Worship is more than a Song

Most of my readers will know what our family went through at the start of this month with my Dad’s medical emergency and the closeness he came to Heaven. God decided that it wasn’t quite his time to go, and we are blessed to have him with us for a little while longer, however long that may be.

While Dad was in the ICU ward of the hospital, we, as a family watched as he struggled to breathe, talk and stay awake. As we gathered around his bedside, squeezed into a room not made for so many people, we bowed our heads in prayer, committing him to God’s care and we asked God to take him home if that was his will.

With the beeping of the many machines, the bags of fluid hanging above the bed, their cords tracing lines across the floor, the nurse watching on as she stood silently in the corner, we began to sing.

What a day that will be
When my Jesus I shall see
And I look upon his face
The one who saved me by his grace
When he takes me by the hand
And leads me through the Promised Land
What a day, glorious day that will be

There'll be no sorrow there
No more burdens to bear
No more sickness no more pain
No more parting over there
But forever I will be
With the one who died for me
What a day, glorious day that will be

Some sang with heads bowed, some with eyes closed, some sang through tears and as I stood, eyes closed, hands raised in worship I felt the very presence of God and knew in my heart that whatever the outcome, God was in control and as his peace washed over my soul I sang my song of praise to him, as if no one but him and I were in the room.

When I opened my eyes, I glanced at the little screen with its red and green lines zigzagging up and down and I waited. I waited to see that red line flatten out. But it didn’t. It kept moving up and down, up and down. Dad’s chest rose and fell in rhythmic motions and once again I felt God’s hand upon me bringing peace and comfort to my soul.

It wasn’t Dad’s time to go. God still had work for him to do.

Those few minutes in that room, where God made his presence known, was an experience I’ll never forget.

All this to say, that true worship is not confined to the four walls of a church building, a cathedral or on our knees in prayer.

True worship is the acknowledgement of God and his power and glory in everything we do. It is all of me responding to all that he is. Worship is glorifying and exalting God.

And this can be done anywhere. In a hospital room. On a rooftop staring at the sky. As you fold the washing. As you drive down the road. As you sit in the cool of the morning reading the Words of Life and calling out to God in prayer. And as you sing in heartfelt sincerity songs of praise.

As we sang in that cramped hospital room that day, we weren’t singing Christian karaoke. Our words weren’t empty of feeling and meaning. We sang because we knew in our hearts that there was coming a day when we would see Jesus face to face and we rejoiced in knowing that our Dad had run a good race, he had fought the good fight and he was ready and willing to meet his Saviour. We praised God for all that he is and for all that he was doing. Without knowing the outcome, we worshipped and lifted his name up for all to hear.

The purpose of our praise and worship to God, through music, was and is to glorify him. Spiritual music gives voice to our joy and adoration unlike anything else. When we are filled with the Holy Spirit, then Psalms and hymns and spiritual songs are the natural expression of our hearts, and we can’t help but sing them unto the Lord. In any place. At any time. In times of joy and in times of sorrow.

Growing up in a more conservative church setting, it was very rare to see anyone raise their hands in worship during the song service. I have since seen louder and more expressive ways of worshipping and also quiet and reserved forms.

What I have come to realise is that worship is deeply personal. And it is often a reflection of the journey God has taken each person on.

We never know the magnitude of someone’s testimony and what they’ve been through. And we are wrong to judge someone harshly because their way of worshipping is not like our own.

For some, worship looks like tears. For some it is raised hands. For some it’s silence. For others it’s shouts of AMEN. We don’t know what fires they’ve had to walk through or what storms they’ve had to weather.

Whether it’s loud or silent, visible or invisible, if it is done in sincerity and true adoration of God, it is beautiful to him.

But I want you to know, worship is more than a song.

We often associate worship with singing. But worship is more than that.

Did you know that the first mention of worship in the Bible had nothing to do with singing?

Genesis 22:4-6 KJV - Then on the third day Abraham lifted up his eyes, and saw the place afar off. And Abraham said unto his young men, Abide ye here with the ass; and I and the lad will go yonder and worship, and come again to you. And Abraham took the wood of the burnt offering, and laid it upon Isaac his son; and he took the fire in his hand, and a knife; and they went both of them together.

The first time we see worship in the Bible, there was no song. It was a very solemn occasion of obedience to God in the form of sacrifice.

Abraham had been commanded by God to sacrifice his son. His cherished, loved and longed for, son.

And yet, Abraham told the men that were with him, “stay here, we are going to worship”. Wow. His obedience led to sacrifice and yet he worshipped.

We know the end of the story and how God supplied a ram in the thicket and I’m sure there was more rejoicing in the camp that night for God’s goodness and mercy.

Worship really is more than a song. And if the only time you worship God is when you open your mouth to sing, then you are not living the Christian life like God would have you to.

The highest form of worship is through obedience to God and his Word. It is not limited to one act.

True worship is felt inwardly as we grow in the knowledge of who God is, and then it is expressed through our actions. Whether that be in song, in prayer, in reading of God’s Word, in communion and fellowship with others, all worship should be done for God and for his pleasure, because he deserves it and is worthy of our praise. True worship is God-centred.

Music can’t produce worship, although it certainly produces emotion. Music can be an expression of worship. It is an overflow of a heart that is in awe of God and his love for us.

Worship isn’t about how it looks on the outside. It’s all about the heart behind it.

