It was a Wednesday night at
church. Services are held, the pastor
told us, twice on Sunday morning, once on Sunday night, Tuesday night,
Wednesday night, Thursday night and Friday night. His “congregation,” he thinks, numbers
somewhere around 500. Most of his
congregation comes from within the neighborhood, because they have to walk to
church. There is no parking lot. The church “hopes” to build a new facility
just up the street. The pastor wanted to
show us the property after worship, and have us pray over the land with him.
The pastor’s current church
facility is a one room building designed to hold about 75 people max. This Wednesday night must have been
pack-a-pew night. However, it was unlike
any pack-a-pew night I’d ever witnessed.
It was definitely more like pack-a-pew night-on-steroids. For certain, it would have been a US fire
marshal’s nightmare. People just kept
coming, and coming, and squishing onto the hard benches they call pews, and
standing alongside the walls. When I thought they couldn’t get any more people
in, they filled the center aisle – and stood through the whole service (I know we ended with over 200 people…). We were the honored guests; we got the front row –
right in front of the fan. Ah!!!! It had
to have been in the high 80’s with about 90% humidity. Oh, and I almost forgot to mention the smell,
and I don’t mean the smell of perspiration, which in itself presented a
problem. I mean the sewer smell. Wafting
in through the open windows (keep in mind, there’s no glass on any of the
windows) came the odor of raw human waste so strong it could gag a person.
facility is a one room building designed to hold about 75 people max. This Wednesday night must have been
pack-a-pew night. However, it was unlike
any pack-a-pew night I’d ever witnessed.
It was definitely more like pack-a-pew night-on-steroids. For certain, it would have been a US fire
marshal’s nightmare. People just kept
coming, and coming, and squishing onto the hard benches they call pews, and
standing alongside the walls. When I thought they couldn’t get any more people
in, they filled the center aisle – and stood through the whole service (I know we ended with over 200 people…). We were the honored guests; we got the front row –
right in front of the fan. Ah!!!! It had
to have been in the high 80’s with about 90% humidity. Oh, and I almost forgot to mention the smell,
and I don’t mean the smell of perspiration, which in itself presented a
problem. I mean the sewer smell. Wafting
in through the open windows (keep in mind, there’s no glass on any of the
windows) came the odor of raw human waste so strong it could gag a person.
But…I’ve never experienced
worship quite like this night. There were
no projectors. No power point
presentations. No words to the songs on
screens above. No YouTube videos to engage the audience. No skits, no stage sets, no greeters with
programs, no child care classes. Ah, but
there was a guitar player, a drummer, and a few vocalists with microphones. They
led. Everyone followed…everyone sang…everyone clapped…everyone cheered…”amens”
and “hallelujahs” were frequent. Even
among the littlest. There were
announcements. There were long passages
of Scriptures shared. There were prayer
requests and prayer. More singing. The pastor got up and shared (Was it a
message before the message? Could have been.
It was in Spanish, so I don’t know).
More singing. Then Bay was
introduced. He spoke, using a
translator, which doubles the amount of speaking time. Still people remained squished. They smiled.
They shouted. They clapped and
cheered when he said something they liked.
They engaged with their entire beings. Many found Jesus that night, and there was
more celebration! Then, it dawned on me…church in Cuba is not something to do;
it is not a place to go; it is an EVENT!
It’s not about the individual getting something; it’s about the
individual participating and giving something.
worship quite like this night. There were
no projectors. No power point
presentations. No words to the songs on
screens above. No YouTube videos to engage the audience. No skits, no stage sets, no greeters with
programs, no child care classes. Ah, but
there was a guitar player, a drummer, and a few vocalists with microphones. They
led. Everyone followed…everyone sang…everyone clapped…everyone cheered…”amens”
and “hallelujahs” were frequent. Even
among the littlest. There were
announcements. There were long passages
of Scriptures shared. There were prayer
requests and prayer. More singing. The pastor got up and shared (Was it a
message before the message? Could have been.
It was in Spanish, so I don’t know).
More singing. Then Bay was
introduced. He spoke, using a
translator, which doubles the amount of speaking time. Still people remained squished. They smiled.
They shouted. They clapped and
cheered when he said something they liked.
They engaged with their entire beings. Many found Jesus that night, and there was
more celebration! Then, it dawned on me…church in Cuba is not something to do;
it is not a place to go; it is an EVENT!
It’s not about the individual getting something; it’s about the
individual participating and giving something.
This thought was solidified
after the service. I overheard one of
our team members saying to one of the worshippers in attendance (through a
translator), “I love your worship! There
is so much energy in your church! Are
you always so enthusiastic?” I locked
eyes with the gentleman, and tears began to pour down his face. He thumped his chest, turned to our teammate,
and sincerely replied, “It is all we have
to give!”
after the service. I overheard one of
our team members saying to one of the worshippers in attendance (through a
translator), “I love your worship! There
is so much energy in your church! Are
you always so enthusiastic?” I locked
eyes with the gentleman, and tears began to pour down his face. He thumped his chest, turned to our teammate,
and sincerely replied, “It is all we have
to give!”
It is all they have to
give. Yet, honestly, it is more than
I’ve ever seen given in a comfortable, sweetly smelling, American worship
center. It is all they have to give. It is all Jesus wants us to give. I want to give so generously! I want to give from my all… I want worship to become not just a place to go, not even an event, but
THE EVENT of my week – the highlight! I want to be asked about my personal worship, and with all my heart, be able to say, “I give out of my all…” That would be the kind of worship Jesus talked about with the Samaritan woman – worship that is in spirit and truth (John 4:23-24).
give. Yet, honestly, it is more than
I’ve ever seen given in a comfortable, sweetly smelling, American worship
center. It is all they have to give. It is all Jesus wants us to give. I want to give so generously! I want to give from my all… I want worship to become not just a place to go, not even an event, but
THE EVENT of my week – the highlight! I want to be asked about my personal worship, and with all my heart, be able to say, “I give out of my all…” That would be the kind of worship Jesus talked about with the Samaritan woman – worship that is in spirit and truth (John 4:23-24).
****
A sample of worship: https://vimeo.com/87470800