Worship and the Word

I have not been able to shake the importance of worship being in partnership with the Word of God. One without the other is not complete. To get to know God we must read or hear the Word of God – if we begin to know God, we can’t help but worship Him. It is a
by-product of our praise.

True worship flows from a life of obedience and faith. Many of our churches have taken the ministry of worship to an art level – and people come in droves to participate in a worship experience. When we look at scripture we see:

“These people honor me with their lips,
but their hearts are far from me.
Their worship is a farce,
for they teach man-made ideas as commands from God.”

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Just having an emotional feeling – a temporary uplift is not the kind of worship that honors God. Worship that honors God must be in line with and in response to the Word of God, not a staged set-up!

I visited a church on Sunday that did not have proper staging; it was in a crisis community and the tension that goes with such a community was felt as I walked in. All the details that mark the “perfect service” were not there – the worship team was a mis-matched group – but when they began to worship God – and as they continued to worship God, it was evident that they believed and were committed to what they were singing! It was an awesome time of worship and the anointing of God was present in the place. When the preacher got up, the people’s hearts were ready and they quickly joined in the journey of bringing an Old Testament story to contemporary application. I left there feeling as if I had been to church, and took what I received with me!

I don’t want to neglect mentioning that prayer was an integral part of the worship. The integral parts of this service brought hope to those who came – and I am convinced that thre wre those whose lives were changed, for I know the many ‘heard” and “believed” the report of the Lord. Ending the service with a testimony of someone who came from a very rugged beginning was proof of the work going on, as a gentleman who has found not only new life in Christ in this church, but has coompletely re-directed a life of jail-time to one of becoming a master student on his way to receiving a doctorate!

This is what it is all about – churches come in all shapes and sizes – and some are polished to perfection, others are a bit motley; but neither is where God dwells unless they have learned the secret of partnering worship and the word – for it is here the presence of God dwells!

God Bless You.
Maria