As we sang and prayed around the bedside that day, our hearts were collectively filled with awe and gratitude to God for the blessings he had showered us with. We were thankful for the years of faithfulness and obedience and the Godly legacy our Dad had left for us, the example he had set and the testimony of Godliness he had shown us and others all around the world.

And yes, he is still with us, maybe for months or maybe for years to come, but let it be known that God’s presence and the opportunity to worship is always there. As long as you have breath in your lungs, let it be used to speak words of life over all you meet. And let it be used to worship and praise God as you let your life be one of worship as you walk in obedience to what God says. The sacrifice it involves will all be worth it.

John 4:24 KJV - God is a Spirit: and they that worship him must worship him in spirit and in truth.

Psalm 95:1-3 KJV - O come, let us sing unto the LORD: let us make a joyful noise to the rock of our salvation. Let us come before his presence with thanksgiving, and make a joyful noise unto him with psalms. For the LORD is a great God, and a great King above all gods.

Romans 12:1-2 KJV - I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that ye present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable unto God, which is your reasonable service. And be not conformed to this world: but be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind, that ye may prove what is that good, and acceptable, and perfect, will of God.

 

 

 

 

 

Mind blowing, Eye-opening Words of Life

 

In my quiet time this morning, I literally had my mind blown!

And, in my opinion, mind blowing experiences coming from the Word of God need to be shared. It’s not enough to learn a great truth from Scripture and just keep it to yourself.

Okay, so I am no scholar or studied theologian, and maybe what I’m about to share is something you’ve already discovered, but for those who haven’t and are eager to learn something new, then keep reading!

I am currently studying through the book of Leviticus. Why? Because it’s not a book I have ever enjoyed or fully understood the significance of and one of my goals this year is to read the more obscure and less read books of the Bible and see what I can learn from them.

With all the talk of sacrifices and burnt offerings, my study took me to a passage in Hebrews 13.

Hebrews 13:15,16 KJV - By him therefore let us offer the sacrifice of praise to God continually, that is, the fruit of our lips giving thanks to his name. But to do good and to communicate forget not: for with such sacrifices God is well pleased.

A few years back, I wrote an article on the first part of verse 15. (read it here Don't wait until you're happy)

It made sense to me that often praising God can feel like a sacrifice, because we just don’t ‘feel’ like praising God in the moment. We have to make a choice to offer up worship and praise to God. It costs us. We have to push aside our fears and our anxieties and sacrifice the feelings of dread and sadness we harbour and choose to put on a cloak of thankfulness and raise our hearts in worship to the only one worthy of our praise.

”The secret of joy is not to wait until you feel happy, but to rise, by an act of faith, out of the depression which is dragging you down and begin to praise God as an act of choice.” A.B.Simpson

As I read down further in the passage, I came across another sacrifice. In verse 16, we are told to do good and not to forget to communicate, because God is well pleased with these sacrifices.

Now, what blew my mind, you ask?

I decided to look up the word communicate. It means talk, right? WRONG!

This word in the Greek is the word koinonia. Does that ring any bells for you? This beautiful word koinonia is the word for fellowship.

(if you would like to read deeper into this topic, take a look at this post True Christian fellowship)

So, when this verse says that we need to do good, it also says that we need to not forget to fellowship. And it says that it is a sacrifice!

Hebrews 13:16 But to do good and to communicate forget not: for with such sacrifices God is well pleased.

Fellowship is often a sacrifice!

MIND BLOWN!

Yes, at times, fellowship can be a sacrifice. There are times when we just don’t feel like fellowshipping with others. We don’t feel like going to church. We’re just not up to making the effort.

True Christian fellowship involves getting together for spiritual purposes, for sharing needs, for prayer, for discussing and sharing the Word, for encouraging, for comforting and for edifying one another. (Read Acts chapter 2)

As Christians and fellow believers, we are in a partnership working together towards a common goal, that of reaching the lost with the gospel. We are to be a family. Looking out for one another, caring for one another, exhorting, serving, loving one another.

And sometimes, it all just feels too hard. We continually have to make a sacrifice to fellowship. We have to set aside our wants, our needs, our time, our desires in order that we can fulfill the law of Christ to love one another and encourage one another.

Fellowship requires participation. It requires our time, our energy and our resources. Each person bringing to the table what God has enabled them to do.

We are to pray together, to suffer together, to share together. Everyone carrying the load together by doing their specific jobs in order to get the gospel message of Jesus Christ out to the lost world.

When I read this with understanding this morning, I had an A-HA moment, but also an OUCH! moment.

I realised why sometimes fellowship felt hard. It often feels hard because I am making a sacrifice to engage in it. But I also realised that I am often guilty of putting it on the back burner purely based on how I feel. It really doesn’t matter how I feel. I am commanded to do it. I am commanded to not neglect or forget it. Why? Because God is well pleased!

Our goal in life as believers, should be to please God and bring honour to him. And one of the ways we please him is by praising him when we don’t feel like it, but just as important is making the effort to fellowship when we don’t feel like it.

Whatever that looks like to you, whether in a church setting, or in the home, or at a coffee shop, meeting together with God’s people with the view of encouraging and sharing and loving should be paramount!

Maybe my mind gets blown easily by little things, but this verse really jumped out at me the moment I realised that it was talking about doing good to others and fellowshipping and that these things could be a sacrifice at times, but we are not to neglect them.

Correct me if I’m wrong, but this is my interpretation of it, and it’s given me something to think about and also a new perspective on this subject.

Just a short thought this morning, but I pray that you will be encouraged to make the effort to pursue Christian fellowship as a sacrifice to God.