Recovering Worship

A while back our pastor invited our congregation to join him on a journey to recover giving as an act of worship. In addition to any regular tithe or offering, each member has been asked to put one dollar in the offering plate every Sunday for the months of October, November and December. In Jamie’s words he hopes this one dollar offering will, “nurture gratitude to God and inspire us to become a more generous people.”

At my church we are blessed with talented musicians and magnificent instruments. In the midst of wonderful music during the offertory, I usually bow my head and soak in the beauty of the music and wonder of God.

But, two weeks ago after the plate was passed in the choir loft and I gave my dollar, my eyes strayed to the rest of the congregation. Witnessing the response to the offering plate gave me a warm glow in my heart. I noticed the plates moving across the aisles and down the pews, from hand to hand. Everyone from very young to the most senior put something in it as it passed.

Giving as an act of worship.

Is it more?

I can’t judge whether this exercise will recover the sense of giving as an act of worship for the entire congregation. But what I can judge is the unity I have seen in the hands that pass the plate and deposit their dollars together. I believe there is vested interest in this experience together.

I’ve always thought of worship as being about relationship, adoration and praise of God. But this experience shines a new light on the concept and deepens my insight into worship. What would happen if our worship also encompassed the inclusive nature of God’s love and common purpose among His children?

I haven’t asked Jamie exactly what he meant when he said he hoped that giving one dollar each week will nurture gratitude to God and inspire us to become a more generous people. What I hope it means is not only are we more generous in our gratitude and our tithe, but that we also become more generous in our love for one another, reaching across the aisles and down the pews to come together hand-to-hand and heart-to-heart.