46. Praise Like Incense
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May my prayer be set before you like incense.
Psalm 141:2H
OWcan we describe the experience of worship? In some ways
it is like the relationship between the climber and the moun-
tain. The climber stands in awe of and beholds what he could never
create. And yet there is an insatiable hunger within him to meet and
experience the mountain.
Or perhaps the relationship is more like that of singer and song.
What is a song, really? A miracle of notes and words strung together
on some lovely line of reason. (Or lack of reason.) And yet the voice
is pulled by an outer force and an inner yearning to surf the currents
of the melody; to be lifted out of its boundaries into the heavenlies
of the heart.
Must we know God to worship him? It helps, though I believe
many of us glimpse his reality before we ever meet him, and we wor-
ship. He is always with us, trying to get our attention—showing off
with his sunsets and his butterflies, throwing some line of dialogue
into our daily conversation to draw the heart and intrigue the spirit.