Worship is a lifestyle
We often think that worship is a corporate thing that is usually done in a church or when groups of Christians gather together. However, the sense of being close to God is an intimate and personal experience that can happen at any time or any place, even when we don’t expect it, whenever we choose to do it. The more I focus on Jesus the more He responds, increasing my vision as I gain more insight into the ways He sees things.
Some years ago I discovered this while experiencing depression that I couldn’t shift. I was invited to a meeting where someone prayed for me, and told me to read about Elijah and Elisha and to pray in tongues for an hour a day for a month. The depression lifted and I found myself praising the Lord in everyday activities. At the time I was working in various rest homes in Auckland, doing activities with the elderly. I would sing God’s praises as I waited for a bus to come, then I realised that I could continue talking to the Lord as well. I discovered a whole new world was opening up before me. He was showing me things as He saw them and made things so much brighter, encouraging me to look back to the history of worship.
In April 1982 the Lord began giving me revelation about praise and worship during an Easter camp I attended with a bunch of teenagers. My friend Wendy asked me to go with her to be a prayer support for her.
In the Old Testament, worship was a willing, intentional act, often planned for, as in these verses:
Psalm 150:3 “Praise Him with the sounding of trumpets.”
Psalm 150:4 “Praise Him with tambourines and dancing.”
Psalm 150:6 “Let everything that has breath praise the Lord.”
David is well known in the Old Testament (2 Samuel 6:1) for his expression in worship playing the harp while watching the flocks of sheep. When David became king over the Israelites he brought the ark of the covenant to the house of Abinadab on a new cart. Abinadab’s sons were guiding the ark while David and all Israel were celebrating with all their might before the Lord with songs, castanets, harps, lyres, tambourines, drums and cymbals. In 2 Samuel 6:6 we are told that Uzzah, who touched the ark because the ox had stumbled, was struck dead by God, putting fear into the heart of all. David was afraid and left the ark with Obed-Edom saying: “How can the ark of the Lord ever come to me?” Later it was told how blessed the household of Obed-Edom had become. David decided to get the ark and bring it to the City of David (Jerusalem) with much rejoicing (verse 14). While bringing the ark of the covenant to Jerusalem, David ushered in the spontaneous act of rejoicing in the form of dance in worship. Wearing a linen ephod, David was dancing before the Lord with all his might. They brought the ark of the Lord to the City of David with shouts and the sound of trumpets. In Job 21: 11 it says “their little ones dance about.” In Psalm 149:3 we read “Let them praise His name with dancing” and Ecclesiastes 3:4 says “There is a time to dance.”
My experience in worshipping the Lord is a spontaneous daily occurrence as I seek to bring Him into everything I do. I wanted to dedicate my work to the Lord so He would feel accepted and welcomed wherever I was in the workplace. When I purchased my first home I gave it to the Lord. When I moved from Mt Albert Rd to Onehunga Mall Rd, He came with me; just another form of worship.
The presence of God is something we discover as we develop our relationship with Him. Communicating with Him through prayer, praise and thankfulness will bring us into a place to worship, listening and responding to His voice as He indicates His presence. How do you know you are in God’s presence? You may be speaking to a friend and say something that you know you would not have thought of naturally. You may have a sense of peace that is different from your normal. It shows up in a meeting you are at, or someone tells you that they can see it on you. Sometimes you don’t even know you have it. This can be the beginning of practising His presence which will broaden your scope of worship as others sense His presence too. You may walk into a room of people and the atmosphere will change as they sense that His presence is there. Sometimes you won’t know that you have been in His presence until you come upon it in hindsight. This happened to me when I had three firemen in to change the batteries in my smoke alarm and one of them said “I like coming to your place” with a happy smile on his face. I think the presence of the Lord must have been here. The more we allow Jesus into our lives, the more of His presence with us in worship will be a natural response.
When we are at peace with God and in ourselves His presence is bound to be there. I actually stumbled on this as I read a little book written by Joyce Meyer telling me to let the Lord fight my battles. Scripture says “The battle is the Lord’s.” 1 Samuel 17:47. I discovered this when things were going wrong around me and I had this amazing peace. I call it the Abiding Peace and it is referred to in the Bible as the peace that passes all understanding. It changes the way we make a response to the situation we are facing.
While I was working at Māngere Hospital and Training School I had an experience where others saw the presence of God on me. During my lunch break I was reading a poem about Jesus coming again and what I would see. I realised that I was late going back to work. On asking a friend to give me a ride to the ward she said that my face looked beautiful, not once but twice. When I got to the unit to apologise for being late, my supervisor looked at me. We just stood looking at each other, not saying a word for about a minute. She was surprised at the appearance of my face. Then I apologised for being late. Sometime later, I got leave to go to an Aglow conference and she said she would pray for me every day. That was the Presence of God on me and I wasn’t aware of it. What a blessing! There is an inner joy and peace when the Presence of the Lord is on a person. It changes the atmosphere from the mundane to the supernatural where love is experienced too.
