God wants your struggles too

Have there been days when you just couldn’t lift your voice in the worship songs, let alone your hands? Days when tears fell more readily than talk, when you wished you could sit at the back of the crowd, just to be quiet with your heavy heart.

There certainly have been in my experience, and I feel deeply for those who struggle, even if only occasionally, to join the crowd of enthusiastic worshippers.

During the 22 long years of my battle with acute and chronic pancreatitis – one of the most painful conditions known in medicine – I led Pentecostal worship and preached whenever I was strong enough, often sitting down to do so.

I was always conscious of those who were struggling with pain or mental distress, but who had managed to be in the meetings.

I hope that my colleagues and friends who lead our churches will always try to bear them in mind too, asking God to give us creative and helpful ways to make space in our gatherings for those going through stuff that makes it hard for them to join in.

I can recall becoming choked and unable to sing, for instance, whenever the gathering chanted that when there is pain in the offering, they would still bless God! They were right, of course, and this song was born of the author’s own bereavement, but for most singers it would be theory, whilst for me it was intensely practical and personal.

But real worship is not just all bright lights and loud songs.

story continues…