Waste of time

Psalm 29

Ascribe to the Lord, O heavenly beings, ascribe to the Lord glory and strength. ²Ascribe to the Lord the glory of his name; worship the Lord in holy splendor. ³The voice of the Lord is over the waters; the God of glory thunders, the Lord, over mighty waters. ⁴The voice of the Lord is powerful; the voice of the Lord is full of majesty. ⁵The voice of the Lord breaks the cedars; the Lord breaks the cedars of Lebanon. ⁶He makes Lebanon skip like a calf, and Sirion like a young wild ox. ⁷The voice of the Lord flashes forth flames of fire. ⁸The voice of the Lord shakes the wilderness; the Lord shakes the wilderness of Kadesh. ⁹The voice of the Lord causes the oaks to whirl, and strips the forest bare; and in his temple all say, “Glory!” ¹⁰The Lord sits enthroned over the flood; the Lord sits enthroned as king forever. ¹¹May the Lord give strength to his people! May the Lord bless his people with peace!

Marva Dawn begins her book, A Royal “Waste” of Time, with this Psalm. She states that worship really is a ‘waste of time’ when viewed from the values and lens of society. After all, an hour on Sunday morning hopefully produces a deeper relationship with God and challenge to be a better neighbor; but how does that help the economy? An hour on Sunday morning hopefully stirs something deep within us; but it does not really feed a hungry person. An hour on Sunday morning may tune us to hear God’s voice; but what does that mean on Monday morning?

Of course, Dawn is being satirical when she suggests worship is a ‘waste’ of time, hence the quotation marks. Yet, increasingly we live in a society that does not see much worth in worship. People make choices with schedules and find more meaning in going to sport events, shopping, traveling or just hanging out at home reading the paper than at worship. I say that not because I want people to feel guilty, but because it is a reality people face today. Part of the reason why Sunday morning is so crowded now is due to the flood of activity in our world spilling over onto a day that was once protected. Church at one time had a monopoly and was the only game in town on Sunday morning. That just is not the case anymore. And we can wring our hands and wish for some time machine to transport us back in time, or we can face the reality and listen for God’s still speaking voice today.

It is not only the fact that stores are open. Even if blue laws were reinstated, I am not convinced we’d have to open the balcony on Sunday morning. The truth we need to confront is that it is NOT a waste of time to sit and simply be. We live in a culture that does not value silence or slowing down from a frenzied pace. If we don’t say we are “busy” when someone asks us how we are doing, we assume something is wrong with us. So, on this Saturday, I want to encourage you to “waste” time. Look at an old photo album. Pray. Write a silly story. Do something that other’s would say has no value and then come to church on Sunday. Because we worship a God who says our value comes not from our hands, our minds, or what we produce. Our value comes from being a beloved child of God. Period. See you in church. Blessings and peace. Amen.