Shower Worship, Midnight Prayer Sessions

 and House Cleaning Sermon Time

 

Did you know that church is not the only place and time to worship the Lord in song, intercede for others and listen to God’s Word being preached?

Tonight, as I washed away the dirt and grime from my days work, I had a worship session. Yes, you read that right! In the shower. A time of worship.

As my hubby has been away quite a bit for work lately, I have taken to playing my worship music (as loud as possible, mind you), while I have a shower. And as I listen to the message in the songs, I praise God for his goodness to me. With each song, a different message is sung, sometimes reminding me of God’s love for me, other times bringing up memories of past victories in my life, but always, they encourage me to praise him.

Music is very powerful, and for me, it’s a very necessary part of my life! I need good music in my life as it helps me get through my days, when time does not allow me to sit and read the Word of God. Good music has the power to lift your spirits. It has the power to teach you wondrous truths about God. It has the power to convict and rebuke. It has the power to speak to you like nothing else can at certain times in your life.

And so, I enjoy my worship sessions in the shower. Sometimes I sing along, and other times, I just let the water and the music soak in. As the water cleans away the dirt, the music soothes my soul and washes away the lies I’ve told myself, the doubt, the fears, the discouragement, the weariness, the hurt, and the cares of the world that weigh on my shoulders. And for a few minutes, I am transported into the presence of the Lord, singing praise to him, thanking him and worshipping him, standing in awe of him and offering a sacrifice of praise.

You really can worship in so many places, other than just on a Sunday morning during the worship time and congregational singing.

And while I’m sharing secrets, here’s another one. I love to have midnight prayer sessions. Or early morning prayer time. Or anytime of night communing with God.

Here’s how it works for me. I’m not someone who is able to sleep through the night. I wake up quite frequently and sometimes, I find myself very awake and alert. These are the times that I take a moment, or a few minutes, depending on how long it takes to fall back asleep, to pray.

I often think that God wakes me up specifically to pray for someone that he lays on my heart at that very moment.

I love the quote I read years ago, “Don’t count sheep, talk to the Shepherd”.

I love that we can come to God at any time of day or night, and he is listening. He never sleeps. He is always awake and alert to our cry.

Psalm 121:4 KJV - Behold, he that keepeth Israel shall neither slumber nor sleep.

We never have to worry that we’ll have to wake him up to cry out to him.

When we wake with anxiety and the panic sets in, we can cry out to him and he hears us.

I cherish these times alone with God. All is quiet. There are no distractions. I rest in his everlasting arms, and I pray until I fall asleep. It’s like the Lord Jesus is rocking me back to sleep. “Rest on, he says. You have brought me your petition, you have cast your care upon me, rest on and leave it with me”.

And so, we don’t have to wait until the mid-week prayer meeting or the monthly Bible study to meet together and pray. We can pray alone with God at any time.

Another one of my favourite things to do is to listen to sermons or Bible lessons, podcasts and teaching while I do my chores around the house.

If you happen to come by my house when I am cleaning, or hanging the washing, or baking or basically anything other than studying, you’ll almost certainly find me listening to a sermon. I call myself a ‘serial sermon listener’.

I love to hear God’s Word preached and I love to hear Godly men and women expound the Scriptures and teach me from the Bible what I need to hear and how I need to live my Christian life.

Often, I have to stop and dry my hands, hit pause, and grab a pen and paper, because I need to take notes or jot a verse down. But oh, how blessed we are to be able to have at our fingertips, access to good, wholesome, convicting, encouraging, teaching and preaching based on the Word of God.

I encourage you to fill your heart with Godly music and teaching on a regular basis. It’s amazing how much you can learn while you fold a load of laundry or clean out a kitchen cupboard or bake a cake.

Those chores you do that don’t require serious thought are the perfect opportunity to focus on something that teaches you and encourages you to seek after God.

And if you are in a season of life where you have little ones running around and it’s just too difficult to take in a sermon as you’d miss too much, don’t lose heart. Download an audible Bible app and listen to the Word of God being read.

Firstly, it’s good to hear the Bible read over and over as you hear different things each time and learn new truths from the Word of God. If you happen to miss some verses while you’re tending to a little one, you will still gain benefit from what you have heard.

 Secondly, it will do your children good to hear God’s Word being read. You may find that they listen along and begin to ask questions. Your children need to see that you love the Word of God.

Psalm 119:97 O how love I thy law! it is my meditation all the day.

The reason I’m sharing this, is because I want to encourage you to make time in your day for God and his Word.

This is apart from your quiet time with the Lord. This is separate to your worship time and prayer time with fellow believers. This is a time for you to come to him in prayer, come with lifted hands, open ears and hearts, excited and determined to praise him and to learn from him.

Don’t let shower time, or wakeful nights or boring chores keep you from spending time in God’s presence.

There is always time for worship. You just have to MAKE it!

There is always time for prayer. You just have to MAKE it!

There is always time to listen to God’s Word. You just have to MAKE it!

You have to make the choice to use different blocks of time that are out of the normal to spend with God.

Set aside a time that you’ve never thought of using, to have a time of prayer, or to praise God in song. Listen to good, solid teaching regularly and make use of the audible part of you Bible app.

 

Begin today! And watch your mood change and your spirits lift!

 

Isaiah 25:1 O LORD, thou art my God; I will exalt thee, I will praise thy name; for thou hast done wonderful things; thy counsels of old are faithfulness and truth.

Psalm 34:1, 3 I will bless the LORD at all times: his praise shall continually be in my mouth. ... O magnify the LORD with me, and let us exalt his name together.