I am currently in seminary, and I recently chose my summer class. It is called "Worship". When I saw the title, I erroneously thought it was about worship songs. Rather, the course is about how a church service is planned and organized, and the different elements of our faith which are often included.
Clearly, worship is more than just singing. After all, we do often call our gatherings at church, "worship services". It made me think about the different ways in which we worship God. To backtrack even further, it made me think about what worship even is. How would you define worship?
As a verb, the basic dictionary defines worship as, "to show reverence or adoration for a deity". If you search for the Christian definition of worship, you find definitions such as: granting God the adoration He is due; praising God from the depths of our hearts; attributing to God all that He is; responding to the revelation of God's glory; and more.
What is worship, then? Perhaps worship is when our hearts, minds, and actions align in honoring God and focusing on Him.
There are examples of worship all throughout the Bible. Sometimes worship is through sacrifice, sometimes through falling to their knees or their faces, sometimes through song and dance. Sometimes worship is hospitality or caring for neighbors (ie. 2 Kings 4:8-37). The Psalms are full of worship choruses. Jesus was worshipped. We are commanded likewise to worship (ie. John 4:23-24; Hebrews 12:28). Through worship, we connect to God. We grow in love for Him and in relationship with Him.
Graham Kendrick, a British Christian songwriter, has said, "Worship has been misunderstood as something that arises from a feeling which 'comes upon you,' but it is vital that we understand that it is rooted in a conscious act of the will, to serve and obey the Lord Jesus Christ."
Worship is certainly singing to God. We can even dance before the Lord, as David did in 2 Samuel 6:14-22. But we worship in other ways, too. We worship through the sacraments. We worship through the giving of our tithes and offerings. We worship through prayer and Bible reading and fasting and all the spiritual disciplines.
I also believe we worship God when we love His people. When we serve others and are His hands and feet.
What always flabbergasted me about the critique I received from Christians for my work at the border, was how I experienced God there on the daily. I saw God in the migrants I served, in their faith and resilience, and in the beauty of their smiles. I saw God in the volunteers who gave up their free time and even their retirement to be present every day, handing out soup and shoelaces and assurance. Isn’t that also a form of worship?
Paul directs us this way in Colossians 3:16-17, "Let the message of Christ dwell among you richly as you teach and admonish one another with all wisdom through psalms, hymns, and songs from the Spirit, singing to God with gratitude in your hearts. And whatever you do, whether in word or deed, do it all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him."
Is this not a command to worship? To worship through teaching the message of Christ, through holding one another accountable, through singing humans and songs, through expressing gratitude, and to doing it all for God the Father.
Whatever you do - whether as a volunteer, an employee, a parent, a child, a church member, a leader, etc - may it all be worship to God. May the way we love and worship Him be evident in our day-to-day life, expressed through our obedience to Him and our love for others.
Worship is far more than what is done on Sundays.
Worship is a way of life.
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