There are certain songs that settle in your heart and stay there for a while, convicting and encouraging you. Jimmy Needham’s song “Clear the Stage” is one of them.

The chorus holds the premise–worship is more than singing. It’s a lifestyle, and it requires complete devotion:

You can sing all you want to
And still get it wrong;
worship is more than a song

The second verse comes along and draws me in even more:

Take a break from all the plans that you have made
And sit at home alone and wait for God to whisper
Beg Him please to open up His mouth and speak
And pray for real upon your knees until they blister
Shine the light on every corner of your life
Until the pride and lust and lies are in the open
Then read the Word and put to test the things you’ve heard
Until your heart and soul are stirred and rocked and broken

Then comes the bridge of the song when Needham sings about a subject I don’t hear often in Christian music:

Any thing I put before my God is an idol
Any thing I want with all my heart is an idol
Any thing I can’t stop thinking of is an idol
Any thing that I give all my love is an idol

We might mock the idolatry of ancient days–how men carved the images they worshiped. But idols aren’t just tangible things. Most of the time they’re not so blatant.

An idol can be anything. Even a good thing that we cherish too much.

We must not worship something that’s not even worth it
Clear the stage, make some space for the One who deserves it

Hard words, Jimmy. But I need them. We all do.

What’s a worship song that’s spoken to you lately?