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Reflection on Body of Praise

Last night, I finished the book A Body of Praise, and reflecting on my reading of it, I did not expect this book to be so rich and full of concepts about worship I hadn’t really considered before. This book has shown me that theology is not all in our mind or even our heart. Worship, to fulfill our primary calling to be worshipers, is to engage our whole physical body, because that’s how God made us and what he delights in. It is like watching your young child perform in their kindergarten choir, you are delighted in them if they just stand and sing because they’re your child and you love them. But, what moves your heart more, what is more joyful, is when your child jumps, dances, and claps along to the music! It may not be perfectly in rhythm, it may look awkward, or maybe it is impressively coordinated. Either way,  you are captivated by this kind of joy and excitement, and it leaves you saying, “wow, I love this kid!” But, it’s not only the parent who experiences delight in this performance, but the child also feels the delight of the audience, especially when they find the familiar eyes of their parents in the crowd. When they lock eyes with you, their expression only increases. Maybe the child jumps higher, claps louder, or begins to cry, something physical happens when they see the eyes of their parents. This is what I imagine it is like for God when we, his kids, engage our physical bodies in worship. He sees us as his children performing in their first choir performance, and we are his children who delight in his gaze!

I appreciate how this book considered the whole Church Body when considering our individual bodies in worship. Whether it was in our cultural or social bodies, the disabled bodies, the unseen bodies, spontaneous movements, or intentional movements, Taylor really aimed to have a holistic perspective towards our bodies. He offered points of view that many just leave to be assumed, showing that the overlooked areas of worship are still valuable. While this book was not intended to prescribe solutions to our churches today, it did open my eyes to see where worship experiences I have been a part of have been lacking or doing things well. I would highly recommend this book to any church leader, especially those who are looking to cultivate a culture of worship!

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