Playing at Prayer!

Watching men at play can be a good measure of men at prayer.  Religion being the universally played game today, this ought not to surprise anyone.  The games that men play are governed by rules, albeit arbitrary ones, but rules nonetheless.  Players change teams and end up playing against their old team-mates. And on and on it goes.  But it's only a game!

If this were to be confined to the playing field, all would be fine.  But also, we see the same mental outlook firmly established within the church and its sanctuary.  People come and go, and nothing much changes.  They do their bit automatically - they stand to sing and maybe pray, they sit to listen, they lift their Bible to follow the Scripture reading - maybe!  They reach into their pockets or handbags to bring out their collection, and as soon as the benediction is pronounced, they make a bee-line for the door to get home to get the dinner?

Sound familiar!  Oh, yes, the church has its rules for the playing of the game called 'pious words.'  'Nice' exchanges are passed each Lord's day; the right things are said to each other; the minister's sermon and its length may be criticised; and so on.  But this is part of the game!  This is how it is played in church.

Then where you find a minister who is 'doing the business' in God's kingdom, he is talked about and described as "a troubler in Israel," someone who does not have a good way with people, who has a personality problem, who is not a good team player, does not know how to handle people.  But this is all part of the critics religious game.

Yet, and here's the disappointing thing: many of these 'game players' within the church are no different in life and character from the many who take no interest in religion whatsoever.  It is one massive word game, or word puzzle - and no more.  They say words, they sing words, they repeat words, they pray words, they preach words.

I remember one verse of a poem I heard many years ago, and goes something like this:

I may as well bow down and worship gods of stone;
as offer to the living God a prayer of words alone.

Yet how often this is done - all part of the game!

Certainly, ours is a religion of the Word, but it is not, and should never be, a religion of words alone.

How would you describe YOUR religion?