Forcing others to worship properly

Do you ever feel like you need to do something in church so those around you will see that you are worshiping properly? Do you ever feel intimidated to place money into the offering plate so the folks around you (or the deacon passing the plate) will see that you are tithing? Do you feel intimidated into raising your hands during the singing because others are doing it (or intimidated into not raising your hands because of what others might think)?

When we worship God in the corporate setting, we carry on a delicate balancing act. We are worshiping corporately and must be part of the corporate conversation/experience. But we are worshiping God and must worship Him in spirit and in truth—as laid out for us in scripture. So then, we should not do things that will distract those around us from their worship of God, and we should actively pursue doing things that encourage others to focus corporately on God and to throw themselves into worship.

But since worship is a heart attitude, we cannot fully know when others are focused on God and are worshiping appropriately. Nor is it something we should be concerned about if it is not distracting to the rest of the gathered congregation.

It’s important to remember that we are not to judge whether someone else’s devotion to God is true or not. God Himself will weed out the tares. We cannot excuse our bad attitudes because of injustices, hardships, and unfulfilled expectations. We are responsible for our responses.

This quote is from the oustanding blog, Run With Patience, from today's post, "Responsible Responses." The post deals with this concept as shown in scripture when David danced in praise of God and his wife despised him for it. It's a great post and worthy of your time and thought.