J.J. Abrams, mystery, and worship

January 30, 2008

Last week Patti and I checked out Cloverfield, and really enjoyed it– a good, intense action/sci-fi along the lines of The Mist and War of the Words. It’s no secret that I’m a huge fan of Cloverfield’s producer, J.J. Abrams, and his other work- LOST returning tomorrow has my head about to explode with anticipation. I’ve always appreciated his capacity for mystery in his shows; even Alias, a spy/action tale, had an underlying current of Indiana Jones-esque mystical archeology.

Recently via a Lost fan podcast I became aware of J.J. Abram’s talk at a TED (Technology, Entertainment, Design) conference. In it, he describes part of his approach to mystery, and it got me thinking about how important mystery is to my personal faith, and in a broader sense, what mystery means to me as a worship leader. (I highly recommend watching the TED discussion– whether you’re a fan of Abrams or not, it is an enlightening twenty minutes.)

Cloverfield, of course, isn’t a good movie because something unknown is destroying a city– there are lots of movies like that. It is a good movie because the entire film is presented through a limited perspective, that of one camera, one tape, carried by one of the characters we get to know over the course of the film. Through that limited perspective, we gain just enough information to compel us forward in the story. A master storyteller paces revelation, to the delight of the listener.

Obviously, God is mysterious- “Who has known the mind of the Lord? Or who has been his counselor? (Romans 11:34)” It seems for many this is the breaking point of faith- where reason and belief clash. But for me the mystery of God fuels my pursuit of Him, drawing me closer rather than pushing away. Granted, I can get frustrated at times. My limited perspective occasionally gets claustrophobic, and I get impatient for answers to many questions in life– but I appreciate God’s mystery just like I appreciate J.J. Abrams’ storytelling. Yes, it was one long summer waiting to see what was in that stinking hatch, but I knew the story would be told well, based on what I had experienced in LOST’s first season. In the same way, I look into the mystery of God and anticipate the next truth I will learn about Him, based on what’s He’s revealed so far… I know He will tell my story well, because He loves me more than I can understand. As Dietrich Bonhoeffer wrote in Ethics, “Behold God become human, the unfathomable mystery of the love of God for the world.”

I find that worship leading is an interesting dichotomy: Accessibility is a major goal, as we want our church communities to understand the worship time and the meaning of the elements in our gatherings. At the same time, through those elements,we invite people dive into and celebrate the deep mystery of God.

Posted in Worship Leadership