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How Can
I Not Worship Him? |
"I
will sing to the Lord all my life; I will sing praise to my God
as long as I live."
--
Psalm 104:33 |
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Worship is passion! It is daily surrendering all
of our desires, needs, wants and longings. It is not just going
through the motions during a church service before the message.
It is not something that we should take lightly, but it is an
awesome and humbling responsibility. It is being completely in
love with Jesus Christ. It is filling the soul with the movement
of the Holy Spirit. It is that moment of complete abandon from
self unto the throne of God where the Holy Spirit takes over
and we lose ourselves in the sweetness and power of God's presence.
We have no other choice but to worship Him. |
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"Worship
the Lord in the splendor of His holiness; Tremble before Him,
all the earth." -- Psalm 96:9 |
Worship is a lifestyle.
For me personally, I like to listen to praise and worship music
as much as possible throughout the week. During those times  is when God really speaks to me
and comforts me. I can honestly say that some of the most awesome
worship experiences in my life have been in my room or in my
car--just God and me. He speaks gently and quietly and wraps
His loving arms around me. The really neat thing is that even
though I live an extremely busy life, God is up at all the same
hours of the night, just waiting for me to talk to Him. As a
result of my time with God, there is a peace and a confidence
when it comes time to lead worship on Sundays. I am already prepared
in my own heart so that I might minister more effectively to
others. God loves us SO much that He can't wait to hear from
us and lavish all over us. No one on earth will ever love us
the way God loves us. It's too great to comprehend. His love
truly never fails!
This thing with
God is a relationship.
When you love someone, you want to spend time with them and get
to know them better. That's all God wants from us. He certainly
has given His everything to us, and continues to give us more
everyday. This is why we worship Him. A good friend, Mark Phillips,
says that, "[Worship] is the reaction of our soul when it
realizes it is standing before God Almighty; it has no choice
but to fall down and worship." It's all about Him!
God has called me to worship Him
and to use my voice for Him. I can remember the exact emotions
and how real God was to me at that moment. All I  could
do was cry out and praise Him. I have accepted that call and
whatever responsibilities come with that. I have trusted God
enough to know that His way is best for me, no matter what. I
pray that in all I do, I will honor Him and that He will be pleased
with me. With that calling has come a very serious responsibility.
I have made a vow with myself to NEVER step on that stage without
a pure heart. If I am not clean before God, how can He ever fill
me completely with His Spirit? I want Him to have all of me,
so He can use me in however He pleases. I pray for the anointing
and to stay humble before Him, for He will be the one to exalt
those who are humble. (Matthew 23:12) |
"Yet
a time is coming and has now come when the true worshipers will
worship the Father in Spirit and truth for they are the kind
of worshipers the Father seeks. God is spirit, and His worshipers
must worship in Spirit and in truth."
--
John 4:24 |
As worship leaders, we are in a frontline battle.
There have been times when I
literally felt like I had boxing gloves on, standing face to
face with Satan. That is when the Lord truly becomes my strength
and my song. (Exodus 15:2) Surely Satan will attempt to stop
God's children from praising Him, but God is greater, and He
himself will fight for us. (Exodus 14:14)
For me, freedom in worship is one of the most important
characteristics of a church. People must be free
to worship as the Spirit of God fills the sanctuary. So often I feel unworthy that God would use me, but It really is true that
God uses the weak. (2 Corinthians 12:9-10)
I used to always think I would never be happy and content unless
I signed a record contract, recorded a CD, moved to Nashville
and hit the road. In fact, I tried to make that happen  on more
than one occasion, and inevitably, failed miserably every time.
During that time, my dreams were shattered. How could I ever
be happy if I didn't have those things that I thought I wanted
so badly? Well, here's how: Jesus Christ satisfied my every desire.
I fell in love with Him, found that passion, began to regularly
lead worship at church and
special events (sometimes even taking a tour bus to get there). And I did record that CD, many in fact. I have all I ever wanted, and
it's just as it should be because it came in GOD'S timing for
me. He is my everything. God, my Maker, gives songs in the night.
(Job 35:10). How can I not worship Him? |
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"Glorify
the Lord with me; Let us exalt His name together." -- Psalm 34:3 |
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