There we sat down and wept,
When we remembered Zion.
Upon the willows in the midst of it
We hung our harps.
For there our captors demanded of us songs,
And our tormentors mirth, saying,
"Sing us one of the songs of Zion."
How can we sing the LORD'S song
In a foreign land?
If I forget you, O Jerusalem,
May my right hand forget her skill.
May my tongue cling to the roof of my mouth
If I do not remember you,
If I do not exalt Jerusalem
Above my chief joy.
-Psalm 137
This is a definitive model of worship. In this passage, these Israelite musicians were distraught not just at their captivity but at the thought of singing and playing for any other reason except for God and His Holy City.
They could not play for their captors - that would have been entertainment. What they were about was worship....not entertainment. True, Sincere, Honest worship of the only One who is worthy of it.
In your own heart, do you honestly view worship this way? Or, are you more concerned about whether you like the music or the artist or the style you are hearing? The former is about God. The latter is about you. If it is about you, it is not worship.
Prayer:
"Abba Father, may I lose my voice if I don't use it to praise You. In fact, I can think of nothing else I could ever do with my voice except to use it to praise You. God, I want this to apply to my hands, feet, mind; my desires; my affections - EVERYTHING that I am. If I cannot worship You, I will lay my harp on the willows - and my life on the alter - for I have no use for either."
