Time of Preparation
Begin by taking inventory of your surroundings. Are things in your vicinity conducive to a time of personal worship? Are there any changes or adjustments (turning off tech, making yourself comfortable) you need to make before you begin?
When you are ready, take some time to sit in silence and prepare your heart for worship. Ask God to clear away any distractions that might keep you from being truly present in this moment.
Commission
In this final movement, we are encouraged and equipped for the work God would have us do.
“For God alone my soul waits in silence,
for my hope is from him.”
—Psalm 62:5 (NRSVUE)
My senior year at seminary I signed up to preach at one of the school’s daily chapel services, which surprised most of my friends because I had made it clear I had no plans to ever be a preacher (side note—if you want to make God laugh, tell him your plans).
For my sermon I collated all of the syllabi and assignment sheets I had been given in 3 years of studying and figured out, on average, how many pages of books we had been assigned to read. I then examined a bunch of our textbooks to come up with an average number of words per page, and used both numbers to come up with an approximate number of words the average seminary student might read in three years of degree work.
I shared these findings at the beginning of my sermon in chapel, and then said this: “So the truth is, you’re already inundated with words. You don’t need mine of top of those. So instead, we’re going to take the time usually allocated for the sermon and we’re going to sit in silence.”
So we did. We sat in silence for 10 minutes. During that time we were invited to talk to God, to listen to God, to wait on God, or simply to rest in God. After the chapel service I heard from many students how meaningful it had been and how God had met them in that silent place.
In a world that is chaotic and loud and filled with so many noises and voices, silence is often a forgotten discipline, one that we’re going to embrace today. Rather than listen to a worship song, you’re invited to sit in silence for four minutes. As the Psalmist tells us, this is a moment where our souls can wait for God. It is an opportunity to meditate on his hope. Don’t rush it. Don’t “fill” the space. Simply sit…breathe…listen…and be in the presence of the One who knows you best and loves you most.
SONG OF COMMISSION: 4 Minutes of Silence