WORSHIP NOTES
I’m excited to start this bi-monthly blog and share my heart, and hopefully God’s heart on all things that have to do with WORSHIP. I hope to bring in other pastors and members of our church to share their thoughts and heart with you as we explore what WORSHIP means in the life of a believer.
Called To Worship
We were CALLED to worship.
I remember when I was young, my brothers and sister spent an enormous amount of time playing in the woods around my parents house. Our creativity would run wild as we wondered through nature, not fully realizing the blessing we had to grow up in such a beautiful place. One of the most fun things I remember us doing was making forts out of logs and sticks and pretending to have wars against each other. Now, as young kids this type of playing was sure to end in disaster and conflict, as it did many times.
I remember specifically the one time I got upset at my older brother not “following the rules” as if there were any to start with, and storming off into the woods in anger. After a while of trekking through the couple of acres of forest my parents owned, I came the the realization that I was lost. Nothing around me was familiar and I remember feeling frightened and alone. Through my young tears and sobs I began to call out the only name I new had any hope of saving me….
“MOM!!……MOM!!!” I cried over and over.
I waited…
I screamed, “MOM!!” again.
I listened…
Through my tears and cries I faintly heard a sound of a whistle. This is what my mom would do to call us in for lunch or dinner when we were playing outside. It was a beautiful sound on that day! Slowly I regained my bearings and started to walk towards the sound of my mom’s whistle until eventually I was back at the house and safe again.
Like me lost in the woods, we were all lost before Christ called us home. I can imagine that we all have a memory or can remember how He called us from darkness into light. Maybe you have lost His voice. Maybe you can’t remember what it sounds like, what it feels like to be called by Him. We all need to be listening to His calling that leads us into worship and calls us to His will. None of us are exempt from this task.
Here’s the WONDERFUL thing about God…
He NEVER stops calling us to worship Him. That same voice, that same “whistle” is always calling us deeper into a worshipful relationship with Him. My question to you is, have you lost that calling? Do you recognize it from the day to day tasks you are involved in? Are we taking time to quite ourselves before Him and to simply listen.
Daily Challenge:
- Go somewhere where you can quiet your heart, soul and mind before God.
- Read through Psalm 23 and get to know your shepherd who beckons and leads you.
- Remember when He called you from darkness into light, and focus on His relationship with you today.
- Listen for his still small voice that beckons you to worship (1 Kings 19:11-13). He is calling you today!
- Then WORSHIP your living Savior.
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Created To Worship
We are CREATED to worship.
Imagine yourself in this situation: It’s Palm Sunday and you are watching Jesus enter into Jerusalem on a donkey. You’re urged to take off your cloak and spread it across the road as a pathway for the King. Suddenly you hear the crowd joyfully praise God as they reflect on all of the wonderful works of healing Christ has displayed over the past few years. They shout out,
“Blessed is the King who comes in the name of the Lord!”
“Peace in heaven and glory in the highest!”
The Pharisees in the crowd, thinking this is blasphemy, confront Jesus and demand Him to rebuke His disciples.
Jesus’ answer is profound;
“I tell you, if they remain silent, the very stones will cry out.”
Did you know that God not only created us to worship Himself, but all of creation as well!
“All the earth bows down to You” – Psalm 66
“The heavens declare the glory of God, and the sky above proclaims his handiwork” – Psalm 19
And I heard every creature in heaven and on earth and under the earth and in the sea, and all that is in them, saying, “To him who sits on the throne and to the Lamb be blessing and honor and glory and might forever and ever!” – Revelation 5
Now, I say all this to make the simple point that, if the rocks were created to worship God, certainly we were created to worship God at a much higher standard! Jesus says that He desires worshippers who worship in spirit and truth. Paul even states that our worship is to be lived out as a “living sacrifice” to God, meaning that all we say and do is to be done as sacrificial praise, much like in the old testament.
MIND BLOWN! This means that whatever we do (Col 3:23) including the most seemingly insignificant task to the most important thing you can think of doing is to be done with a heart and attitude of humble worship to our Lord. This not only gives honor to our God, but it gives VALUE and PURPOSE to everything we do as Christians.
If you are discouraged washing dishes or cleaning the house, REMEMBER you are doing those things as a living sacrifice of worship to God. If you are bored mowing the lawn or changing the oil in the car, REMEMBER you are doing those things as worship! I promise if you are faithful in worshiping God, as we were created to do, in the small things and not waiting to worship Him with the “big” stuff, your attitude, heart, mind and life will change forever! This is what He promises (Matt 11:28) that if we are burdened, we can come and sit at his feet and worship, and he will give us peace!
WE WERE MADE FOR IT!
The next time you find yourself stressed out, frustrated at life’s circumstances, or dulled by the seemingly mundane things of life, ask yourself, “how am I worshiping God right now?”
WE WERE MADE FOR IT!
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