I will bless the LORD at all times; His praise shall
continually be in my mouth. My soul will make its boast in the LORD; The humble
will hear it and rejoice. O magnify the LORD with me, And let us exalt His name
together. Psalms 34:1-3
Worship is such
a vital and integral part of the life of every believer. Yet, it is interesting
that the Bible does not give a clear definition of worship as to time or
style. Why? Because worship cannot be defined by actions
or confined to locations.
True Worship is a Lifestyle - 1) I will
bless the LORD at all times; His praise shall continually be in my mouth. When worship is discussed, people usually
talk about "how" to worship and define worship by their personal
preferences of music and preaching or teaching.
But worship is not so much an act as it is an attitude. It is not limited to a time slot on a given
day or a location in a certain structure.
True Worship Requires Participation -
Did you note that verses 1-2 speak to personal or private worship and verse 3
is an invitation for corporate worship (with me and together). Our private worship will always impact our
corporate worship (and vice versa). We
bring our personal worship to worship every time we gather to share our praise
of God. We also draw from the worship
experiences of others as we pray and praise together. Worship is not a spectator event.
True Worship Magnifies the Lord - Oh,
magnify the LORD with me, and let us exalt His name together. The call to worship is asking for God to be
enlarged in every aspect of our lives.
And when He is, we will bless, praise, boast, and exalt the Lord as we
humbly bow before Him. For God to be
magnified in our lives, we must become smaller as we come closer to Him.
True Worship Draws People to God - Not
all who come into our church buildings for a time of worship are believers;
some are seekers. True worship seeks the
seeker as well as the worshipper praising God and having favor with all the
people. And
the Lord added to the church daily those who were being saved. Acts 2:47 Through
our worship, as seekers come in, they can be introduced to God's grace. Paul Anderson said, "Worship helps people see God in the midst of their troubled
lives." It is not us, but God
in us that will lead others to trust in Him.
True Worship Requires Preparation - Can
worship just happen? Absolutely! We may be thrown into a sense of awe and
wonder at the majesty of God in nature or the face of a newborn child and
worship Him! But, as we gather regularly
and corporately, there are some things we can all do to know the full
experience of worship instead of just wake up and show up?" We all have a responsibility to prepare for
worship.
Prepare for worship this week by:
- Praying so that you will be ready to pray when you arrive.
- Reading the Word so your heart will be soft when you worship.
- Singing or listening to worship music so your voice will be ready to praise God.
- Coming hungry ... willing ... expecting God to speak.
Scripture to Claim
He has put a new song in my mouth; Praise to our God;
Many will see it and fear, And will trust in the LORD. Psalms 40:3
