A Life of Worship
Worship is not confined to the walls of a church. It does not only start or end with church services. Rather, it is a life-long bowing down of our hearts before God, adoring Him and surrendering ourselves completely to Him. To worship is to be in complete awe of God.
Have you ever experienced a moment when you felt in your heart that God was so awesome and great? That was how Peter felt before Jesus Christ. When he and his fellow fishermen had done what Jesus told them and they caught such a great number of fish that their boats almost sank! At that moment, Peter fell down at Jesus’ feet, feeling completely in awe of God (Luke 5:8). No one told him to fall down before Jesus, but he did so because he was in awe in the presence of the Almighty God. It is no wonder that the living creatures, the elders, the angels, and the multitude in John’s vision could not stop praising God before His throne. They were in such awe of the everlasting God for His greatness that they worshiped Him day and night (Revelation 4:6-11).
A True Worship must be Accompanied with Total Surrender
Our Lord Jesus taught us that true worship does not depend on where we worship but whether we worship in spirit and in truth (John 4:23). God wants us to bow before Him not only outwardly, but sincerely with our spiritual being and in complete truthfulness. As Believers, we have to take our worship a step further. Our worship must be accompanied with total surrender of our hearts and will.
Total Surrender of Our Heart: The word “worship” means “prostrate oneself in homage.” It is a term that describes the action of a person bowing down before someone great, a sign of total humility and devotion. However, the true essence of worship is not in the outward bowing down but the bowing down of the inner person. To those who only paid attention to the outward form of worship but forgot the true meaning of worship, this is what the Lord had to say: “These people draw near to Me with their mouth, And honor Me with their lips, But their heart is far from Me. And in vain they worship Me…” (Mathew 15:8-9)
True worship is a heart-felt response to God’s greatness. It is the adoration of God and complete surrender from the heart. This is the way the psalmists in the Bible worshipped God. When they considered God’s love, mercy, His mighty deliverance, His works in nature, they marveled. From their inner-most being, they cried out to God in adoring wonder. This is how we must worship our heavenly Father, The Jehovah.
Total Surrender of Our Will: It is important for us to surrender our spirits to His spirit and our truthfulness to His truth, but sincerity is not enough. A person can be sincerely wrong. We cannot worship and serve God according to our own ways and will; we must surrender to His ways and His will. That is worship, and it is a daily action. Paul explains worship in terms of total surrender of ourselves (Our Will) to God.
“And so, dear brothers and sisters, I plead with you to give your bodies to God because of all he has done for you. Let them be a living and holy sacrifice—the kind he will find acceptable. This is truly the way to worship him. Don’t copy the behavior and customs of this world, but let God transform you into a new person by changing the way you think. Then you will learn to know God’s will for you, which is good and pleasing and perfect.” (Romans 12:1-2, NLT)
Worship is letting go of ourselves and let God take control in our lives. It means conforming to God’s ways and will, rather than to popular culture. God’s ways and wills are far beyond what we can understand. We can only humbly submit to them with an attitude of awe (Rom 11:33-36). God’s thoughts and ways are so much higher than ours. He sees from eternity to eternity, while we don’t even know about tomorrow. We can only entrust ourselves completely to our Maker and Lord. Our God is the very reason for our existence. To Him and through Him and for Him are all things. He is worthy of all glory and honor.
God’s throne room is always open. Every moment of our lives is an occasion to worship. Even when you’re not on your knees in prayer or holding a Bible, you can still offer true worship to God. Come into God’s presence any moment. He will never fail to inspire you, be it through a word of encouragement, a reminder of His eternal love, a warm embrace by His Spirit.
May every day of our lives be filled with praise, thanks, and God’s wonders? May our entire being be humbly dedicated to God for His service?