Did You Know?

Today, we continue our journey through the mission of our church (Make disciples of Jesus that worship passionately, love extravagantly, and witness boldly) as we think about passionate worship.  There is one verse that comes to mind today as I think about worship.  In the context of Isaiah's (43:19-21) praise, he says ... "I am making a way in the wilderness and streams in the wasteland to give drink to my people, my chosen, the people I formed for myself that they might proclaim my praise."  Did you know those last few words ...  "the people I formed for myself, that they might proclaim my praise."  You and I were made to worship God ... and we were made FOR God.  What does this mean?

As a pastor, I hear people say things like, "I worship best when it is quiet and peaceful."  Others say, "I worship best when we are singing a peppy song with a good beat."  I have heard many of these statements over the years.  Do you see a pattern here with these two statements?  They both begin with the word "I."  They both reflect feelings about the setting or the context.  And while setting and context do make a difference, I wonder if we are all focused on our preferences, and we forget that Isaiah said ... worship should flow from our very being, our very soul, because it is totally about what God is doing (and what God has done).  So ... here is my question for today.  Do you consume worship, or does worship consume you?

C. S. Lewis, in the book Screwtape Letters, speaks about how demons distract, divert, and destroy.  In a nutshell, he says that the demon's goal is to get those in church to focus on flaws.  The shoes or dress of the person next to me.  The little noises that might distract me.  The things I imagine about the pastor, worship leaders, musicians, and other worshippers.  These things take us away from the point ... God's presence in His Spirit and the truth of His word.

We will sing a song in the 1st service this week.  It is an old Matthew Ward song.  The words go like this ... "My God is faithful, my God is truthful, my God is boundless, in all He is.  My God is wisdom, my God is righteous, my God is vision, for all who seek.  So I will worship You, in the beauty of holiness, and I will worship You, for the things You've done in me, and when my life's complete, I'll place my crown at Your feet, and I will worship You on bended knee."  That last line is truly Biblical, because most of the Revelation (that last Bible book we confuse and obfuscate) happens in the context of a worship service, all focused on the Lamb that was slain ... who He is, what He is doing, and how He will bring all things round right.

On Sunday, come to service allowing God to set your attitude, lead you to a greater altitude, and teach you the new things of Isaiah 43 (helping your aptitude).  Come to a holy God ... the one who made you, and the one who created you for worship.  For, as is also stated in the Revelation, He is worthy!  AMEN