WORSHIP

“Give praise to the Lord, proclaim his name; make known among the nations what he has done. 9 Sing to him, sing praise to him; tell of all his wonderful acts. 10 Glory in his holy name; let the hearts of those who seek the Lord rejoice.” (1 Chronicles 16:8-10)

WORSHIP. That’s exactly what King David was encouraging the Israelites to do. The Ark of the Covenant was being brought back to Jerusalem. On this very historic day, one for which they had been waiting, King David’s Psalm first began with WORSHIP.

Do you see it? The WORSHIP he was leading them to involved singing, but it also involved so much more.

So many times we put worship in the context of “Praise and Worship,” a specified time during a church service or at home when we sing praises. This is a good thing, but it is not everything.

WORSHIP is more than a song. WORSHIP is a life.

So if WORSHIP is a life, what exactly does that look like?

Deuteronomy 6 gives us a beautiful picture. Here it is:

“Listen, Israel: The LORD our God, the LORD is One. 5 Love the LORD your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your strength. 6 These words that I am giving you today are to be in your heart. 7 Repeat them to your children. Talk about them when you sit in your house and when you walk along the road, when you lie down and when you get up. 8 Bind them as a sign on your hand and let them be a symbol on your forehead. 9 Write them on the doorposts of your house and on your gates” (Deuteronomy 6:4-9).

I know, the word WORSHIP is not in there even one single time, but it is a perfect picture. God doesn’t need our words, our songs, our adoration, our service. He doesn’t need us at all.

BUT HE WANTS US.

Our God is far more powerful, more amazing, and more bigger (yes, I know the grammar is wrong) than we could ever imagine. He has done more for us than we could even comprehend. Not because He had to, but because he wanted to.

Life on this planet gives us an opportunity to give back to Him in WORSHIP. We do that by singing a song, lifting a prayer, and living a life.

Tell your children.

Talk about Him at home and wherever you go.

Make His words in you be a sign that people read, telling them who He is.

Write them for the world to see.

From the words of our mouths to the work of our hands, our lives are a testimony of what He has done, but even more so of who He is. We offer our lives as a reverent offering to the God of the universe. We WORSHIP.

The privilege is ours. The honor is His.

How does WORSHIP make us stronger? He makes us stronger. Through our obedience and heart of WORSHIP, He changes us and uses us. We start to see Him actively at work around us, becoming more courageous as we follow. He doesn’t need our worship. He simply wants us. In that place of humility, He can do mighty things. Just ask Paul:

“But He said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for power is perfected in weakness.” Therefore, I will most gladly boast all the more about my weaknesses, so that Christ’s power may reside in me. 10 So I take pleasure in weaknesses, insults, catastrophes, persecutions, and in pressures, because of Christ. For when I am weak, then I am strong” (2 Corinthians 12:9-10).

WORSHIP reminds us of who we are, but it also reminds us of who HE is. When I am weak, then I am strong. He makes us STRONGER STILL.