Our friend SlimJim asked for this one, God Is Good, sung by Regina Belle.
I was once told tfhat our church service, that day, would be in the style of “an old-time camp meeting.” So I innocently shouted “Amen, hallelujah!” as soon as the preacher read a verse–and of course I was the only one in the building to have done that. You could’ve heard a pin drop. Everybody stared at me as if I’d sprouted elephant ears. How I wished I could simply disappear!
Live and learn, I guess…
You were right and they were wrong. The Lord loved you for it.
Well, ordinarily a Dutch Reformed Church service is very staid and orderly. I must have totally misunderstood what they meant by an old-time camp meeting.
No, I don’t think you were the one who misunderstood. We are not constrained to sit like wooden puppets in a church service. We are to allow ourselves to be directed by the Holy Spirit of God. I’m not saying we should go nuts and make it like a rock concert, but we are not to be limited by the rules of man either.
“Let all things be done decently and in order.” –Paul
I loved the video God Is Good, sung by Regina Belle. I am not a stranger to church services or singing like that, within congregations made up of mostly black members, or congregations of mostly white. One time, our mostly white congregation, invited a mostly black choir to sing with our choir (unrehearsed). As both choirs went to the platform to sing, and get organized, the choir director said to the members of the black choir, “When you sway, don’t forget to grab the arm of our choir members next to you, so you all sway in harmony.” Boy, did that bring on the laughter. Even unrehearsed, they sang really well together. What a blessing that service was.
“Let all things be done decently and in order.” –Paul, yes, I agree. But consider how David worshiped the Lord, as well as the Children of Israel when the ark of the LORD was carried to Jerusalem. “And David danced before the LORD with all his might; and David was girded with a linen ephod. So David and all the house of Israel brought up the ark of the LORD with shouting, and with the sound of the trumpet” (II Samuel 6:14-15).
“danced with all his might…all the house of Israel-with shouting…the sound of the trumpet,” sounds like a bit of chaos and tumult… and a bit like many church services I have attended (I have seen it all, jumping, shouting, running, great weeping, and so much more). So, it seems that great joy, like on game shows when people win a big prize, they shout, jump and holler, and at times run around, would be in order in a church service when it happens.
Thank you for this song!!!!
Also I have a similar experience you had when I first got saved it was mainly among charismatics and then to go to a fundamentalist church was a shock when I said “Amen!”
Dutch Reformed just didn’t do a lot of hallelujahing.
Oh wow yeah I bet!