worship God

Worship: God Likes Noise and Demonstration

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[This is part of the Experiencing Remarkable Worship devotional series]

One of the definitions of worship is akin to a dog licking his owner’s hand. How’s that for a word picture? (Don’t worry; you don’t have to lick God’s hand like a dog.)

But He does like demonstration and expression in worship!

Everyone is in a different place in their journey of worship so their exhibition and volume is going to be different; it’s best not to judge.

King David is an icon of worshipper in the Bible, but even he had to tell his soul to bless the Lord (Psalm 103:1). I’m sure there were days he didn’t feel like it. With killing a lion, a bear, Goliath, and exhaustion in running for his life, he was up against a lot. (And I think I have problems!)

In the Bible, numerous examples can be found to show what is used to worship God. What are they? To start with, I found five. Most of these let us know that God likes noise! The rest of them let us know that God likes exhibition! Check these out:

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5 Biblical Ways to Bring Worship

1. Instruments

Sing praises to the LORD with the lyre, with the lyre and the sound of melody! With trumpets and the sound of the horn make a joyful noise before the King, the LORD! Psalm 98:5-6 ESV

Praise him with trumpet sound; praise him with lute and harp! Praise him with tambourine and dance; praise him with strings and pipe! Praise him with sounding cymbals; praise him with loud clashing cymbals! Psalm 150:3-5 ESV

2. Voice

Make a joyful noise to the LORD, all the earth; break forth into joyous song and sing praises! Psalm 98:4 ESV

And those who went before and those who followed were shouting, “Hosanna! Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord! Mark 11:9 ESV

Luke 1:46 And Mary said, “My soul magnifies the Lord…”

3. Hands

Lift up your hands in the sanctuary, and bless the Lord. Psalm 134:2 KJV

O clap your hands, all ye people; shout unto God with the voice of triumph. Psalm 47:1 KJV

4. Legs

And the Levites, of the Kohathites and the Korahites, stood up to praise the LORD, the God of Israel, with a very loud voice. 2 Chronicles 20:19 ESV

The Levites stood with the instruments of David, and the priests with the trumpets.  2 Chronicles 29:26 ESV

5. Body (Dancing and Bowing)

Dancing

Then Miriam the prophetess, the sister of Aaron, took a tambourine in her hand, and all the women went out after her with tambourines and dancing. Exodus 15:20 ESV

And David danced before the LORD with all his might. And David was wearing a linen ephod. 2 Samuel 6:16 ESV

Bowing

O come, let us worship and bow down: let us kneel before the Lord our maker. Psalm 95:6 KJV

Then Jehoshaphat bowed his head with his face to the ground, and all Judah and the inhabitants of Jerusalem fell down before the LORD, worshiping the LORD. 2 Chronicles 20:18 ESV

I want to encourage you to explore these possibilities in your worship to God. If the thought of participating in one of them makes you uneasy, then think about this:

When you were first learning how to swim it might have been with some trepidation even though it was fairly easy to learn. I want to encourage you to dive into what is new for you. Nothing else on earth gives the same weightlessness as being in the water. Similarly, you will find the same with engaging in these ways of worship.

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So what do I do now?

  • Read. Bless our God, O peoples; let the sound of his praise be heard. Psalm 66:8 ESV
  • Reflect. The first half of the above verse says to bless God. What does your demonstration of worship look like? The second half of the verse says to praise with a volume level that can be heard. Does God want you to amplify yours?
  • Pray. God, there is nothing like your tangible presence. Help me to step into the “water of worship.” Teach me to swim. Help me not to get caught up in what others think when I worship You, because it is all for Your glory. 
  • Worship. God is pleased by your worship. He likes it! Sometimes we need some practice so our praises don’t get stolen. (If you need some encouragement on this, read this post.)

What is your favorite way to bring worship to God?

Bless our God, O peoples; let the sound of his praise be heard. Psalm 66:8 ESV [Tweet this]

 

*This post will be linked up with RaRaLinkup, Testimony Tuesday, Intentional Tuesday,Tell His Story, Tea&Word, and more.

