The Paradox of Worship

"The paradox of worship is this: we perform these acts of worship, but they are not actually for us. We do these things for God, and then we are the ones who are changed.

We offer our songs of praise, and we are the ones who are moved to joy. We offer our thanksgivings, and we are the ones who are blessed by the,. We offer the ancient prayers of the psalms, and we are the ones who begin to hear "the prayer of God that rises in our hearts," as my friend Father Edward Farrell says. We offer the gifts of bread and wine in the Eucharist, and we are the ones who are fed and strengthened.

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There is another paradox that I have noticed about us and our life with God. Very often our prayers are for us as well. We spend a great deal of time and energy telling God all of the things we profess to believe that God always knows and is already working on in our behalf, in ways far better than we can desire or pray for, as the old prayer says it. Those prayers are for us. The prayer of office is for God."

In Constant Prayer Robert Benson