(No Matt, this post is not about the Bob Dylan song.)
It is about, however, the man who came to church with a tambourine.
Yes, you read that correctly, the man who brought his own tambourine to church.
Picture this: Wednesday night service at Calvary Chapel Sebastopol. It is the mid-week service, so the crowd is smaller and more intimate. I am sitting at my normal spot, the second row from the front on the left. We are all welcomed in and asked to stand up to read one of the psalms, the traditional "call to worship" that we do. We read it together, then are ushered into the music time.
Lo and behold, a man who is sitting across the isle whips a tambourine out of his bag! Say what?!? I didn't realize that my jaw had dropped until after I had started to smile. He gave it a few shakes gingerly, as if not knowing if he would get in trouble.
Seconds later, our associate pastor swoops in. He gently puts his hand on the mans shoulder and whispers something to him. The tambourine man nods his head and places his instrument down on the ground.
As I sit and think about this, it makes me wonder what music in church would be like if we all brought our instruments of choice and played them. Trumpets galore, guitars, perhaps the occasional bassoon or nose flute. We certainly would not have the London Symphony on our hands, but would it be any less pleasing to God? The Psamls say to clap our hands and shout to the Lord with cries of joy (Ps 47.1), but we don't necessarily do that in worship either.
I dont' know what I would have done. I personally kind of wanted the tambourine man to do his thing. I think it might have been a way for him to engage in musical worship. Perhaps it would be more welcome in a church that was clappy. Churches are generally divided into two categories: Those who like Niel Diamond, and those who don't (for those of you who didn't get it, its a "What About Bob?" quote). Actually, I've heard that they can be classified as "clappers" or "non-clappers." But in reality, does it really matter? Does clapping and shouting and singing and tambourining (or the lack thereof) enhance the joy that it brings to the LORD?
I donno. Its just something to think about.
2 comments:
Well, Tamsen, I think we should sing "The Tambourine Man" IN Church. I think that would solve everyone's problems; whether your a "clappy" church or not.
You are right, the Psalms do call for a diverse worship. However, our God is also a God of order, and anything unorderly can be a great distraction from authentic worship. Either way, I appreciate the story & your thoughts!
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