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Obeying God When the Struggle Is Real

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Welcome back, friends! Today I’m sharing a follow-up to the disobedience issue I came clean with in my last post. I don’t want my steps to be off sync while I’m walking with Jesus, so today I’m sharing practical ways to obey Him when you feel like He is leading you to do something that’s not so easy!

Several years ago I read a book called Rees Howell, Intercessor. I am still in awe of the gravity of his story of surrendering to the commands of the Holy Spirit in every aspect of his daily life. I prayed a dangerous prayer after that, and told the Holy Spirit I would live my life that way. I definitely haven’t always submitted, but yet there have been drastic moments of yielding in daily details.

Which is why it wasn’t surprising that God took a magnifying glass to the tiny crumb I subconsciously brushed under the rug during my busy day.

It’s just bedtime, God. I feel like a little kid instead of a responsible adult when I can’t have more of “go to bed within a certain range” rather than a specific time.

If you love me, you will keep my commandments. John 14:15 ESV

He likes to respond with scriptures.😉

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Of course, there is no scripture that says, “Thou shalt go to bed at a certain time,” but should I obey God when I feel His leading to do something for which I cannot find a specific command in the Bible? Yes. Of course, the Holy Spirit will never lead us to do something sinful or contrary to the Bible.

Much of Jesus’ ministry was being led by the Spirit. For example, the Holy Spirit led Jesus into the wilderness (Matthew 4:1).

I often want to fight God for control of my day, but if I keep the first and greatest command that tells me to love God with ALL my heart, soul, and mind, then obeying Him in the details should be a normal practice. I’ve said it before, love is a choice. God is leading; I am not.

If I choose to love God, then I will let Him decide the details of my life when He leads. [Tweet this]

7 Practical Ways to Obey God

  1. Write it down. Write down what you feel like God is leading you to do. This might come in pieces, but write down the big picture, every step. Even the 10 Commandments were written down.
  2. Select foundational verses. Whatever God leads you to do will be biblical. (The directional will definitely not go against scripture in any way; if it does, it’s not God.) Since there isn’t a specific command in scripture in my case of being diligent to keep the strict bedtime that I felt God led me to, I chose verses that went along with calling. Colossians 1:10 reminds me to walk worthy of my calling, and Philippians 4:13 help me lean on God for strength.
  3. Find an “accountabilibuddy”. Even the most well-meaning Christian can become inconsistent. Ask someone to check up on you. Simply giving that person permission to speak into your life and cheer you on can bring about amazing motivation.

The remaining 4 are from the keys of obedience that I started having my kids follow several years ago. It’s funny how sometimes a mom can teach simple principles to her children, but hasn’t applied them to herself. Don’t ask me how I know this. Let’s just say I remember putting these “keys” into place and the Lord was correcting me while I was correcting them!

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For the little ones I had simplified them as “happy attitude, no complaining, right away, and finish all,” however let’s briefly look at these:

  1. Check your attitude. God looks at the heart and motives. My prayer is, I delight to do Your will (Psalm 40:8a NASB).
  2. Watch your words. It’s so easy to start complaining when things start going wrong. Or doubt talk may need to be kicked to the curb.
  3. Don’t delay. “Delayed obedience is not obedience at all, it’s disobedience,” was what I started saying to my kids when we started with the keys. I learned there is a fine line between giving myself grace for mistakes, and delaying because of laziness.😉
  4. Finish all. Do everything He said to do, and then trust Him with the rest. He uses humans to accomplish His purposes, but I’ve had to make sure I don’t try to take things a step further and make something happen on my own. I simply need to finish my part.

What did I miss? Is there anything else we could add to this list?

Love is a springboard and the motivator to obey God when the struggle is real. [Tweet this]

*This post may also be linked up with the following: RaRaLinkup, Testimony Tuesday, Intentional Tuesday,Tell His Story, Tea&Word, Coffee for Your Heart, Christian Blogger Linkup, Thought Provoking Thursday, ThankfulThursdays, FreshMarketFriday, DanceWithJesus, Grace & Truth, Faith Filled Friday, Faith’nFriends, Word of God Speak, Moments of Hope,What Joy Is Mine

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