We pray a lot at work. Monday through Wed we meet at Noon to do 30 minute Lectio liturgy using the Psalms. On Thursdays we don’t pray as a staff because we have staff meeting in the afternoon. On Fridays we do a slightly different Lectio liturgy, but still using the Psalms. After those 30 min of listening and contemplation we spend some time doing worship through song.
The room that we pray and worship in faces a busy road. There are windows all across the wall that allow us to look out to the road. They aren’t huge windows, and since they are up on the second floor it’s not like people are looking in as we worship. I have found however, that looking out the windows as I sing is a fascinating exercise in the practice of worship.
Some days, the words to the songs are made alive by what I see out the windows. Singing about the creation of God is pretty cool when you are noticing the large old trees across the street, or an amazing cloud formation in the sky. Watching people walk joyfully down the sidewalk together brings alive the idea of harmony and peace.
But other days the words to the songs create dissonance as they mix with the sights of the real world. It’s hard to sing of God’s goodness when you see a bunch of kids fighting on the corner, and you know some of them are packing heat. It’s tough to sing about God’s provision as the house across the street is getting foreclosed on and people are gathering to carry away all of the posessions inside. There is a shalom that is absent when you hear people speaking harshly to each other.
It is through that dissonance that I better understand my calling. Those days when the world is playing out a different picture than the one I’m singing are the ones where I know it is important for me to pretend the Kingdom so that, hopefully, the will of God can be done on Earth as it is in Heaven.
Have you ever been in a church where you could look outside while you worship? You know. Look at the world you are supposed to be living your faith in. Feeling like the things you are singing and hearing are not contained within the confines of walls, but actually spill out into real life. I don’t think I ever have. I’m sure there are good reasons.
For instance, if you have too much backlight, you can’t see the words on the screen.
Renew and Restore
