A
Heart of Worship
These people come
near to me with their mouth and honor me with their lips, but their
hearts are far from me.
Isaiah 29:13
Daniel paused while leading worship, “I
grew up in the church. I had given my life to Jesus, and was active
in youth group. I sang in the junior choir and attended church
faithfully …” he paused. “But as far as worshiping the Lord
went, I was only going through the motions. I worshiped God merely
because I felt like it was my duty; like a slave obligated to his
master.”
Daniel’s countenance changed as he
continued, “But we were made for worship! And as scripture
says, God inhabits the praises of His people. When that happens,
Heaven invades Earth! God comes to us!”
“But as I said before, I’d invested
nothing of myself … I was going through the motions out of a sense
of responsibility.”
Daniel smiled, “But there came a
moment, a moment when I finally understood this simple truth: God
wants us to be in relationship with Him so we can discover how deep,
how wide, and how far His love extends! I finally understood!”
He laughed, “Now I worship Him
because I want to, because I love Him and I just can’t tell Him
enough how much I appreciate Who He is and what He’s done for me!”
“So tonight, let go of your
inhibitions, misconceptions, and fears, and worship God with all your
heart, mind, soul, and strength!”
†
True worship is born out of knowing we
have been given mercy instead of spiritual death, grace instead of
God’s wrath. Worship begins in each heart, birthed after this
revelation, and then pours forth from a willing heart, a hungry
heart, a heart of gratitude and understanding.
Today’s text reveals that many before
us have held God at arm’s length, ignorant of the immensity of the
sacrifice made to secure our redemption. Sadly, many never come to
that understanding. You know when you witness it, because once the
revelation hits you that God sacrificed His own Son on your behalf,
it is impossible to merely offer Him lip service.
Prayer
“Father of redemption, I
want to bring You the praise of my heart! Fill me with the song You
gave me at my birth so I can sing it to You! In Jesus’ Name, amen.”
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