FORMS OF WORSHIP
We get no credit for acting like a fool; the art of praise is not to out-emote others, to raise our hands higher, to dance with more reckless abandon, to roll our eyes or clap our hands. The art is to get our eyes off ourselves and onto God so that we do not know or care how we look. This makes us vulnerable in a way that making a religious spectacle of ourselves cannot. We can be extremely aware of our performance in trying to praise. We can be, in effect, praising God for the sake of our neighbor, to make an impression on him. David did not do that. He did not argue with Michal over whether his dance was appropriate. He simply answered, “It was before the LORD.” If we learn to focus on him, we can respond to God — without shyness, and without showing off. From Knowing the Face of God, by Tim Stafford, pg. 207
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