Let your mind wander

There are some times where I thank God that no one can read my thoughts.
There are sometimes where I think...man...I wish I could read their thoughts.
And there are sometimes where I think, I wish other people could read their thoughts.

Kind of a roundabout way of explaining what I'm trying to say.
This past Sunday, I just looked around our (fairly) large auditorium at everbody worshiping their amazing God, and all of a sudden, all I could say to myself was, 'I wish I knew what they were thinking.' Because they probably had reason to lift their hands, to jump so high and to sing so loud. Sometimes they are just doing it for show, I know, but most of the folks there that day were lifting their hands in pure worship to their Father. In that moment I was struggling to accept that my worship was good enough. Everyone else around me seemed so much more...into it.

A lot of times when I'm praying...reading the bible...singing...just thinking...etc...I keep wondering if I'm doing it right. I've heard all the pastors pray time and time again, and my prayers are not as 'glorious' as theirs. Magnificent words just roll off their tongue, and in comparison, my prayers are more like a little kids English project. It only takes me 30 minutes to read the bible/meditate/etc. in the morning. But Dad does it for 2 hours. I raise my hands when I sing, but that Mrs. Smith, she dances in the aisles.
Does that mean my worship isn't good enough?

The truth is, there are three answers to this:
People worship God differently.
Just because they look more expressive doesn't mean they are worshipping God anymore sincerely. I've seen people stand there like stone statues and yet I know that in their heart they are truely meditating and soaking up the words of the songs. But the truth is, there is importance in being expressive, and we shouldn't feel constrained by what other people will think about us if we shout louder, or bow lower, or dance harder. However, just because we don't do that doesn't mean we are somehow 'worse worshippers'.
When we do this, we shouldn't feel discouraged if someone is worshiping 'better' then you, because, the truth is, they aren't. The truth is, God cares about the sincerity of our worship.

However, this is no excuse to sit there with your arms crossed, to have 5 minute prayers (or better yet, 30 second prayers) and to only read 1 verse a day or whatever it is). God loves hearing from his children, we show our love to him by being expressive, and we cannot grow in our relationship with God without reading his Word. But we don't need to be discouraged. We need to worship with our whole hearts.


I would reccomend reading these, because it shows how important expressiveness is in worship:
Growing in Physical Expressiveness
Expressing Love to God in Worship
When God Comes to Church