This is worship?

Galatians 6:7 (NASB)

7 Do not be deceived, God is not mocked; for whatever a man sows, this he will also reap.
    

    Yesterday I heard a story of a man who mocked a man of God who was prophesying and paid with his life.  When I hear stories like this, I always check myself.  I do not want to mock God, knowingly or unknowingly.  I thought about it.  I prayed about.  I spilled my thoughts to God and I listened for His words.  To be honest, I am sad and I am angry. 
     A couple years ago when I was first chasing after Jesus, I watched a local church on line.  One thing that bothered me every time I tuned into that service was the people getting up to get coffee, use the rest room, and/or whatever else they were doing.  I thought it was a total disrespect to the pastor.  Over time I have accepted that this is the church, but this morning I have a whole new anger.  If we read what the church in Acts looks like and compare it to the church today, I have questions.  Where is the verse that says, get the biggest building you can find?  I can't find a verse on making the Church comfortable or providing coffee, but these aren't even the issues God wants to talk about this morning.  No, this morning He wants to talk about our worship.  I have been in a place of worship where his presence is so strong that people are changed just being in the room, so I know what it can be.  But when a church allows 17 minutes for what they call worship and there are people getting coffee, talking and texting the word mockery comes to mind.
     I can understand a person who does not know God or has not yet realized the greatness of His presence, moving around during worship, but shouldn't the Lord be invited in such a way that people realize what worship is.  I think the church is really missing it in the area of explaining worship, communion, and God, among other things.  Maybe the Church doesn't really know what it is to be in His presence.  We claim to know this awesome being, the Creator of every thing that exists, who gave us our very breath and we say we gather to worship Him, but is that what we are really doing?  When the staff member is in the back of the room, whispering, "I knew they would love this song?"  Is it really about God?  Is the Holy Spirit really leading the worship team?  If He is, He should get the glory for what happens there.  He should get the credit for the song that moved people closer to Him.
     If we are truly following God, what we have to lose should never enter our mind.  What people think should not ever be a concern greater than our concern over what God thinks.  The same God that we are inviting into the church building so that we can spend 12 minutes worshipping Him, told Moses to take off his shoes, he was on Holy ground.  Do we have to audibly hear His voice to realize we are in His presence?  We invited Him.  Do any of us understand who we are talking about?  As much intimate, amazing, time as I have spent conversing with Jesus, the Holy Spirit and God, I would probably still wet myself if He spoke to me audibly.  Why?  Does that break down some barrier between us.  Great is the faith of those who do not see and I have to believe hearing goes right along with that.  To continue to have faith when we believe we have heard God and realize we didn't or didn't hear Him correctly, I admit is tough, but who do we think we are believing in?  Have we become so callous, desensitized, or distant from the God we read about in the bible that we don't fall on our faces when we feel His presence in the room, even after we invited Him? 
     There is a man I have been watching for the last three years.  I value his words above many other leaders.  Why?  Because he falls on his face during worship.  He admits when he may have heard God wrong.  The awe of being in God's  presence is all over this man.  He recently said that he has been in ministry for several years and the longer he is doing this the less he knows.  I love that about him.  He is not a know it all and is in total awe of the one who does know it all.  This is the kind of leader, this is a leader, so many people respect.
     It's not surprising that we would be so disrespectful of God that we would invite Him into our church building so that we could worship Him and then be distracted by a million other things.  How many times have we invited another person for coffee or dinner and then spent the whole time talking on our phone or answering text messages.  We are a disrespectful society.  Who do you think is behind that instant craving for a cup of coffee during the allotted time for worship?  Our spouse?  Our flesh?  The enemy?  Just being limited in the amount of time we worship is not God. 
     We talk about unity, but where have we seen the greatest unity, the deepest love for others?  I can tell you where I have seen it: at a church with unlimited worship.  Worship can go on for an hour or more.  Worship led by the Holy Spirit lasts longer than the message given by the pastor who heard it from the holy Spirit.  The hugs and talk after a service like that is so different than the small shallow talk I have seen at other churches.  People pray for each other, talk about their deep issues and linger longer, wanting to stay in the atmosphere that was created by inviting God and allowing Him to lead.  Honestly, maybe I shouldn't be so hard on the worship time coffee drinker.  He isn't actually walking away from God's presence if God isn't there.


1 Peter 1:15-16New American Standard Bible (NASB)

15 but [a]like the Holy One who called you, [b]be holy yourselves also in all your behavior; 16 because it is written, “You shall be holy, for I am holy.”