Worship: It's Time to Wake Up

"We are ready to worship." This sentence is not from a church service, but, rather, what fans in an interview used to describe their anticipation for Sam Smith's recent concert. It is so evident that the media of today is a blatant reflection of Satan. We have celebrities dressing up as the devil, venues designed to reflect the demonic realm, and fans bowing down and worshipping them in response. The fact is the world is more passionate about worship than most Christians are. As a result, we are continuously moving further from God because we were made by God to reflect whatever we worship.

Why is it that the world worships celebrities, such as Sam Smith, so aggressively but worships the creator of the universe so passively? Why are we able to cry, dance, scream, and lose our minds at sports events and concerts, but stand unexpressive in our worship? There are Christians who can know the whereabouts of their favorite celebrity at all times but can't even identify where they are with Christ accurately. John 4:23 reads "But the hour is coming, and is now here, when the true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and truth". God deserves more than we could ever express or give Him. However, I believe people don't fully understand the impact and the importance of the worship we express.

What is worship? First, worship is our function. God designed us to have the desire in our heart to worship. That means if you don't worship God, you will end up worshipping something else. We see it all the time in today's culture with celebrities, sports, media, politics, work, etc. That being said, worship is meant to be holy. God designed it for a specific purpose: to glorify God and God alone. We were created to worship, but our sinful nature steers us into patterns of idolatry. You see, worship is a response. The word “worship” is derived from two English words: “worth” and “shape” or “quality”. We worship in response to who we know God to be in the Bible, and what God has done in our lives. So, when we worship anything other than God, it starts to become our truth, our focus, and our influence.

God initiates worship with us by revealing to man His holiness, righteousness, justice, sovereignty, power, and nature. The more knowledge believers gain about God and who He is, the better we can worship Him and declare His worth to the nations. The same can be said about celebrities, sports, media, etc. The more we know and the more time we spend consumed by it, the farther we stray from worshipping the God who designed it. Mankind was made for the same purpose as the rest of creation, to worship and reflect Him. However, God desired a unique relationship with us. Genesis 1:27 takes us back to the start of humanity, “So God created man in His own image, in the image of God He created him; male and female He created them.” God made us in His image so that we might reflect Him to the fallen world. Per God’s design, we will always reflect whatever it is that we worship.

In addition, we are called to worship God in spirit and truth. To do so is to be in a spiritual relationship with the Holy Spirit through the acceptance of salvation and to worship with a genuine attitude. When we worship God in spirit and in truth, our everyday lives should reflect our genuine love and gratitude as well. We should worship and honor God in every aspect of our lives, not just on Sundays when the music is going. Being genuine in worship is to be in reverence and awe of the Creator, to acknowledge that you need Him, and accept Jesus as the atonement for our sins.

There's a distinct difference between worshipping and being a worshipper. Being a worshipper is a lifestyle, while worshipping may only be a moment of exhilaration or euphoria. Some people worship, but only if it's in an atmosphere surrounded by church walls and music. That being said, God desires people who are worshippers in and outside the church. They don't just do worship, they are worship. In a lot of churches today, we have congregation members and leaders who only have a relationship with God on Sundays. But let me remind you the enemy isn't threatened by a "Sunday Morning faith". Often, it isn't genuine, but rather a box to be checked. The enemy is chasing after those who are chasing after God because they are the ones who serve as the biggest threat to his agenda. God isn't worthy of praise for only one day a week, so why would we treat Him as such? God is constant every day, every hour, every second, and He is worthy of our praise all the time.

Worship has no neutral ground. It is either for God or against Him. If you aren't with God completely, you're with the enemy. Worship either magnifies God or glorifies Satan. There is no in-between. It needs to engage our entire lifestyle and go beyond what is done on a Sunday morning. Worship can be anything you dedicate to God. Whether that be writing, athletics, art, rest, jobs, spending time in God's Word, etc. Worship should be an everyday and all the time offering before God. I currently serve as a worship leader, and I can't tell you how many times I've seen people in the same position, act one way on stage and a different way off (next week, I will focus on what makes a good church leader, so make sure to tune in for that!). It happens in our church leaders and congregations all too often. Our worship on Sundays should be an overflow of our everyday and personal worship before God. I cannot stress the importance of worshipping God in all aspects of your life and not just the aspects the public sees.

The world today has the opportunity to worship God like no other generation before. We are living in a world that bombards us with distraction after distraction. With social media, phones, and the culture of glorified busyness, we often don't realize the emptiness in ourselves. We are constantly consuming so many things around us. However, this generation has the opportunity to rise up in spite of the distractions and the marginalized idolatry and say "I choose you, God". I choose you above the noise, I choose you above the chaos, I choose you above the instant pleasures of this world, I choose you above the mindlessness and the business I'm surrounded with. We have the choice to say "God, I've seen everything this world has to offer, but when I saw you, I knew nothing else could satisfy me like Jesus." This is our opportunity that the enemy doesn't want us to see. So, that leaves one question, will you take it?

May your roots run deep, and your faith remain strong! As always, Stay Rooted, my friends! <3