Being a Distracting Christian

This has been on my mind for a while.

It seems like so many kids in my youth group are becoming so much closer to God than they have been. I’ve sort of been trying to do the same, but there are so many distractions.

This is not aimed at any one person. I am not saying that anyone is doing anything wrong. This is just my shortcomings. I can’t be in worship and not be distracted by the people around me. It’s all fine and good until someone sticks a hand up or stands up in praise. Then I start wondering ” Well, they’re really into worship, should I be into it too?” or “Maybe I should do the same so they won’t be completely alone.” My instincts always seem to push the whole worship concept out of my mind, and I have a hard time getting back into it.

You’ll notice more often than not that I close my eyes during worship. This is not so much because I’m totally absorbed in the worship, it’s that I’m trying to keep my mind off of the visual distractions standing all around me. I rarely raise my hand, either, mostly because I believe that I shouldn’t be a distraction to anyone else should they feel the same way that I do.

None of this is wrong; in fact, it’s mentioned in the Bible to “raise your hands” in worship and prayer. But it’s not totally necessary to do so.

The thing I find so wonderful about worship is that sometimes I’ll stop singing for a little bit so I can hear the whole congregation singing around me, corporately worshiping. It’s so awe-inspiring to hear thousands engaged in praise to the same God, it’s almost tear-jerking awesome.