Finish your vegetables!

“Finish your vegetables or you’ll get no dessert…”

You know when I was younger I remember my parents would try to get me to eat new things once in a while to “broaden” my horizons! One day they would serve me broccoli, the next it would be split pea soup. Meanwhile, I would sit and stare at it – turn my nose up at it – and refuse to eat it. My mom – being a typical mom, would say something like, “come on David try it, you’ll like it” or maybe she’d use the old timeless standard “if you don’t finish your vegetables you won’t get any dessert afterwards.” Ring any bells with anyone out there? I’m sure someone in their youth was defiant when it came to eating their veggies!
Now, let me flip the table on you (pardon the pun) for a second. What would you say to a child or youth in the church who absolutely refused to sing (I mean, just folded their arms together and closed their lips to any notion of singing) a timeless, classic and deeply scriptural hymn from the church hymnal, something like, say “How Great thou Art,” or “Great is thy Faithfulness” for example? Would you scold them or chastise them somehow? Would you lecture them on the merits of hymnal singing? Or enter into a lengthy discussion on how important singing hymns are in deepening our relationship with and our worship of God? Or, would you just smile at them – tell them you love them and that God loves them too - even when they won’t sing. I’ll stop there. The story I am sharing with you is somewhat a parable.
I pray right now – that you have ears to hear what I’ve written. When we sing together on Sundays in our worship, we are not singing for our own pleasure; we are not singing only the songs we like – we are singing to our Maker, our Redeemer and Friend. Jesus our Lord – who died on a Cross, to take away our sins in order that we might one day live with Him and rejoice in His incredible offering of Grace! So, unfold those arms, open those mouths – and SING!

Have a Blessed week! (Now go eat your vegetables!)

Dave