Lip Service
It was hilarious. One group after another took their place in the middle of the gymnasium floor and began to strut their stuff. To an outsider, it would have seemed remarkable for 6th,7th and 8th graders to be able to sing so well and to be so musically talented. They must all be child prodigies. Great vocals and smooth musical transitions made it appear like an episode of Glee or the forerunner Fame. But alas, these were not musically gifted students but rather musically gutsy. It was the annual lip sync competition at our local middle school. I had gone to watch my daughter and cheer on her class that I had the privilege of helping to prepare for this years theme; disco! Complete with costumes and props the different challengers moved their mouth to someone elses words and voice and dance to someone elses music. Thats what makes it so funny, watching these youth imitate the real artists. They were just moving their lips and the sound track did the rest.
This is what Jeremiah the prophet is so peeved about in the book named after him. He was speaking for God about the lack of integrity of Gods people. They were going through the motions without any intent of following through. It was all theological lip service. They were faking it. God was not fooled. But my people do not know the requirements of the Lord. (verse 7) Do we know what we really pleases God? If we are not careful, it can happen to us.
Do you feel that your faith is real and personal? Do you experience more days of just going through the motions and providing lip service to those you think need to hear it? The good news is that God wants more than lip service. God desires that we have a faith that lives in our hearts, that we live out each day and that we share with others. God is less concerned with the movements of our faith and more concerned about the intent of our hearts. Our genuine intent is what pleases God. Are you prepared to be authentic today?
What made the lip sync fun was the underlying relationships that the students have with each other and their teachers. We laughed at their antics, but reveled in the fact that they were doing this because they wanted to! Today, do something for God that you want to do instead of what you feel you have to do. Make your own music and sing with your own voice!
Sharing in Faith,
Rev. Craig W. Duke
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