It was the book Worship:Breaking Through to His Presence and Power by Dr Norvel Hayes that reminded me that indeed worship is a lifestyle. I had almost forgotten about it until I read his book which showed me what I was missing. Norvel begins his book with Psalm 111:1-10. Verse 1 says “Praise the Lord. I will extol the Lord with all my heart in the council of the upright and in the assembly.” Norvel is a successful businessman, not a pastor. The Lord told him that the church was lacking in this way: “My children basically love me, but they live in poverty and sickness and defeat. They don’t live in heaven’s blessings because they don’t worship me enough.” The Psalm goes on to tell us of the many benefits we could have if we were to worship Him more. This challenged me too, as I had not been worshipping Him much either. In fact it was a stark reminder of what I was lacking. It encouraged me to start worshipping again in my own time. Isn’t it wonderful when the Lord reminds us about things we have benefited from by reviving an experience that was so special in the past. Norvel is challenged for not worshiping the Lord enough as well. He makes an observation about his own church, he reflects on what the Lord said: that there are whole generations who do not worship Him enough individually just for who He is.
In order to really worship Him we need to fall in love with Him with all our heart not just a part of it. Remember how you longed to be with your girlfriend or boyfriend when courting and the times you would spend together? See Song of Songs for a good romance and the book of Ruth for the story of sincere love. Both of these are in the Old Testament. Jesus draws us to himself through His love for us. We must learn to have trust in the Holy Spirit and the Word of God the Bible, for trust is the beginning of faith. The Word says “Trust in the Lord always and lean not on your own understanding.” Proverbs 3:5. These experiences cause us to want more of Jesus and encourage us to ask, seek and find out even more. He will answer us in a variety of ways. There is a song that goes ‘Seek ye first the kingdom of God and His righteousness and all these thing shall be added unto you, hallelujah.’ It comes from Matthew 6:33-34. I learnt this song from Songs of Praise published by David and Dale Garratt.
How can we worship the Lord more? Find a time and a place where you can meet with Him every day without interruptions. You may have a quiet corner inside, or a tree outside that you like sitting under. Begin by greeting Him and acknowledge who He is. Adore Him by saying how much you love Him. Use praise and thanksgiving, maybe a song or a hymn, to focus more on His character as you move towards worship. Thanksgiving for what He has done for you or others will invite His presence. Sometimes He tells us things or show us things, like the time He showed me the stars in heaven. I was in a home meeting. We were saying just how wonderful the stars were when suddenly I saw a panoramic view of them right in front of my eyes. I seemed to see more and more of them as I marvelled in wide-eyed wonder and tried to tell those who were there what the Lord was showing me. It still leaves a sense of wonder and worship as I write about it. Listen to God, as He wants you to feel the touch of His hand. He wants you to feast at His table because He wants time with you, just you. Come to God as a little child would come to Dad trusting that He hears you when you connect with Him.
Consistent Bible reading is an important part of building our relationship with God as this is a time when He often speaks. As you read, certain words may stand out to you, or you may hear His whisper or a word that will give you wisdom on how to approach a situation that you are facing. He may speak in different ways such as the still small voice, a picture, sense or a feeling known as a hunch, or a scripture will stand out as you read the word of God. Occasionally He speaks using an audible voice. You may like to have a pen, piece of paper or a journal handy to write down any thought that you feel He is impressing on you.
We were created to recognise the works of God. I once read that we should strive to contain and remain in them. It is up to us to remain within His principles. God has put it within the reach of every person to be able to see His wonders. As you remain in awe of God you will stay in a child-like place trusting Him even when you don’t fully understand.
Obedience is something the Lord really appreciates. When we put into action what He has instructed us to do, this is in itself a form of worship. One day I had come home from church and unlocked the door when the Lord said “Go to McDonalds.” When I got there I saw someone I knew. He invited me to sit with him and his friend. It turns out that they needed some encouragement to look to Jesus for guidance as to where to go to church. He loves us to be in fellowship with others as we respond to His promptings in obedience. That afternoon I went home worshipping the Lord and so pleased that I had listened to His prompting. One day I was dusting the window sills in the bedroom, when the Lord told me that my boarder needed to find other accommodation and when the person was to move out. I didn’t act on it at the time as I was going out of town for the weekend. When I returned there was a problem that needed to be addressed, all because I didn’t listen and obey. You see, God will warn us about things in advance so we can avoid making mistakes.
