Like Children?

As we began our Sunday meeting, singing the praises of our Lord, I was prompted by the Holy Spirit to get a banner to use in worship. I love to worship this way, but I’ve had recurrent problems with pain in my shoulder, so I was a little reluctant. Then my young grandson asked me to go with him to fetch flags for him and his sister.

We began waving our banners of different sizes and colours in worship, singing praises to our Father. By the end of the next song many more children had joined the fervent worship singing and waving banners to our Lord. With some clashing of banners, a concern rose within me that someone was going to get poked, or receive a clout, but the joyful throng continued, until the children went to children’s church.

After the service, I received a few comments about me leading the children. I explained that I hadn’t led them. God had. Then I realised that God had used the children to lead and encourage me! I’d been apprehensive of waving a banner because of my shoulder, and was further distracted by the occasional clumsy clashing amongst our happy crowd.

I’d allowed the enemy to hold me back from the fervent worship God desired from me. In this instance, it was songs and banners, but other times I’ve held back in other ways from the life of worship God desires of me, for one reason or another. God used the wonderful, free, random and, at times, clumsy flag waving of children in their uninhibited acts of worship to bring His strength to our meeting, and to still the enemy in some of his works against us as a body and as individuals.

Someone mused about our worship together being ‘practice’ for when we’re in heaven. I grew up being told “Practice makes perfect” by parents, teachers and others in authority, and we often consider practice as necessary steps toward producing as near a perfect action or process as possible. But in today’s scripture we see that our Father God has ‘taught the little children to praise [Him] perfectly’.

If God has taught them this ‘perfect’ way, and it’s uninhibited, random, free, and, at times appears clumsy to us adults, what does that tell us about what God really wants from us? What does that tell us about how we try to live lives of worship, but hold ourselves back with inhibitions, pride, self-made rules, worldly wisdom or fears of failure and looking foolish?

I want more of God, more of seeing God at work, more breakthroughs, healing, freedom, peace, salvation, blessings, growth, and more of His kingdom here on earth as it is in heaven! God wants this too. ‘Truly, I say to you, unless you turn and become like children, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven’ (Matthew 18:3).

Of course, we are His children. But perhaps we can come to Him in a more child-like way, and see more of the kingdom of heaven in our lives here on earth, and shame and silence the enemy by our example too.

Prayer: O Lord our God, the majesty and glory of Your name fills all the earth and overflows the heavens. Father, You’ve taught little children to praise You perfectly. Help us, Your ‘grown up’ children, to be more like them, without any inhibitions whatsoever, as we come closer to You and live a life of worship for Your glory. May we shame and silence Your enemies too! In Jesus’ holy name, Amen.