You can't attend worship, You have to live it

So we've reached the end of our series on  overcoming fear, and today we will be talking about our final principle: worship. Now if I were to ask you what worship meant to you, I would probably get answers along the lines of "singing" or lifting up your hands" and many more. It's true, this is worship, but it's only a part of worship. I think that overtime we've lost sight of what it truly means to worship the most High. In the word it tells us in John 4:23-24

"But the time is coming—indeed it’s here now—when true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and in truth. The Father is looking for those who will worship him that way.  For God is Spirit, so those who worship him must worship in spirit and in truth.”

I think that to be a true worshiper of God, it has to become a lifestyle. Worship isn't just singing a pretty song, closing your eyes and lifting up your hands. It's not always about music. Growing up, this is basically what I thought worship was all about. That time before the preaching to get people pumped. As I grew older, I began to realize (thank God I realized) that it is so much more than that. Worship is the words you speak, the way you live, the things you do. I came to realize that EVERYTHING we do is meant to honor the Father in a spirit of worship towards Him. In spirit and in truth means not just on the outside, but also on the inside. What are your thoughts and feelings? How are you treating your friends, family, I'm even going to go out on a limb and say how are you treating those who you aren't the fondest of? This is ALL a reflection of your worship to God. Something that I compare this to is when God tells us to honor our parents. Now by honoring them that means that you will speak well of them, and you will love them and care for them. Now just imagine God and how you worship Him. Are you living in a way that honors Him?

Ive learned that if you don't know how to love, you can't worship. How can you love and worship someone you can't see in the physical and not love someone who is right next to you. It just doesn't work out. Ask God to teach you how to love and to worship Him. Its a beautiful process, and it leads you straight to His heart.

Something else I've come to notice is that worship really does set the atmosphere for the Holy Spirit to come and take control. I believe that in true worship, you have to surrender all that you are to God, and just be open to Him molding you into the person that He wants you to be. That means giving up your fears, your issues, the good in you. That means that you have to surrender the parts of your life that you don't want Him to touch.

A passage that reflects a lot about worship and music is in Isaiah 30:32. It says :

"Every stroke the Lord lays on them with his punishing club will be to the music of timbrels and harps, as he fights them in battle with the blows of his arm."

I find this verse interesting because God paints us a beautiful picture here. This is something that I heard in a preaching by Bill Johnson, and it really changed my attitude towards worship through music. To sum up that verse and to make it easier, it pretty much says God will defeat the enemy and beat them to the ground to the music of timbrels and harps. I can't find another word to describe this situation but the word awesome. God will defeat your enemy, your fears, your sorrows through your worship. The more you worship the bigger of a beating your enemy and affliction will get; whatever it may be. This is why worship is a place of surrender. A place to trust the Lord with everything that is worrying you or hurting you. The battle has already been won for you, all God asks for you to do is to worship Him and believe. It's time to let God take control of that fear and let Him do His thing. Worship IS a time for change and a time of victory. Worship in all that you do and you will see God's victorious hand work in your life. Never underestimate the power that is worship,  because it is a tool that God has given us to overcome and be victorious in His name. Its time to go back to the heart of worship.

Love, Michelle :D