heart. But others are in need of more,
and the preceding chapter tries to speak to this need. Whatever the
means used, the important thing is that we spiritually awake and come
alive during the meeting for worship even more than at other times.

WHO SHOULD SPEAK IN THE MEETING FOR WORSHIP? Anyone who is genuinely
moved to. Age has nothing to do with it, though older people may be more
able because of longer practice. Education has nothing to do with it,
though education may facilitate verbal expression. The essential matter
is the inward prompting, under God's guidance. The Book of Discipline
says, "Our conviction is that the Spirit of God is in all, and that
vocal utterance comes when this Spirit works within us. The varying
needs of a meeting can be best supplied by different personalities, and
a meeting is enriched by the sharing of any living experience of God."

WHAT ARE WE TO DO IF WE FEEL GENUINELY MOVED TO SPEAK BUT ARE INHIBITED
BY THE FEAR OF NOT EXPRESSING OURSELVES WELL? Attend to what you have to
say. Put your mind on that, and take it off yourself. Do not be
concerned that your speech may be halting and imperfect. Do not compare
yourself with others, thinking that they speak fluently, you poorly. Be
concerned to communicate. Summon up your courage and break the ice. Try.
If you can once overcome an inhibition, you have broken its hold. It
will still be there, but you can overcome it more readily the next time.
Keep trying.

It is true that some people seem born with the facility to speak, but it
is also true that the ability, like other abilities, is developed by
practice. Most of those who speak well now, began with embarrassment,
self-consciousness, and an imperfect command of words. Friends can be
counted on to understand if at first your thoughts and feelings are not
expressed as well as they might be. They will attend more to what you
are trying to say than to how you say it. Here again the Book of
Discipline gives wise counsel. "One who is timid or unaccustomed to
speak should have faith that God will strengthen him to give his
message."

WHEN SHOULD WE SPEAK IN THE MEETING FOR WORSHIP? Whenever we are moved
to. We may be moved to speak near the beginning, midway, or towards the
end. The important thing is not the time but the moving. However, as
Rufus Jones once pointed out, it sometimes helps if, once we are really
settled, something is said that lifts the spirit, that raises us above
our world