removing the act of giving from worship altogether. But, I can’t help wondering if this practice doesn’t hurt worshippers more than it helps us. The act of giving is about far more than just the money that we choose to put in the plate. It’s about the extent to which we are willing to put our faith in God and God’s reign. It’s about the extent to which we really mean it when we say, “Jesus is Lord”.

We live in a world where money is the primary measurement of value of pretty much everything. Our bank accounts and wallets represent for us our security, our value and the potential contribution we can make in the world. Throughout the ages, those with lots of money have been treated differently from those with little. The wealthy have greater power, greater respect and a far greater variety of choices than the poor. It is extremely easy to get drawn into the constant quest for more wealth, but if we buy the message of the money-centred world, we inevitably lose our souls.

It is impossible to value a human being in financial terms. It is also very dangerous to estimate the value or contribution that someone can make by looking at their bank account. Does anyone really believe that Donald Trump would be a good president just because he has lots of money?

So, when we gather for worship and we share in the act of giving, we are doing a number of significant and prophetic things. First, we use money as the symbol for our giving because Jesus made it clear that we need to see money as more than just the metal and paper we place in the plate. “Where your treasure is, there your heart will be,” said Jesus (Matthew 6:21). By placing a representative proportion of our material ‘treasure’ into the offering, we are seeking to move our hearts away from our bank accounts, our homes and our possessions, and to a more lasting, life-giving reality – God’s reign.

Second, in the act of giving, we are proclaiming, against all that the world may tell us, that we don’t believe that money provides us with value, security or the possibility of a rich and full life. Rather, we demonstrate that we place our trust in God’s care and provision for us, and in God’s call for us to share what we have so that others need not go without.

Finally, as we place our money in the offering plate, we are symbolically placing ourselves – everything we have and everything we are – at God’s disposal. By giving generously, we make a commitment to God and to God’s people that we and our resources are available to be used by God for God’s purposes in our world.

This is why we stand (at least in my church) when the offering is received. In one sense, the act of giving is the most profound act of worship we can offer. And, if we practice it regularly and wholeheartedly, it will inevitably lead us to give of our time, our abilities, our resources, and our very selves to bring justice and healing to others wherever we may have the opportunity.

__________
John van de Laar is a Methodist minister, liturgical consultant and the author of the book Food for the Road – Life Lesson from the Lord’s Table. He holds a Master’s Degree in theology from UNISA, and is the founder of Sacredise.com, an international worship training and resourcing ministry. John is married to Debbie, and they have two sons.

Visit www.sacredise.com for more articles by John, as well as resources for personal and public worship – music, prayers, liturgies, images and drama scripts.

Where Your Treasure Is…

“It’s interesting that we don’t stand for prayer, but we do stand when the offering is received!” This comment, asked by a friend during a worship gathering, was spoken with some disgust and frustration. It was like all he could see was that money was being given more prominence in the service than God. In that moment I realised how the moment of giving is perceived by many churchgoers – and I can’t help but sympathise with them.

The truth is that the Church has often not handled money well. I remember watching a documentary about a well-known televangelist in which the pledge cards that were issued by his ministry were examined. The presenter noticed that the smallest amount that could be pledged (indicated by a check box on the card) was $5000! We have all heard the stories of wealthy pastors who stand before crowded congregations of people, many of whom struggle to make ends meet, and promise divine blessing if the worshippers will just give sacrificially into their ministry. The numbers of those who have left the Church because of such abuses is impossible to count.

In response, some churches have gone to the other extreme – removing the act of giving from worship altogether. But, I can’t help wondering if this practice doesn’t hurt worshippers more than it helps us. The act of giving is about far more than just the money that we choose to put in the plate. It’s about the extent to which we are willing to put our faith in God and God’s reign. It’s about the extent to which we really mean it when we say, “Jesus is Lord”.

We live in a world where money is the primary measurement of value of pretty much everything. Our bank accounts and wallets represent for us our security, our value and the potential contribution we can make in the world. Throughout the ages, those with lots of money have been treated differently from those with little. The wealthy have greater power, greater respect and a far greater variety of choices than the poor. It is extremely easy to get drawn into the constant quest for more wealth, but if we buy the message of the money-centred world, we inevitably lose our souls.

It is impossible to value a human being in financial terms. It is also very dangerous to estimate the value or contribution that someone can make by looking at their bank account. Does anyone really believe that Donald Trump would be a good president just because he has lots of money?

So, when we gather for worship and we share in the act of giving, we are doing a number of significant and prophetic things. First, we use money as the symbol for our giving because Jesus made it clear that we need to see money as more than just the metal and paper we place in the plate. “Where your treasure is, there your heart will be,” said Jesus (Matthew 6:21). By placing a representative proportion of our material ‘treasure’ into the offering, we are seeking to move our hearts away from our bank accounts, our homes and our possessions, and to a more lasting, life-giving reality – God’s reign.

