Worship Blog 101

Worship is the thing we do.
Worship defines who we are.
Worship depicts the place (of our heart) - where we are.

Bottom line: Worship is a posture of the heart. A decision made. A choice to exalt & lift His name on high.


Okay, let's get into is a little bit; we worship because we were made to worship. God, who created the heavens & the earth did make us in His image which is great, but along with that He gave us one powerful & yet amazing weapon. The ability to worship.

The key here is that we begin to look like what we worship. Which is why, when believers worship Him. Then we begin to be like him. NOT be Him, be like Him. The temptation is - sometimes, even though we don't realize it, to want to be worshiped. Just like it happened to the devil. The problem with the devil was that he was a murderer from the get go. So essentially, his future was shot from the start.

And see, the beautiful part of our story is that our future is NOT shot. Our future is bright! God, making us in His image. He has given us the ability to choose. We choose to worship Him. No matter what. That's a choice that no one, not even the evil can take away. We may lose our houses or our health, we may lose those nearest to us; but somehow we cannot ever lose the ability to choose to worship our creator.

Two main ways of how real worship is done.

One: In Spirit.
Two: In Truth.

One main reason for our inspiration.

A heart of thankfulness. Recognizing what He has done. Salvation He fills us with Power, He gives us His Grace, His Faith. He fills us with His Spirit. He gives us all that we need. Therefore we bow & lift our hearts in song & worship Him. When we begin to get to know Him more, a desire to worship Him will grow. You cannot worship what you don't know. Get to know Him. 

For me, I am most free, when I worship Him. I can get lost in a couple of words that describe Him over & over - because He is good. Really, He commands our love & devotion because He is very passionate about us. He loves us. And desires that we go ahead & experience His Joy, His Life. His Power, His Love!

So, when we choose to worship Him, things not explained begin to happen in the spiritual realm. Beautiful things really. Crazy things like: Freedom, Joy, Peace, Hope that fills our hearts, & the list goes on & on. Things that are counter opposite of the world. Instead of control, fear & manipulation. We get all these things that represent the essence of who He is. So it's quite an amazing thing overall. We worship Him, we become like Him. Look like Him, talk like Him, love like Him. We then sacrifice like Him. And see, I deeply believe a supernatural key for us to enter into His presence personally but also as a body of believers is to apply Romans 12:1 in our lives.

1And so, dear brothers and sisters, I plead with you to give your bodies to God because of all he has done for you. Let them be a living and holy sacrifice—the kind he will find acceptable. This is truly the way to worship him.

In Spirit & in truth. This is how to worship Him. This is the way to worship Him. Let's do just that!!!

Prayer:

Father, thank You for all that You have done. We do bow our hearts & present our bodies a living sacrifice that is pleasing to You. We honor You & worship You. And receive the calling you have given us, to worship the one & only true God. And let your light shine through how we worship You always!! In Jesus' name. Amen.

As We Worship!

Listening to... Spontaneous Worship w/ Amanda Cook Bethel Church

As we worship...and as we come to Jesus. There is a freedom that takes place. Freedom like no other, b/c of the finished work of the cross. Now, although it may feel sometimes like hope seems dim in certain times of our lives, but in reality we have all the HOPE we need.

He has given us, "faith, hope, & love." Meaning He gives generously. Jesus has given enough hope to last a lifetime. What happens sometimes is we lose perspective on what is real. Jesus. His love. His acceptance. His victory over sin & death & the grave! He has overcome. Trials & tribulations are but for a moment. It is important to hear & obey on James' admonishment to count it all joy when we encounter such various trials & tribulations. The first gift we must abide in is faith, because it leads to hope, which then leads to love. And since God is merciful, He gifts us with opportunities to let our faith be refined in order to get to hope, which then leads to love as I've said. The true mark of us being His disciples will be shown to the world by the love we have & demonstrate towards each other. It initially begins with us counting it all joy. So the faith refinement can happen.

What a concept. To worship Him. Something so intimate to do, because He made a way through His blood shed. Making us righteous before our heavenly Father. This process of being refined in our faith encourages us to count it all joy when we encounter all kinds of various trials & tribulations is key & essential in our daily worship. The act, the posture of worship is one that begins in our hearts through the Spirit & His Word.

