First and Third World Fears & Authentic Worship

One Sunday I was preaching on Psalm 27. It is a remarkable psalm of hope for God’s- deliverance from fear for those who have faced tough times. With the same candor found in many psalms, this one vividly describes being afraid and finding God’s comfort.

I’m sure it was at least a “nice sermon,” maybe even a fairly good one.

Later that week I attended a dinner sponsored by the International Justice Mission, a Christian human rights organization that seeks justice for people facing various forms of oppression. Elisabeth, a beautiful seventeen-year-old Christian girl from Southeast…