Second, in the act of giving, we are proclaiming, against all that the world may tell us, that we don’t believe that money provides us with value, security or the possibility of a rich and full life. Rather, we demonstrate that we place our trust in God’s care and provision for us, and in God’s call for us to share what we have so that others need not go without.

Finally, as we place our money in the offering plate, we are symbolically placing ourselves – everything we have and everything we are – at God’s disposal. By giving generously, we make a commitment to God and to God’s people that we and our resources are available to be used by God for God’s purposes in our world.

This is why we stand (at least in my church) when the offering is received. In one sense, the act of giving is the most profound act of worship we can offer. And, if we practice it regularly and wholeheartedly, it will inevitably lead us to give of our time, our abilities, our resources, and our very selves to bring justice and healing to others wherever we may have the opportunity.

__________
John van de Laar is a Methodist minister, liturgical consultant and the author of the book Food for the Road – Life Lesson from the Lord’s Table. He holds a Master’s Degree in theology from UNISA, and is the founder of Sacredise.com, an international worship training and resourcing ministry. John is married to Debbie, and they have two sons.

Visit www.sacredise.com for more articles by John, as well as resources for personal and public worship – music, prayers, liturgies, images and drama scripts.

Generosity

“I am so lucky! I have a job, wonderful friends, and my faithful guide dog to lead me around. I am so very grateful!” These words were spoken during a radio interview by a blind woman who had clearly learned what gratitude means. In contrast, a recent study revealed that the group of people most likely to feel deprived and longing for more is the so-called “middle class” – those who have much, but tend to watch the wealthy folk around them with envy, and, as a result, fail to recognise what they have. Gratitude, it seems, does not always collate with our circumstances.

One of the features of the 21st century world is the culture of accumulation. Our whole society is oriented around the desire to have more. Linked with this is what seems to be a growing sense of entitlement among people in the developed world. We don’t need gratitude for what we have, because we believe on some level that the world owes us a “good life”. Whatever plenty we may possess is not enjoyed, but expected, and whatever we think we lack is a failure on the part of the universe to give us what we “deserve”. And so we fall, all too easily, into a cycle of complaining, bemoaning what we don’t have, and ignoring the abundance that surrounds us.

I wonder, for example, whether we would have landed in the economic crisis of the last few years if we had developed a culture of generosity and gratitude, rather than accumulation and expectation in the western world. I wonder whether the “happiness quotient” of people in developed countries would be higher if we spent less time striving for more stuff, and more time enjoying and sharing the stuff we already have. I wonder whether, in some not-so-mysterious way, the contentment I wrote about last week, is to be found in the twin disciplines of thanksgiving and generosity.

Saying thank you is a good and important practice – both in spirituality and in human relationships. But, it can often feel like it’s not enough. The words are too easy to say, but to try and repay whatever gift we’re thankful for can diminish the gift and seem like an insult to the giver. This is where generosity is such a powerful practice – and one of the reasons why giving is such a significant act of worship.

I’m reminded of the movie “Pay It Forward” in which people, who have received some gift from another – often a stranger – are told not to try and repay the gift, but to “pay it forward”, to do something else to benefit three other people as a way of expressing gratitude for what has been received. This principle reveals a basic truth – giving and thanksgiving are inseparable. The glory of developing a lifestyle of giving and thanksgiving is that we find ourselves becoming increasingly aware of the goodness, the beauty, the truth and the abundance in our lives. And, as we share our plenty with others, through simple, daily acts of giving, we increase abundance and wealth all around us. They key, though, is to give mindfully – not thoughtlessly, just checking a box on a list or salving our conscience, but with a real concern for what the other person actually needs, and what gift will most benefit them.

All the great faith traditions of the world have robust teachings about giving. All the great spiritual teachers have recognised that it is not having that brings joy and fulfilment, but enjoyment. There are those who have much, but, through their lack of enjoyment, will always be poor, and there are those who have little, but through their capacity to enjoy, will always be wealthy. The best way to develop the ability to fully and intentionally enjoy the gifts we have been given is to give them away – to practice thanksgiving through generosity, and to share the abundance with others.

This is why, whenever followers of Christ gather for worship, we take up an offering. In practicing the discipline of giving, we are opening ourselves to the gift of enjoyment and abundance, and we are saying “thank you” in the most profound way. And then we inevitably learn the truth of the Scripture that says, “It is more blessed to give than to receive.” (Acts 20:35)

__________
John van de Laar is a Methodist minister, liturgical consultant and the author of the book Food for the Road – Life Lesson from the Lord’s Table. He holds a Master’s Degree in theology from UNISA, and is the founder of Sacredise.com, an international worship training and resourcing ministry. John is married to Debbie, and they have two sons.

Visit www.sacredise.com for more articles by John, as well as resources for personal and public worship – music, prayers, liturgies, images and drama scripts.