As we come in by His Spirit to the moment of encountering His presence, through His Truth - we begin to ascribe value to Him. To put worth where worth is due. Now He is worthy altogether. He has not need of us, but delights in us. So when we worship. We find Him anew. Everytime. Without fail. He reveals a new portion of who He is. Wonder sets in. Mystery takes place. As we worship, the name above all names. The Risen Son. The Christ. Jesus.

Psalm 95:6

Oh come, let us worship and bow down;

Let us kneel before the Lord our Maker

He is the Shepherd. We are the sheep of His pasture. He takes care of us. I think part of the freedom that I initially mentioned at the beginning of this blog comes with knowing that in that freedom there is safety. There is security. There is comfort. There is stillness. Green pastures. The promise of NEW LIFE! As we worship, we magnify Him. And all of a sudden our 'trial' - our 'tribulation' then begins to take a backseat & is no longer the deciding factor that plays a major role in our daily lives. But Jesus is.


Let's pray...

Jesus. Shine your light on us. Lift up the light of your countenance upon your people. Let Hope come in & have its way! Let Hope fill our hearts & permeate thoroughly. Let us be drenched with Love. And as our Faith is refined. Let us continue to run this race of faith with endurance. Not wavering, but letting the promise of the Holy Spirit fill our hearts with an added measure of joy. Let joy fill us so we can count it all joy for You. In Jesus' name. Amen.

No Longer Slaves

Listening to... "No Longer Slaves" by Bethel Music on their latest recording (YouTube Link Here)

Wow. Just being reminded of this truth from husband & wife duo Jonathan David & Melissa Helser at Bethel Church in Redding, CA.

Chorus: 

No longer a slave to fear

I am a child of God

If this is not enough to awaken a heart of gratitude from the ashes that we sometimes find ourselves in - I encourage reading also through Colossians. I've recently been in this book & it has rekindled the fiery truth of the great mystery - Jesus Christ. Everything was done through Him & for Him. He is the Promise of long ago, now alive in me. And also - I've been reminded of who He is & what He has done. Oh yes, what God has accomplished through Him, is amazing. He has redeemed all of creation through the blood of His Son Jesus. Called us His own. Slaves to Righteousness. No Longer slaves to sin & darkness. But free in Christ, saved by Grace through faith.

The thing is we do get tired. Sometimes we forget to walk in Grace or we live life as usual, life as a casual thing. Our daily lives can certainly make us tired. I've come to realized that tiredness - is not a valid excuse that we can give to the LORD. For He promises rest:

Then Jesus said,

 "Come to me, all of you who are weary and carry heavy burdens, 

and I will give you rest. (Mt.11:28 NLT)

And maybe it is hard to hear this truth because certainly sometimes I know I may want to come to the LORD & say how tired I am. Too tired to engage Him, too tired to seek Him diligently...or just plain tired - period. This contradicts  His promise of rest, renewal, & strengthening that He so graciously gives (See Psalm 23, Nehemiah 8:10). The key is to stay in faith. Believe Him. Believe His word that He says who He says is, He is Enough. That He will do what He says He will do. He is Good. That He will lead us beside still waters, beside a peaceful streams. Believing what we have heard from Him.

Thinking about His promises makes me want to rest in His unfailing Love all the more. Rest in the truth that He has completed His work. All that is left is for me is to do is believe in Him & to walk in faith as a child of God. No longer a slave to fear... 

Fear of being duped into thinking that He is holding goodness back, thinking that He is not with me. When He truly is. For He promises to never leave or forsake us. 

Life can flow all the more differently, when we operate from an attitude of being from believing; rather than doing from seeing. Being meaning having a full confidence of:

• Being A Son/Daughter
• Being in Christ
• Being A Light that Shine Bright
• Being a Follower of Jesus
• Being More than a Conqueror

The Great I Am has promised His goodness. For God is Love. He is not a liar. He is gentle. He is kind. And He is faithful.

Prayer:

Father, comfort us with Your Holy Spirit. Show us more of who You are. Thank you for Your faithfulness & all Your goodness that You pour out freely on us all. Be with us even as we pray for You to have Your way. To take control of every situation in our lives. May Your will be accomplished in everything we say & do. In Jesus' name. Amen!