Saturday, April 4, 2009

Worship

Although the Bible has much to say about worship, the most important aspect about it is that one ought to worship. This is done both corporately in groups as well as individually. When we recognize the majesty and power of our eternal God as well as His incredible attributes – love we cannot even comprehend, mercy, grace, justice, and we could go on, but when we see God for who He really is, it is natural that we worship Him. For some, this means falling prostrate before Him and others may dance as David did, while still others may not be moved physically, but within their hearts they may be crying out for a closer walk. Since we are all different, the Bible does not demand any one type of worship, and therefore it wrong for us to look down our noses at the way our brothers and sisters worship, simply because it is not the way we do so. Having said that, if someone worships contrary to the Word of God, we cannot condone such worship. For instance, if someone were to dance lewdly, causing others to be tempted with wrong thoughts, it would be wrong. For our discussion I am referring to those, who out of pure love for God, desire to worship Him.

First let us look at individual worship. Every child of God ought to spend some part of each day in prayer. Often this is just a quick time of listing those requests that we want God to answer. If that is all there is to your prayer life, may I suggest there can be much more. As an initial part of your prayer time, spend it in adoration of God, reflecting on His attributes, His power, or His goodness, thanking Him for all He has done. If you can get on your knees, all the better. And instead of folding your hands, try lifting your hands in supplication to God. The apostle Paul suggested this in I Tim. 2:8. The whole prayer time should be a time of communion with you and your God, drawing you closer to Him. Pray when it is convenient for you, but set aside a sufficient amount of time. This is a holy time, and we don’t want to rush it. It should also be a time when we have little to distract us, a quiet time.

An important part of our Christian walk is our fellowship with other believers. And part of our worship together has to do with music. For some music can be very divisive. And there was a time when I was dead set against what is known as Christian Contemporary Music. I had been taught it was wrong, the beat was bad, and it just plain was not pleasing to God. Recently I have come to the conclusion that CCM is not necessarily bad, at least not as a whole. The lyrics have to be considered. And there are some praise choruses that really bless my soul. I can’t sing worth beans, but I take part with my soul, and can get emotionally charged. When a particular part of a song is especially moving, I will lift my hand in praise to my God. Although some people may find this a little extreme, don’t deny me the ability to worship God in a way I believe pleases Him. The song service to not a time to be an observer - participate! And let God move in your heart.
I say this because it has only been in the past couple of years that I have worshipped in this way, but I feel so liberated and drawn close to my Savior. I would really appreciate any comments on this subject. And if any of you find this to be an alien subject, please let me know. We need to talk

1 comment:

  1. I think this was a great subject. I whole-heartedly agree with you on this!!!
    Elizabeth

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