There was a man who wrote worship songs.  His name was Matt.  He was a part of a church that had become very much involved in producing exciting songs and beautiful music.  The church had lots of people, but the preacher believed something was missing.  So, one day he challenged the church to strip it down to the essentials.  They unplugged the instruments and started worshiping with just their voices.  They would focus on the meaning of the songs and and that worship is all about Jesus, not the spectacle of a production.

Stripped Away

That was the inspiration for the hugely popular Matt Redman song, “The Heart of Worship.”  They stripped away all the instruments and sound system, and just worshiped with their voices.  They did what Ephesians 5:19 and Colossians 3:16 talks about.  They filled up on the Spirit instead of on “spirits.”

Here are some of the words to that song:

When the music fades, all is stripped away, and I simply come / Longing just to bring something that’s of worth that will bless your heart… / I’m coming back to the heart of worship, and it’s all about You, Jesus.

 More than  a Production

Do you ever feel like your worship is getting out of control, and it’s more about a production than about Jesus?

You might be about the production if

• You are more concerned with the way worship is organized than the words that are said.
• You are more interested in getting beautiful 4 part harmony than in the harmony of hearts singing the words.
• You’re more into getting the pitch right than the attitude right.

The Heart of Worship

If you feel like you’ve gotten to this point, then what do you do?

You strip it away.  You go back to the heart of worship. You make it all about Jesus.  You go back to his Word, and you follow it in Spirit and in truth.  You do things the right way and with the right attitude.  You honor him with your methods and with your heart.

And, when you do that, you can know what what you offer is “more than a song.  It reaches deep within, to the ways of the heart.”

All of life isn’t worship in the sense that we aren’t always singing or praying, but we can turn all of our lives into an offering.  We can turn all of our lives into a heartfelt expression of our acknowledgement and joy in being a part of God’s story.  Then, our lives will be more than a song.