That’s What it’s Like

What do you mean when you say, “worship?”

Worship is simply pleasing God.

But how do you please a god you have never seen, whose voice you have never physically heard?

Well, do you have anyone in your life that you are very, very close to? A mother, a brother, a friend, a lover?

Yes.

Someone so close that he’s like the other part of your soul? Someone so close that when he inhales, you exhale? Someone whose opinion of you is more important to you than the combined influence of the rest of the world?

Yeah, I believe I can think of someone.

And how do you please that person? What do you do?

I don’t do anything. He just loves me. Just by being who I am.

Right. But can you think of any things you could do that would be especially pleasing to him?

Of course.

So you try to do those things as often as possible and as well as possible.

Well, mostly.

Can you think of some things that you do that this person really doesn’t like, even though he loves you?

Well of course.

So what do you do?

I try not to do those things. At least, as much as I can.

Of course. That’s what it’s like when I worship God. Now imagine, just for a moment, that this person had the ability, and chose, for whatever reason, to be completely invisible to you. Would you still know when he entered the room?

I…I guess I would.

What would it be like?

I don’t know. You can just tell sometimes. It’s like a… a feeling you get inside: He’s here!

That’s…that’s what it’s like when I worship God. But what sort of things you would do if you got that feeling of… of “he’s here?”

Well, I would try to do the sorts of things that I knew would make him happy. I mean, I would probably hold back from the sorts of things I do that I know tend to annoy him. Maybe I’d say hello to him.

You mean you would begin to speak to someone who wasn’t there?

You didn’t say he wasn’t there. You said he was invisible.

Right, invisible. But… what if, after a while, you began to get a sneaking suspicion that even when you didn’t get that excited feeling, that even then he was watching you. What if you knew he loved you so much that he would always be with you, even when you didn’t have that knowing he was there? If you really, really loved him, what would you do?

I guess I would start trying to do the things he likes, and avoiding the things he doesn’t like—all the time. I might start trying to talk to him whenever I thought he might be able to hear. I know I’d always be trying to catch him sneaking up on me, being there when I didn’t know it.

You mean you might start to change your behavior? You mean that, if he meant enough to you, you might change the entire structure of your life?

I guess so, yeah. I suppose I would.

That’s what it’s like when I worship God.