HEARTFELT WORSHIP

“Holy, Holy, Holy is the Lord Almighty;
the whole earth is full of His glory.” Isaiah 6:3

I never cease to be amazed at how God works in themes in our lives.  When I was praying about what to write this week I kept coming up blank.  Then on Saturday evening while preparing for church the next morning I began to thank the Lord for all He has done for us. I try to start praying each time with praise and it dawned on me (or the Holy Spirit spoke, however you choose to look at it) that this was a wonderful time of year to share about worship.  The holiday rush is over and life is beginning to get back to a routine. Now this is not by far the first time God has used themes in my life so when my pastor’s sermon on Sunday was directed to worship I had a little chuckle. I‘m sure the Lord was smiling as I chuckled in church.  When God works in themes in your life it generally means He s trying to tell you something. I really try and pay attention when this happens. So I began to think of all the ways we worship God. Of course there is corporate singing in church, then there is music that we play and listen to, but what other ways are there? Those of you who know me personally know that I am always admiring God’s handy work in creation. I love to garden and I feed the birds and squirrels around where we live.  It is hard for me not to worship God when surrounded by His majesty here in the mountains. I equally love to be in the desert in the spring, it’s beautiful.  Who cannot be impressed with the power of the roaring ocean and marvel at its ability not to come beyond the shore line? However, God expects us to worship Him in all seasons and for all reasons, not just creation, but in rough times, good times, births and even death. 
 
In Isaiah 6 it talks about the majesty of the Lord.  What do you think God is trying to get across to us?  As Christians we have become complacent when it comes to the holiness and majesty of God.  We get so involved in church and the business of things to do that we forget to ask Him to be involved. He is after all our King. We tend to love the “idea” of God and what that represents but we fail to be “in love” with God.  Some people try to water down faith by making it warm and fuzzy. It’s not, its hard work, something that we must be intentional about. Loving God is a choice. When I reflect back on my life I have found large holes where I failed to worship the Lord and give Him thanks for bringing me through both good and difficult times.  This gives me grief, but it also gives me hope.  I have learned not to do this, so thanks to the Lord I’m learning to be more like Him every day, and He hasn’t given up on me either!  I guess in my defense I’m getting a little wiser as I age, go figure. As you begin to look around you start noticing all that God has created; this is a great place to start worshiping. Then look at all He has given you, get the picture?  It will begin to multiply from there, soon you will be worshiping and praising God for everything. Even when you stub your big toe! One of the things that I have received from learning to worship is real joy, not happiness, but real indescribable joy. It was one of those “ah-ha” moments when I realized this side effect.  Don’t you just love it when that happens?
 
God knows what is best for each one of us, and just like in Isaiah 6, when He gave Isaiah a fresh vision of Himself, God can and will give you a fresh vision when you begin to really worship Him and keep Him the center of your life. This week when you “check your pulse”, please reflect on all that you have received, give Him thanks and worship with all your heart!