Faith Like A Child

I saw the most precious thing in church this morning.  It occurred while we were singing the final praise song in worship.  There was a baby a few rows in front of me, and at some point during the song, the baby raised both of his hands into the air as if he was praising God with his hands.  He kept them up for the whole chorus, put them down, then when the chorus came up again, he raised his arms back up.  I'm sure he had no idea what he was doing, but God certainly used that moment to move in me.

I've always loved going to contemporary services for the music.  I just feel like I can worship more fully when singing those songs.  I'll tap along to the beat, tap my toe to the music, and sometimes even dance very subtly.  Some people worship by raising their hands into the air, but growing up in the church that I did, I've always seen that as really showy.  So, at times when I feel the urge to raise my hands in the air in worship, I don't do it because I don't want to seem showy.  But, when the baby in front of me did that, everyone sitting around him took notice and made a comment about how precious it was.

I want to have faith like a child.  That pure, unabashed faith you see in children during Sunday School, believing everything that's said and not questioning the legitimacy.  The faith you see when children sing out loud praises to God and don't care what they sound like.  The unquestioning trust in Jesus because the Bible tells them so.

When I worship, I don't need to be concerned about how it looks to other people.  I need to worship and praise God in any way I feel necessary.  If that means raising my hands into the air during a particularly moving part of a song, I should do it.  If that means singing a song as I'm walking to my car, even when others can hear me, I should do it.  I don't need to be ashamed or concerned about what other people are thinking about me.  God is the one that I should be focusing my attention on, especially during church!

Thank you, God, for that moment this morning that showed me your face.  I pray that I can praise you like that infant, and that my praise will cause others to take notice and praise you more fully, too.