What does a dead battery and some Christians have in common? They both need jump-starts.

Recently, my friend tried to start his car only to realize that the battery had died. The headlights would not come on; the car would not start; the doors would not lock; nothing worked. My friend took out his jumper cables, connected my car battery to his car battery, turned the key in the ignition, and immediately the car roared back to life.

Unfortunately, this was not the first time my friend’s battery had died. Each time it happens, he jump-starts his car. I keep telling my friend to get a new battery, but he insists the battery is good. He says it dies because the car is not being driven enough. This is probably true. The car is old, and most of the time it sits for days on end, parked in front of his house. I think my friend will eventually need a new battery because it is ridiculous to keep jumpstarting his car every time he wants to go somewhere. Moreover, the fact that the battery keeps dying shows that it no longer has the capacity to hold a charge.

Sooner or later, my friend’s car will leave him completely stranded. He will drive somewhere, park, and when he returns, he will try to start his car only to realize that the battery is once again dead. Maybe this time for good. Then, I hope my friend will be convinced that he needs a new battery.

Some Christians are like my friend’s car battery. They require jump-starts to get them into the mood for worship. Otherwise, their burdens are written on their faces. Their body language screams, “It is hopeless.” They have no energy to sing. Their hands sit idly in their laps or folded across their waist instead of being raised in praise and thanksgiving. Their feet are firmly planted to the ground instead of moving around dancing. Their bottoms have essentially become one with the chairs they sit in because they refuse to stand. The absentminded look on their faces lets everyone know that their minds are miles away. They are like lifeless zombies in a strange world.

Consequently, the quality of the service suffers because it is weighed down by the burdens that people bring with them into the house of the Lord. These burdens form an invisible cloud that hangs over the service. Though invisible, this cloud is real. It can be felt. I sometimes compare it to walls, and strangely enough, it’s like there is an unspoken rule that it is the worship team’s duty to break through people’s walls, so they can be set free to worship. The worship team is like a jumper cable. Their worship is supposed to charge the audience’s batteries so they can roar back to life. Therefore worship leaders dutifully carry out their duties. They beg, plead, and prompt people to come from behind their walls and worship. They tell them about the goodness of God and how worthy and deserving He is of praise and glory—things they already know and that should motivate them to worship without being prompted. For a few minutes, these promptings produce some small results. People slowly emerge from behind their walls and allow themselves to participate in the service. This is the effect of the jump-start. However, the charge lasts maybe 30-35 minutes and after that, people retreat behind their walls. It will take another jumpstart for them to emerge.

I remember once listening to a sermon by Bishop Steve Willoughby. In his sermon, he proposed to the audience that in the same way that it takes six live persons to carry a dead person’s casket. It takes six live saints to raise one dead saint. Back then, I didn’t think too much about what he said, but when I became a worship leader, I realized all too well the truth behind his words. It takes tremendous effort to resurrect dead saints. Week after week, the worship team has to prod, beg, and plead with the saints to throw off their burdens, put their focus on God, and praise Him. That self-drive to worship is simply not there. As such, the presence of the Lord that should consistently permeate the atmosphere is only occasionally felt.

Why? People are not worshipping with the right focus. They are self-focused rather than God-focused. They have made worship about themselves and how they feel. If their problems are under control, they are present in mind, body, and spirit to worship. If their problems are out of control, they are present in body but absent in mind and spirit to worship. They make their problems their focus. As a result, it is almost like the saints have become circumstantial worshippers. Their worship is dependent on a set of circumstances or the state of their affairs. However, worship has absolutely nothing to do with how we feel. Think about it. On what we would consider a bad day, God is still good. His goodness does not change because we are having a bad day. On what we would consider a good day, God is still good. His goodness does not change because we are having a good day. God’s goodness remains unchanged. This is therefore an indication that worship is not dependent on how we feel, for regardless of how we feel, God is still good and is therefore worthy of praise and worship. The psalmist writes, “O give thanks unto the Lord; for he is good: for his mercy endure[s] forever”

I often wonder how people would feel if God treated them based on how He felt. What if God decided that the sun will not shine for an entire month because He is upset that people do not reverence Him? Or what if He decided to cut off the air we breathe because He is upset with people for being disobedient? Just imagine what would happen. For an entire month, people would have to live in darkness, and without the sun, many natural processes would stop. And if the air was cut off, people would die. The consequences of having a circumstantial God is serious, but thankfully God is not that way.

The Lord is merciful and gracious, slow to anger, and plenteous in mercy. He will not always chide: neither will he keep his anger forever. He hath not dealt with us after our sins; nor rewarded us according to our iniquities. For as the heaven is high above the earth, so great is his mercy toward them that fear him. As far as the east is from the west, so far hath he removed our transgressions from us. Like as a father pitieth his children, so the Lord pitieth them that fear him. For he knoweth our frame; he remembereth that we are dust. As for man, his days are as grass: as a flower of the field, so he flourisheth. For the wind passeth over it, and it is gone; and the place thereof shall know it no more. But the mercy of the Lord is from everlasting to everlasting upon them that fear him, and his righteousness unto children’s children…Psalm 103:8-17

My point is, let us stop worshiping God based on how we feel. Feelings are inaccurate. We cannot trust them 100%. They can lead us down the wrong path. Next, let us stop using the worship team like they are jumper cables or charging stations. Psalm 100:4 says, “Enter his gates with thanksgiving; go into his courts with praise. Give thanks to him and praise his name” (NLT). Why? “For the Lord is good. His unfailing love continues forever, and his faithfulness continues to each generation” (Psalm 100:5, NLT). Notice, praise, and thanksgiving are what we bring with us when we enter the house of the Lord, so clearly it is not the praise team’s duty to get us into the mood for worship. We should already be in the mood for praise and worship when we enter the house of the Lord.