Grant me the curiosity and awe so that I may honor the bottomless, limitless wonder, beauty, and mystery of this world.
—Brian McLaren, Do I Stay Christian?
Poet and essayist Kathleen Norris considers how our language can dampen our expectation of experiencing awe in God’s presence:
Modern believers tend to trust in therapy more than in mystery, a fact that tends to manifest itself in worship that employs the bland speech of pop psychology and self-help rather than language resonant with poetic meaning—for example, a call to worship that begins: “Use this hour, Lord, to get our perspectives straight again.” Rather than express awe, let alone those negative feelings, fear and trembling, as we come into the presence of God, crying “Holy, Holy, Holy,” we focus totally on ourselves, and arrogantly issue an imperative to God. Use this hour, because we’re busy later, just send us a bill … and we’ll zip off a check in the mail. But the mystery of worship, which is God’s presence and our response to it, does not work that way.
The profound skepticism of our age, the mistrust of all that has been handed to us by our grandfathers and grandmothers as tradition, has led to a curious failure of the imagination, manifested in language that is thoroughly comfortable, and satisfyingly unchallenging. [1]
Brian McLaren reflects on the spontaneous joy and awe of true worship:
Why are the most blessed often the most restrained in their worship, and why are those who have the least in terms of health, wealth, and safety the most ready to “make a joyful noise” and “sing for joy to the Lord”? Is it because they relate to God primarily from their heart rather than their head?… Could it be that our accumulation of possessions and protections coat our souls like rubber gloves, so that we touch, but do not feel?… Could it be that the conceptualized and formalized worship of the “developed world” is actually designed to inhibit and control rather than foment joy?…
The scandalous truth, known by mystics throughout history and affirmed in the pages of our sacred texts, is that when we connect with God, it is as if we are plugging our souls into a pure current of high-voltage joy. The joy that surprised me under the stars [in my mystical experience] in my teens was exactly what the ancient psalmist knew (Psalm 16:11), that God is a joyful being and to enter or awaken to God’s presence is to enjoy a bracing jolt of invigorating delight…. Yes, there is indeed a place for quiet reverence, the dignity of robes, and the noble tranquility of marble columns and pipe organs. But … God is joyful, and God’s joy is contagious. When we tap into the joy of the Lord, when we step into the pure joy that burns like a billion galaxies in the heart of God, we’ll soon find ourselves shouting, dancing, singing, leaping, clapping, swaying, laughing, and otherwise jubilating and celebrating. [2]
References:
[1] Kathleen Norris, Amazing Grace: A Vocabulary of Faith (Riverhead Books, 1999), 71–72.
[2] Brian D. McLaren, Naked Spirituality: A Life with God in 12 Simple Words (HarperOne, 2011), 65, 66–67.
Image Credit and inspiration: Mieke Campbell, untitled (detail), 2021, photo, Unsplash. Click here to enlarge image. The child’s wide-eyed wonder mirrors a heart open to awe: seeing the sacred glimmer even in the most ordinary of moments.
Story from Our Community:
The path of joy starts with awe and surrender. The more I learn about science, the more I stand in awe. The wonder of creation makes me feel small and allows me to surrender to its greatness and its beautiful simplicity. Above all, I feel honored to be a part of this world and, by God’s grace, a part of the kingdom of heaven. It’s a wonder beyond words.
—Gerrit B.
