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I wrote a worship song a few years ago that has 3 verses, a chorus and a bridge, but I was never happy with the second verse. We used it in worship and it was anointed, but I would sometimes cringe when we got to verse 2. There was nothing wrong with this verse, or the theology of it as I got it pretty much straight out of Psalms, but it just didn’t fit the theme of the song. Then the other day I was reading this verse in Isaiah and I knew I had a new second verse. And now, I believe the song is finished. But even better, I got a glimpse of His Majesty in a new way.

To share my moment with you, here’s what I was reading… Isaiah 66 says “Heaven is My throne and the earth is My footstool. Where then is a house you could build for Me? And where is a place that I may rest?”

Can you imagine what Isaiah is describing? A God whose throne is Heaven? And so immense is our God, that He makes the earth his footstool. The picture is amazing. The heavenlies cannot contain the Almighty. Creation cannot contain Him. Seated in Heaven, His feet on the earth. Make no mistake, God is nearby.

And then He asks, “Where then is a house you could build for Me?. Whoa. Let me think, umm, a God whose Being cannot be contained by the universe… The question is rhetorical, because there is no such place that could be built. God has no use for a temple made by hands.

But He goes on to say, “But to this one I will look, To him who is humble and contrite of spirit, and who trembles at My word.” Hey! He is talking about human beings. People. The humble, the repentant, those that fear God to the point of trembling at His word. This amazing God makes His dwelling on the inside of us. The One whom the heavens cannot contain. Imagine! He has chosen the spirit inside of you and me as His place to rest.

How awesome are You O God. Your greatness, unsearchable!

So now that my song is finished, I may put it back into the worship set this week. I wonder if anyone will notice that a verse has changed.

Every worship leader has been there.  After several successful high-energy praise songs (maybe even with some on-beat clapping), the transition into slower songs begins, with the ultimate goal of entering into worship.  Hands begin to go up in the congregation, as if on cue.  Things appear to be right on schedule; worship is going up.  The music begins to build and then….wait for it…..boom! the “worship ceiling” has just been broken  and we all feel it—that Holy Ghost moment.  God is in the house!  We have arrived at our destination.  What a Sunday.  God showed up.  We had our moment! We’ve peered into the Holy of Holies.  

Not wanting to mess up a good thing, we wind up worship in a hurry and find our seat as quickly as possible.  A successful worship set, right? 

Well, we know God has been pleased.   He has accepted our worship (you know, He doesn’t have to).  We have indeed been in the presence of God, which is an amazing place. So what’s the problem?  

We need to ask ourselves, why did we stop at the doorway?  Really, how is this kind of worship different than what was offered to the Lord in the Old Testament? They sang to Him.  We sing to Him.  The children of Israel played instruments, we play instruments.  But when they brought their sacrifices to the Lord, they stayed in the outer courts.  They could not enter the Holy of Holies.

 How sad that we, under a better covenant, usually choose to stay in the outer courts of worship; stopping at the threshold of the Holy of Holies, but not continuing inside. It is when we enter that place that worship goes to another level, a deeper place.  If you ever wondered what someone meant by going deeper in worship, this is it.  It is past the comfort zone of the flesh.  It is the act of staying and spending time in the presence of a Mighty God. Drawing closer to Him by the Spirit.  II Corinthians 3:18  talks about a deeper progression in the Spirit when it refers to us being changed from glory to glory.

When people leave our worship services, can they say they have been in the presence of God?    If not, why not?  As worship leaders, it is our very job description to lead others before the throne.  May I suggest that what worked for worship yesterday, is not going to be enough tomorrow.  A day is fast approaching when it will be vital that God’s people are brought into His presence corporately.  The intensity of the world outside will require a safe haven, a place of true worship.  A place where the Body of Christ can find comfort, strength and healing in the midst of the chaos.

So the next time you find yourself having a Holy Ghost moment, hang out there a while—maybe even press in a little more.  Ignore the cries of your flesh to end the set, and continue a little bit longer.   As a result, others will experience the wonder and joy of a deeper place.  And you might be surprised to find there’s some joy there for you as well.