Do you know that to encourage someone is a way of assisting Jesus in His work? At Bible college something a lecturer said touched a raw spot and I walked out of the room to sit outside as my emotions were stirred. Someone sat beside me, but he never said a word. It felt like Jesus was sitting next to me. I was so blessed and encouraged to think that God would send someone to sit with me and I couldn’t help but worship Him. Even now I marvel at it. Encouragement helps people to feel valued and worship can be a natural response.
There is joy in knowing that God will guide you. Even when you don’t have the understanding of what He is telling you to do, just do it and trust the Lord for the results. I found this out while praying for the child I told you about at Māngere hospital. The understanding of what the Lord was showing me came some time later, when the Lord started teaching me how to pray for others.
Once while I was cooking, He told me that I would only be working night shift for six more weeks. This was proven to be true as I became very tired and I was relieved when He told me to resign at the end of the time. Worship and thankfulness was a natural response to this situation for He knew my need. You too, may find yourself talking to Him as you are moving around the house or outside hanging up the washing. He just drops things in when you least expect them. For the guys it may be mowing the lawn, or weeding the garden or even fishing but you will find that you are building a relationship with the Lord as you bring Him into everything you do.
When I put Him first at the beginning of the day in worship, I found the daily chores were easier to do. Sometimes I would be at the stove stirring the pot of soup when he would tell me things about work. I needed a new job and wanted certain conditions. Do you know? He met them all. Prior to working with the elderly, I took a course to be an office junior, so I could find out whether I could use a computer or not. No mouse in those days! I asked the Lord if He really wanted me to do it and the answer came loud and clear. “Yes, and witness to them all about Me.” This I did. I was so happy because the joy of the Lord really was my strength. In my new job He showed me through my boss how to do the paperwork which was required as an Activities Provider in a rest home. I was the only person doing that kind of work so I needed to do the documentation.
A plea for help can lead to worship. There was an incident where someone wanted to throw a chair at me. I raised my eyebrows in prayer and the Lord gave me the word to say with authority, so the person put the chair back under the table where it was meant to be. How thankful I was for that. Worship was my automatic response there and it helped defuse a tense situation.
Take a really good look at what Christ did when He returned to the Father after the resurrection. He gave us everything we need to live the life He desired for us, that is the fruit of the spirit and the gifts of the spirit. All we have to do is stay in the guidelines He has given us. That becomes a major challenge for us, as we are humans and want to do our own thing. This is where the New Testament in the Bible can come alive for us through the Gospel. When I am praying for people I find they can grasp the concept of abiding peace more directly if I explain the scripture as well.
As we go further into worship, the devil or Satan our enemy will do his best to keep us from hearing from God by putting negative thoughts and doubt into our minds. He can only pull you down because that is his purpose in life. The Bible puts it this way “Satan comes to rob, steal, and destroy.” and “He is the father of lies.” When Satan comes to confuse you, tell him to go in the Name of Jesus. God on the other hand want us to have abundant life in all its fullness. God’s voice is the only one to listen to because He is positive, encouraging and in fact, is the Life (John 14:5). He truly is the one to receive all of our worship. As we widen our scope of worship, Satan is sure to put a spanner in the works to discourage us with negative thoughts, doubt and lies. But we don’t have to put up with his schemes because the Bible tells us in James 4:7 if we resist the devil, that is Satan, he will flee. Another way of putting it is that you can take your stand against the devil’s lies. Distraction is another way he puts us off track from what God is asking us to do, but we must remember what scripture says in 1 John 4:4 “You dear children are from God and have overcome them because greater is He that is in you than he who is in the world.”
We can also know God’s peace when things go wrong. Recently the water filter in the kitchen needed to be changed. The workman was due at 11 am but rang to say he would be half an hour late. That was OK but it turned out to be an hour. I thought my home help wouldn’t be able to to do her work as the water would be off, so I cancelled her visit. Then the audiologist rang to say there was a hiccup with the new mould I was getting for my hearing aid. My Monday was turned upside down, but I didn’t lose my peace. Instead I laughed at it and realised just how calm I had been. When we keep our peace the Holy Spirit helps our spirit and soul to be at peace. Like me in that situation, our responses are much more positive and constructive. We can know “The peace that passes all understanding” (Philippians 4:7) which I call the Abiding Peace. I marvel at it with thankfulness. Yes, it’s worship. Oh, when you lose your peace, you can find something that will really make you laugh in the depths of your soul. This may help your peace to return “for a merry heart does good like medicine” (Proverbs 17:22). There may be problems that you are facing but try seeing them as opportunities that will cause you to grow and learn, as you ask the Lord what He is wanting to show you. This way you are inviting Jesus into more of your life, developing more trust and increasing faith in His abilities to guide you. Growing in faith brings us into a wider place to see that worship is really becoming a lifestyle.
