Sing, O barren one! The way forward is through meekness in weakness.

I was reminded again today, as I was teaching my voice class, of the preciousness of poverty and the wisdom of worship and how they are linked together. As a singer, I desire to pour out my soul to the Lord in worship and feel the power of what I am doing before Him. I want to show my love in extravagance and perfect praise, but for the most part, that is not the case. The Lord Himself prevents it! 
Paul says in 1 Cor. 1 that "not many wise according to the flesh, not many mighty, not many noble, are called. But God has chosen the foolish things of the world to put to shame the wise, and God has chosen the weak things of the world to put to shame the things which are mighty; and the base things of the world and the things which are despised God has chosen, and the things which are not, to bring to nothing the things that are, [so] that no flesh should glory in His presence" (v. 26-29). 
The Lord has called us to walk out this life - even our life of worship - in weakness. This is an abomination to our flesh! Even in the place of worship, where I am exalting the Holy One and magnifying His name, my heart in its immaturity still seeks its own praise. "Do it in weakness," He says. "Oh, You can't mean it! That's not lovely at all," I say within my soul, but the Lord has a habit of taking our weakness, mere ashes, and turning it into a thing of beauty. We forget that He is playing 10-dimensional chess - that even in the midst of something as innocent and selfless as worship, He is exposing and revealing our hearts and showing us what lies just beneath the surface - pride.
"Sing, O barren one" (Isaiah 54:1)! The command to sing in the midst of barrenness is such wisdom! Spiritually speaking, when we can take courage enough to look within our own soul, see what is lacking, and go on to declare that we are, in fact, poor, we are at the very precipice of not only wisdom but encounter! 
At the outset of His ministry, Jesus clearly defines the entryway into intimacy with God - poverty. "Blessed are the poor," He says. And if you have ever stared honestly at your soul and seen its barrenness, you would know that the next Beatitude, or heart attitude, directly follows - mourning. When you see the state of your soul as below par or less than desirable, it is a painful reality. Therefore, weeping ensues. But take heart, O soul! This is the pathway unto being filled with all the fullness of God! Those who are poor in spirit (which would exclude none in humanity!) and recognize their lowly state, mourn their condition, and those who mourn become meek. Hunger can then reside within that humble heart, and spiritual hunger is a gift from God alone! A heart that is hungry for God will not be satisfied by anything less, and His promise is that He will fill the hungry heart. Therefore, wait, I say, wait upon the Lord, and He will strengthen your heart (Ps. 27).


Poverty --> mourning --> humility --> hunger --> infilling


So sing, O barren one! Consider the state of your soul, and cry out to God! Don't let barrenness cause you to feel shame, which will only keep you silent. He is the Humble One Himself and is not repulsed by your poverty! He will not look away waiting for a more polished offering. Just sing! If you lack language and don't even know what to pray, lean into the Holy Spirit's unutterable groans (Rom. 8) and know that He will meet you there. A humble and contrite heart is all that He requires of you. It is the offering for which His eyes are searching throughout the earth. The strength you may offer Him does not move His heart. All of your wealth or worldly wisdom does not catch His attention, but the very thing that you may despise is the very thing that moves the heart of heaven because that is the very heart that has a capacity for Him. The only way forward is through meekness in weakness, so lift up your voice and sing!