Compelled to sing

There will come a time when the children of God can’t help but sing to God with joy.

That may frighten you if, like me, you are a monotone.  But if you are a follower of Jesus, you will have a new body and a new voice in heaven – and you will want to shout and sing and cry out praises to God.

The typical picture of heaven among Christians is that worshiping God is going to be a burden.  How can we sing and praise God continually?

The answer is love.  We will be so enraptured by God’s love for us and our love for him that we can’t help expressing our feelings.

I am not suggesting that we will do nothing but sing and worship God.  There are indications in the Bible that we will be busy doing other things in heaven as well.

But worship and praise will be part of the fabric of life with the Lord.

Worship is sprinkled throughout the Book of Revelation written by the apostle John following a remarkable vision years after Jesus’ ascension to heaven after the crucifixion and resurrection.

Angels, elders and the redeemed sing to God and praise him, honouring him as creator and as redeemer.  There is overwhelming joy and awe.

Why do I, as a believer, find it so hard to worship God here on earth?

There are probably many reasons, but I can think of a few.

Here are a few questions I ask myself:

• Do I really grasp how much God loves me? Psalm 139 paints a picture of God in passionate pursuit of his children, always near us and filled with mercy for us in our stubborn, sinful ways.
• Do I understand who God really is?  I need to explore what the Bible says about the character of God and meditate upon this.
• Do I grasp what Jesus did for me on the cross?  That is worth spending my remaining years in contemplation.
• Am I ready to give myself to him without question, trusting he has a good plan for me?  I need to read and reflect upon what God has already done in the lives of faithful followers – particularly in the Bible.

Worship poured through the everyday life of the apostle Paul.  He longed to be with Jesus in eternity.  He praised the Lord in the midst of the most hurtful and life-threatening circumstances.

Like Paul, I have an opportunity now to practice joyful praise and thanksgiving in preparation for unreserved rejoicing in heaven.

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