At the end of worship the bulletin read: “The service begins now.” That’s a clever play on two different meanings of the word “service.” I pondered this peculiarity. Why should service mean an act of worship? The Oxford English Dictionary has 38 definitions for the word service. It notes that it has been used to mean worship at least since the time Chaucer in 1374, but that doesn’t answer why it’s used that way. Curiously, something similar happens in German where the word Dienst (service ) appears in Gottesdienst (divine service or worship).

I suspect the connection between service and worship is ancient. The technical name for the order of worship that we use is a liturgy which comes from the Greek word leitourgia, “work of the people.” Worship is our work of serving God, but it’s only part of the service. We also serve God by serving others. The two kinds of service are connected.

It troubles me that some want to separate the two aspects of service. Some diminish the worship aspect. In the church where I grew up, the people who counted the offering never participated in worship except to receive communion once a month. Weird. Others want there to be worship, but regard service to neighbor as an unnecessary frill only for those who like “that sort of thing.” Disappointing.

A healthy Christian life needs both parts of service–worship of God and care for others. It’s worth checking on our spiritual health to see if we have that balance in our own lives–worship AND service.

Read Psalm 100 and remember: God loves YOU unconditionally.

Wayne