God's Glory, Our Growth

Daniel Radmacher makes some good points about God's presence and worship:

While worship is about God's glory, it is, however, also about our transformation. God could reveal Himself in a glory cloud every time we worship, just as He did with the Israelites, and that would certainly be a thrilling experience. However, I question whether it would create lasting spiritual growth in our lives. The fiery pillar never seemed to impact deeply the hearts of the Hebrews wandering in the wilderness. Would we respond differently? We are probably far more interested in God revealing Himself in a sensational way than He is. Indeed, our desire for His "manifest presence" in worship might have more to do with our appetite for experience than with His glory or our growth. [Emphasis mine.]

Still, I can't believe that it is wrong for us to desire God to manifest Himself in our worship. Perhaps we are simply using the wrong yardstick to measure His presence, expecting feelings of exaltation as the only proof or residue of His genuine activity. For myself, I find that the work of the Spirit in my worship is as often about convicting me of sin as it is wowing me with wonder.