So recently I went to San Antonio for vacation with my family. My wife and I cruised up to stay a night there, not realizing that you should probably have a hotel reservation if you’re driving up there on a Saturday. We did end up finding a place to stay…in Austin.
Anyhow, we ate on the Riverwalk…as everyone should when visiting. Afterwards, we began our quest for a place we could sit and relax for the rest of the night. After spending an incredible night at Pat O’Brien’s in New Orleans 6 years ago, we have longed to see another great dueling piano show.
So we swung by Pat O’Briens on the Riverwalk to see if they had the show. They did…but oh, so not New Orleans. Then Mel saw an ad for a place called Howl at the Moon. We went to the tourist center (across from the Alamo) to find out more about this other dueling piano show. They ended up telling us where it was and gave us free tickets if we went before 10 p.m.
Well, it was good we got there before 10 because we were able to actually get a chair! That placed filled up in no time and the show was on. From Jesse’s Girl (for my wife) to Piano Man (for me), we spent the night singing some of our favorite tunes along with about 200 other patrons. These musicians were pretty stinking amazing!
Upon leaving, we realized just how popular this place was. When we arrived, we walked right in and to our seat…as we exited, there was a line of about 100 people that wrapped around the block. Wow.
So, this little story serves to preface my point…we saw all kinds of worship that night! Now most of the worship was directed to inappropriate places, but it was worship indeed.
The people worshiped the boos that made their pain go away. They worshiped the song. There was worship directed towards the various military branches of our armed forces (not that I don’t value what they do…please don’t misunderstand me here). Some worshiped sports teams and colleges. Others worshiped half dressed women who could “shake it.”
Everyone was captivated by something…myself included. I was captivated by the sheer musicianship of these people onstage, wondering why they don’t use it for the kingdom.
Why do we settle? Why are we so prone to worship things that have no eternal value and end up leaving us wanting more? Why are we more captivated by people than we are by the person of Jesus Christ?
CS Lewis says it with even more eloquence and conviction:
"Indeed, if we consider the unblushing promises of reward and the staggering nature of the rewards promised in the Gospels, it would seem that Our Lord finds our desires not too strong, but too weak. We are half-hearted creatures, fooling about with drink and sex and ambition when infinite joy is offered us, like an ignorant child who wants to go on making mud pies in a slum because he cannot imagine what is meant by the offer of a holiday at the sea. We are far too easily pleased."
Anyhow, we ate on the Riverwalk…as everyone should when visiting. Afterwards, we began our quest for a place we could sit and relax for the rest of the night. After spending an incredible night at Pat O’Brien’s in New Orleans 6 years ago, we have longed to see another great dueling piano show.
So we swung by Pat O’Briens on the Riverwalk to see if they had the show. They did…but oh, so not New Orleans. Then Mel saw an ad for a place called Howl at the Moon. We went to the tourist center (across from the Alamo) to find out more about this other dueling piano show. They ended up telling us where it was and gave us free tickets if we went before 10 p.m.
Well, it was good we got there before 10 because we were able to actually get a chair! That placed filled up in no time and the show was on. From Jesse’s Girl (for my wife) to Piano Man (for me), we spent the night singing some of our favorite tunes along with about 200 other patrons. These musicians were pretty stinking amazing!
Upon leaving, we realized just how popular this place was. When we arrived, we walked right in and to our seat…as we exited, there was a line of about 100 people that wrapped around the block. Wow.
So, this little story serves to preface my point…we saw all kinds of worship that night! Now most of the worship was directed to inappropriate places, but it was worship indeed.
The people worshiped the boos that made their pain go away. They worshiped the song. There was worship directed towards the various military branches of our armed forces (not that I don’t value what they do…please don’t misunderstand me here). Some worshiped sports teams and colleges. Others worshiped half dressed women who could “shake it.”
Everyone was captivated by something…myself included. I was captivated by the sheer musicianship of these people onstage, wondering why they don’t use it for the kingdom.
Why do we settle? Why are we so prone to worship things that have no eternal value and end up leaving us wanting more? Why are we more captivated by people than we are by the person of Jesus Christ?
CS Lewis says it with even more eloquence and conviction:
"Indeed, if we consider the unblushing promises of reward and the staggering nature of the rewards promised in the Gospels, it would seem that Our Lord finds our desires not too strong, but too weak. We are half-hearted creatures, fooling about with drink and sex and ambition when infinite joy is offered us, like an ignorant child who wants to go on making mud pies in a slum because he cannot imagine what is meant by the offer of a holiday at the sea. We are far too easily pleased."
This entry of yours Tim, has such great depth to it. I agree, if the world could do "all" of what they do for Christ, they'd be "full" rather than searching and lonely. Could you imagine what our world could be like?! Wow! Great thoughts!
ReplyDeleteKathryn
Hi, I came across your blog by accident. My husband has worked for Howl at the Moon for 15 years, all over the country. You would be surprised by how many of the musicians are using their gifts for God. Howl is just a job, a way to pay the bills, for many there. Many of the musicians are music performers/directors for there church. My husband plays at our church, on occasion, and has written many songs to the glory of J.C. Here is a link to a couple of them: http://www.kenjameson.com/music-group-13.html
ReplyDeleteUnfortunately, we live in a secular world and it is not always possible to make a living as we would prefer. It's what is in your heart that matters and how you express it. God Bless.
Shannon