Feeding a Hungry Soul: Worship...a Response of the Heart or an Act of Obedience?

My last entry on this blog was spurred by the challenge given by our church pastor to approach Monday - Saturday as days to prepared ourselves to worship at church on Sunday. Motivated by the excitement of how this challenge changed the way I mentally approached each day, I think that post got a little long winded!

So before I dive into more thoughts on that topic using other scripture God has laid before me, let me summarize that prattling post in a few bulleted thoughts:

John 12:16 ~ The disciples didn't understand that God was fulfilling prophesy until Jesus was glorified. Even though scriptures of old laid it out, they still needed to be enlightened to understand.

I too need God to reveal to me His glory every single day. Left on my own, my view becomes self centered, prideful, critical, bitter or full of self pity. And how does God reveal His glory to me? When I take time to read His word, meditate on His thoughts and listen to His voice.

If I am not prepared on Sunday to worship God for all of His revealed glory, I walk blindly into a sanctuary full of people, words, and music but no realization of what it's all about. Sure, I have the 'big picture'...this is God's day, this is something I'm supposed to do on my check list of things 'good Christians' do...but I am not prepared to worship.

Worship by definition is an act of adoration and praise. Spending time daily to see the glory of God in my life and in His word gives me new reasons to adore and praise Him. Worship means I come to church needing to adore and praise God as an overflowing response of my heart, not as a dedicated act of obedience. {click to tweet this}

John 24:23-24 ~ God is seeking 'true worshipers' ~ those who will worship Him in spirit and in truth. A truthful response to the moving of His Spirit.

If I worship only as a dedicated act of obedience, I am not a 'true worshiper' as defined by the scripture. I come. (to the church service) I do. (the steps of the service / pray, sing, give, listen). I leave. (unchanged but feeling good about my act of obedience to go to church)
However, if I have prepared myself throughout the week by seeking God's revealed glory in my daily life, I am overflowing with a desire to praise and adore:

My God.
My Creator.
My Savior.
My Comforter.
My Shelter.
My Rock.
My Healer.
My...... (whoever God revealed Himself to be for you personally that week as you prepared yourself to see His revealed glory in your life)

Bottom line...

It's personal.

Preparing myself for worship

is driven by how personal my relationship is with God.

The more I see Him in my life; the more I correspond with Him in prayer and scripture; the more I seek Him with a surrendered heart ready to follow His lead...

the more PERSONAL my relationship with God becomes.

And as the intimacy in my relationship with God grows,

my need to respond grows too.

Providentially, our need to respond with adoration and praise

also fulfills our need to obey God's word:

{click here for printable version}

{simplified and paraphrased...Go to church and praise / adore Him!}

To sum it up...

I need to spend time with God daily, asking Him to reveal more of His glory in my life so I am more and more aware of who His.
The more I learn of how He is working in my life, the more intimate my relationship with God becomes.
Intimacy breeds adoration, which goes beyond respect and acknowledgement of God as God.
Because worship is a natural outpouring of adoration and praise and not simply an act of obedience, my time at church becomes less about attendance and more about worship. (I attend because God tells me to - Hebrews 10:24-25 - I worship because I desire to)

I entitled this post:

Worship...a Response of the Heart or an Act of Obedience? {click to tweet this}

I think the correct answer is: 'all of the above'.

You?

Prayer:

Lord God, I come to praise Your name and offer up my words of adoration as a response to Your revealed glory in my life. You provide for my every need, You catch every tear and become my comforter, You protect me from more than I am even aware of, You are more faithful than I can even fathom and I am able to call You Lord and Savior because of the ultimate sacrifice of Christ. You are the grace I need to move forward, free from shackles of shame and guilt. You are my healer, allowing me to move beyond my brokenness and into all You created me to be. As my Creator, I am amazed at the intricacies of Your design. And each day brings me new word of Your faithfulness, love, grace, comfort, healing, provisions.... Oh Lord the list is longer than I can bring to mind, but I am mindful of all Your word says You are to me and the countless times You prove Yourself to me even when I come with doubt in my heart. Father...You prove Yourself to me over and over not because You are required to but because I require it. Your love for me is comprehensible. You never give up on me as I continue to need reassuring, reminding, refining, and redeeming. I am overwhelmed at the thought of how much I am loved by You, unconditionally. I worship You with praise and adoration as an outpouring of response to Your faithfulness and love. I come and praise You in the name of my Savior, Jesus Christ. Amen.

Our recipe today is for Worship

The ingredients are from Psalm 100:4

The directions are to deepen your intimate relationship with God and surrender to the response of your spirit to give unreserved adoration and praise to Him.

{CLICK HERE for a printable version of today's recipe for the soul.

Make notes on it of how God is speaking to you today,

and carry it with you to feed your soul as needed.}

Other conversations held at His table that may feed your soul today...
Holy Holy Holy...Lord God Almighty
Heartfelt Praise and Worship

I'd love to have you at the table each time I pull up a chair.
If you don't already, won't you join us?

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God Bless and Keep You,