A great start to the week. Two day work weeks are always good for the body and the soul. Praying for everyone travelling this week to be with family and loved ones during the holidays. Also praying for those that aren't able to be with family this time of year, especially our men and women in uniform serving our country. Special shout out to those serving in the war zone, and there are several of you that have emailed and are keeping up with our series.
Point to Ponder: I was planned for God's pleasure.
QUESTIONS TO CONSIDER
What common task could I be doing as if I were doing it directly for Jesus?
Verse to remember: "The Lord takes pleasure in His people." Psalm 149:4
My response:
This chapter begins laying out the five purposes that God has for us. The first purpose is that we were planned for God's pleasure. How do we bring pleasure to God? By fulfilling what our purpose is meant to be? It says that anything that brings pleasure to God is called worship.
I've gained a deeper understanding of worship from reading this chapter. I've always had these ideas floating in my head, but they were all encapsulated in this chapter. We often think of worship as the Sunday service. Or a part of the service. And we usually associate it with music. But actually, worship takes on many forms. The readings could be worship. The sermon could be worship.
In essence, this chapter says that our lives should be instruments of worship. In everything we do, let it be a worship to the Lord. What that means is that I have to be accountable in all my dealings. From spending time with my daughter. To doing my finances. All those things are a form of worship. I try to stress to the young people at our church that we each have a role to play in the ministry. Some of us have beautiful voices. Some of us can dance. Some of us can cook. Some of us are good with electronics. God needs all of us to spread His Word. Some of us are introverts. Others are extroverts. The point is, we should look at whatever role we play in the ministry as an act of worship. From the person running the cooking, to the person cleaning up to the people that decorate the church. All of those are acts of worship, when we do it to bring glory to God.
That's the key. When we do things to bring glory to ourselves, then it ceases being an act of worship. That's why I love athletes who always praise God after their games. It gives the glory to He who deserves it. Imagine if after each successful project at work, we say "praise God." After our kids bring home all A's, we say thank the Lord. When we live our lives as a true form of worship, we learn to deflect all the praise to He who deserves it.
I got a lot out of this reading, as I have with the earlier chapters. What a wonderful reminder that my weekly worship shouldn't be confined to Sundays and Wednesdays and my daily worship to quiet time and/or lotu. I learned that worship isn't a series of actions, but a continual state of being.
ReplyDeleteI recently heard a message about our gratitude to God as an act of worship. A lot of times when things work out well in life, we chalk it up to luck or coincidence. The pastor said she kept a daily journal of remembrances where she worshipped God at the end of the day for all of his small miracles. I think by doing so, she made a conscious decision to live her life in a state of worship - constantly counting the blessings in her life. She gives God all the glory (the credit) for every little thing.
On that note, to God be the glory for Pastor Rick Warren and his wonderful book, our dedicated moderator, and the Spirit that leads each of us across this forum!
Hi there, a little behind on posting but I was also one of those that beleived worship was only the music part of service. I have since realized since having my own family that worship comes in many forms. I was raised LMS, Ricky was brought up in the Pentecostal church. When I first attended his Fathers church I was overwhelmed by the music, the volume of the music and service. We all know how our services are in our home church, so there was definitely a difference. However, the more I visted the church, I realized how similar our worship really was. I appreciate both order of service. I enjoy our way of service in the LMS because of the structure. We know how service or special presentations are done and there is a process established. However, I also appreciate the open, a bit more relaxed enviroment to worship in the Pentecostal. I feel more of setting that allows worship to be unrestricted. Overall, both types of services have allowed worship to happen just in different ways. God still gets the GLORY~
ReplyDeleteI have also kept a journal that is my Blessings tracker. I just jot down what has happened and how I felt like I was blessed in that moment. Its a good way to remember the ways we have worshipped throughout the year. Today I will definitely add this study online. Happy Thanksgiving and continue to Worship in his presence!
I learned so much about worship in this chapter. It gave a wonderful reminder of how we should live our lives. If worshipping God is a lifestyle, there is much I need to do with mine. I want to worship God in all I do. To answer the question, "What common task could I be doing as if I were doing it directly for Jesus?", several tasks come to mind. Imagine how much one would enjoy raking leaves, washing dishes, cleaning, etc. when they are doing it for Jesus.
ReplyDeleteI want my life to be that of worship. I want everything I do and how I live to be of worship to God.
Another element that's really changed my perspective is that what makes music holy is not the arrangement, but the lyrics. When I read some of the old LMS hymns, they move me a lot. The praise and spirit of thanksgiving in the lyrics are just so moving. And I agree with Flo, I've come to appreciate both types of worship. It's one of the reasons we started the Youth Worship service. There were two people that were raised in the Pentecostal faith tradition that suggested it to us and I am thankful to God for opening our hearts to accepting a new style of worship. I've also been to Catholic church services and I get goose bumps when I attend them from all the rituals and chants. Different, yet I can feel the Spirit in there as well. You just have to pray to God to give you a heart that's open to all forms of worship.
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