More and more coming to our church is like being in a Jack in the box! Some of you remember the children’s toy that outwardly consists of a box with a crank. When the crank is turned, it played a melody. At the end of the tune there was a “surprise”: the lid pops open and a figure, usually a clown or jester, pops out of the box.

The praise team has to come out and crank us up before we can jump up to our feet and give God praise for all He has done. What has happened to the days when all we had to do was just think about the goodness of the Lord and ALL He has done for us and praise would erupt throughout our churches like somebody just set off fireworks!

Psalm 100:4, “Enter his gates with thanksgiving and his courts with praise; give thanks to him and praise his name”.

It used to be that no one had to prompt us to look at the person next to us and give him or her a hug and say, “I’m glad you’re here”. We used to come ready and excited just to be in His house of Worship, that the hugging and being glad to see each other was just a normal reaction of genuine love. Now we can sit beside a person in our churches and look through them like glass as though they were not there. In the last days,

Matthew 24:12 tells us, “Because of the increase of wickedness, the love of most will grow cold”.

As we can see scripture does not lie.

What happened to humility and servanthood being done because it was Christ Like behavior? Not used as a cover up so people wouldn’t think you’re the kind of person that seeks gratitude and praise for what you do for others? When can we truly worship without agendas, without running each other down, without being jealous of someone’s blessings, or gossiping about someone else’s misfortune?

One day we won’t need to be cranked to sing, to stand, to wave our hands, to speak to the person beside us or to worship. One day we will walk in the doors of our churches filled with His Holy presence, excited about being around God’s people and in expectation of the souls that will come to Christ that day. Sunday will not be the same but we will have a genuine life of worship and praise every day. Why? Just because we have kept our prayer life on point, our intimate time with the Lord consistent, our time off the phone and hands off the remote in order to hear a word from the Lord! No longer will we need to be primed to worship because the real worship experience will happen before we leave our homes to come to church. The real worship happened all week long. Acceleration will occur while in our cars listening to our gospel music. By the time we reach the doors of the church our praise is ready to erupt before the first prayer is prayed or the first song sung.

Our Holy Ghost cap has already popped and the fresh anointing of the spirit is already like popcorn in His house. We should all be like Jeremiah who said, “It’s just like FIRE shut up in my bones.”

(Jeremiah 20:9 NIV) But if I say, “I will not mention his word or speak anymore in his name,” his word is in my heart like a fire, a fire shut up in my bones. I am weary of holding it in; indeed, I cannot.

It cannot be contained, just overflowing… No Need for Jack-in-the-box except to enhance what is already spilling over in us.

The next time we come to our churches and before we can get out of our cars let’s be bold and praise Him in the parking lot! Let Pentecost erupt there and the church will have to come where YOU are because that’s where HE has chosen to show up!