Alan taught me an important lesson about worship, and I wrote about it here. However, he got me again in a most unexpected way. One of his favorite, and I mean favorite toys is his whoopee cushion. He laughs every single time, falling over on the floor, cracking up kind of laughing. Every time. “This never gets old!” he says once he catches his breath again.

That’s what I’m missing. My worship does get old. If it gets old to me, I’m afraid to think how God views it. Thinking about Alan, I found 4 things he had while playing, that I need to infuse into my worship.

Spontaneity - He doesn’t schedule when he plays. It just happens. Real worship can’t scheduled. It naturally flows out of a full heart. (Now- this is NOT to say that real worship can’t happen during our weekly scheduled services. It absolutely should. My point is that is can’t be switched on and off with the clock.)

Focus - When Alan plays, he only has one toy. He’s not thinking ahead to what’s next. He is totally in the moment. I admit, I get in church and my brain wanders off like a toddler in a theme park. (Another story for another day perhaps.)

Energy - Alan goes after that whoopee cushion with gusto. In fact he’s burst a couple of them in his exuberance. Too many times, my worship becomes a passive spectator activity.

Delight - Alan LOVES that whoopee cushion. I need to develop that excitement, that thrill of just being in God’s presence.

Part of my problem is my relationship with God is too formal. I mean, He’s GOD, after all. I can’t just… you know… And I realize this is an issue. In the last year or so, God has gently been guiding me toward real intimacy with Him, not just ‘knowing about” Him, but having that sense of belonging. Letting go of shame was one step on that road. Genuine worship is another.

The key to authentic Christian faith is an honest assessment of who I am. I have to grasp that everything I have is a result of Christ’s work and not any merit of my own. However, that’s nothing to be ashamed of. I can’t say or do anything to make God love me any more. I can’t do anything to cause Him to stop loving me, either.

I love the story of the prodigal son, and the father’s unfailing, unconditional love for his son. Many times though, I’ve wondered what it must have been like to be that boy in that moment before he walked into the banquet his father threw in his honor. Was he uncomfortable? Did he feel like he was home, or was he ashamed to face the rest of his family and friends?  I’m not sure I could have walked into the banquet.

God speaks to His enemies in Isaiah 65:13  ”Behold, My servants shall rejoice, but you shall be ashamed.”

Joy is a confidence that is future focused.  No matter what happens NOW, I know what will be. (Through faith, I know it.) Shame dwells on the past.  Shame says, Because of what happened THEN, I know what I am. (Through experience or through someone else telling me, I know it.) Joy is to trust God. Shame is to trust man -whether self or someone else. Joy is empowering. Shame is debilitating. Shame comes from the outside, joy from within.

Being one of God’s children cannot co-exist with being ashamed. He removed all my shame when the salvation transaction was completed. I’m the only one who can allow the shame back. When Satan delivers it to my doorstep, it may be labelled failure, or regret, or a label I’m not expecting. No matter what, I must not pick up the baggage.

Beginning next week, I am participating in a two-week Authenticity Challenge at the invitation of Kelly Langston.

Let me get an early start on authenticity… When I began reading the details, [I didn't finish reading, either] my first reaction was “I don’t blog every day. I don’t WANT to blog every day… I’m not gonna do it.” So I went back to Facebook to TweetDeck or whatever. Then I got that little push, the down deep in my spirit one. So I sighed, and hopped back to Kelly’s post, and continued reading. She writes:

This project has come to my heart because I believe the world is desperate to see what real Christianity looks like… True Christianity is a faith of daily experiences, daily progress, daily introspection and adjustment, and most of all, daily validation that we are, indeed, vastly loved by the Father.

The second purpose: By spending two weeks of intensely focusing on God’s presence in the everyday events around me, I know that I will learn to view life in a different way: God’s way.  The process of seeking God all around me will seep deep into my soul so that it becomes entirely natural way to view the daily events of my life.  In the process I want to allow God to wring out any hypocrisy from my own life so I can live out my faith authentically, just as Jesus did.  I am expecting God to show up and teach each committed blogger some amazing truths about Who He is, Where He is working around us, and How our lives can be fulfilled by living within His purpose.

That’s exactly what I want in my life. How could I not participate? I guarantee you up front, this is not going to be the logbook of a super-Christian, but I know from what He said in His word that His goal for me is Christlikeness.

So starting Monday, for 14 days we’ll look at what really goes on in a relationship with Jesus Christ. Pray for us. Join us.  Try journaling for the weeks. If you’re not a blogger and have some thoughts, email me and I’ll post them for you.

Alan had a rough time starting third grade. He was in a new school building, mixed in with some new kids, and for a while it was a daily battle to get out the door in the morning. He was intimidated (okay, bullied) by a couple of boys and bought into everything they said, especially what they said about him.

We tried to remind him that he could choose how he responded, that no matter what those boys said, we knew the truth. Some days it helped. Other days… not so much. Even as I tried to help him out, I was faced with my own question. How often do I let someone (whose opinion shouldn’t matter anyway) have control over my attitude and my day? Way, way too often.

What seemed to make the difference with Alan was when he heard all these things from Jon. They worked out a way to deal with the daily aggravation, with the key factor being spending some time with Dad in the morning before school.

Fact is, the opinions that do count are held by the people who love me, and God is the top of the list. He loves me with an everlasting love. He chose me and He’s going to show me His riches in glory because of Jesus Christ.

Bottom line- It shouldn’t matter what anybody else thinks cause my Daddy loves me.

How are you doing with this year’s goals? Sticking with it?

Yes? Then good for you! There are few investments of your time that pay such great dividends.

No? This is a new day. You can always, always start fresh. If those “begats” or Leviticus is getting you down try one of these plans instead:

• A Psalm and a New Testament chapter a day for the year.  (You have to read through more than once to fill the year.)
• Proverbs in a 31 day month
• Matthew in February
• Mark and Romans in a 30 day month
• A chapter of the Gospels each day.  You’ll make it through about 4 times in the year.

The point is, the benefits of daily Bible reading habit are so great, don’t let Leviticus and Ezekiel or the minor prophets keep you from it.