Public Displays of Affection

This phrase in most of us probably conjure up the image of something like a young couple hanging all over each other as they hang out in the mall. But a recent blog posting I read got me thinking about it in terms of our relationship with God and public, corporate worship. Mulling this over, trying to bring some clarity to my own thoughts consumed my mind well into the wee hours of the morning until sleep set upon me.

There are so many facets to worship that I can't quite pin it down to a single definitive thing. Some of worship is very intimate and personal while other aspects of it are as simple as declaring God's goodness among His people and praising Him with one united voice. But the epicenter of worship, the point at which it begins, is that place in each individual's relationship with God where He has revealed Himself and we respond. As Christians, followers of Jesus, we all have already responded to His sacrifice on the cross for us, His mercy and grace. The common intersection of the cross is therefore at the core of corporate worship. He may have drawn me to the cross through other circumstances than He did you. But we all kneel together at the foot of that tree on Calvary and are united as adopted sons and daughters.

We are, however, all created as unique in our giftedness and personality. We all come with different burdens, different life experiences, and different backgrounds, We also then may respond in our worship in different ways. Much like in our earthly relationships. One couple might express their affection in public by the husband always opening the door for his wife or simply by holding hands while another may find kissing in public to be acceptable. Or we respond to seeing the same exact public display in different ways depending on the circumstances. We applaud when a groom kisses his bride for the first time as a married couple but avert our eyes when we see a couple smooching on a park bench. Neither is "right" or "wrong" per se. They are just outwardly expressing a level of intimacy they feel comfortable with being seen in public or at which we feel comfortable looking. Then you throw in cultural standards and personal preferences and you know it's impossible to agree on just how much affection can be on display for things to be deemed "proper."

In the corporate worship setting we also hold our own ideas about what "proper" worship should "look like" or what we ourselves are comfortable with expressing in public. Standing, sitting, hands raised, head down, clapping, face up, eyes closed, dancing in the aisle... I don't think we can even come close to understanding this thing we call worship. One thing that I do know is that I have no idea what communion with God is going on in somebody else's heart as we attend a corporate worship service. I don't know the valley they are passing through or the mountain they have just crested on their journey that morning. But I rejoice that He is speaking and pray that we all have grace enough towards others to allow each one to display their affection to The Lover of Their Soul in whatever form The Spirit prompts.

"God is spirit, and His worshipers must worship in spirit and in truth." John 24:4