Would it be the Same?

Would it be the same without the lights, the screens, the sound system?

If you look at a church service in the united states, you are often confronted with spinning lights, big screens with the words projected on them with a swirling background, loud sound systems threatening to crush your ribs if they inch one decibel louder.

Often times it resembles something more like a rock concert than a church service.

And my question is, if you took all those things away, stripped the church back down to its most basic form, no building, no lights, no sound system, no swirling colours projected on big screens, would people still “experience God” in the same way?

Would they “feel Him” move?

Have you ever thought about that?

What if what you are feeling at that moment at church, that moment of heightened emotion that is the “movement of the Spirit” is simply caused by the environment you are in?

Tonight, I went to a church near my college that is really big with youth and young adults. Bright lights, big screens, you name it, they got it.

And, although I felt God, I was distracted.

It turned more into a performance.

The best singers, the best backgrounds for the lyrics, the best coordination of colours for the lights, the best logo for this specific conference.

The thought crossed my mind, Where is God in all of this show?

I longed for the simplicity that I have grown to love at the church I go to now.

Now, don’t get me wrong, I grew up in a church very similar to this, and I believe that it does reach out to people who maybe would not have gone to any other kind of church, it’s just become something that I’m not quite so fond of any more.

As I'm writing this, lyrics to a Jon Foreman song came to me, and I think it fits.

He writes:

I hate all your noise and pretense

The hypocrisy of your praise

The hypocrisy of your festivals

I hate all of your show

Away with your noisy worship

Away with your noisy hymns

I stop up my ears when you’re singing them

I hate all your show

I think we’re all guilty of this.

I know I am.

Putting on a show.

I guess I just want to see people (myself included) be able to experience God in any environment, not just one with lights and music.

I want to experience God when I’m sitting on my futon in my dorm.

I want to experience God when I’m walking to class.

I want Him to be anytime, anywhere.

Anyway, this was more me trying to sort out what I was thinking from the night, all those unasked questions that I wish we all talked about more, and I wanted to get you thinking too.

Hope I accomplished that if nothing else.

Also, if you go to a church like this and you were offended by anything I said, I apologize right now. That was not my intention. I just want you to think about it ;)