“Give unto the LORD the glory due unto his name; worship the LORD in the beauty of holiness” (Psalm 29:2).
When should we worship God? The simple answer is always. When you’re at work, co-workers can draw you into a secular mindset, but if you’re praising God in your mind and heart at all times, you won’t be led astray. When you’re shopping, if you are more focused on God than on items for sale, maybe you won’t be as prone to impulse buys that waste money. When you’re at school being taught secular science and misleading “facts,” worship God and don’t be led astray.
Nobody can monitor your thoughts yet, so keep Jesus first in your mind and heart. It’s good to continually worship God, but it’s important to set aside a time each day specifically for worship. A time when you won’t be distracted by worries of the day. That time may be when you read your Bible and meditate on God’s truth.
“I will meditate in thy precepts, and have respect unto thy ways” (Psalm 119:15).
Meditation isn’t something Christians should practice when it’s a part of yoga, which should never be practiced by Christians. Meditating on God’s word for a deeper understanding is good. Meditate upon a Scripture that touches your heart or try to understand a deep precept of God. That will keep your mind and heart focused on the Lord, and you’ll be able to apply it to your daily life.
Many Christians today “go to church” and figure that’s good enough. Too often, sitting in a pew for an hour is the time you spend thinking about where you’ll go for lunch after the service is over. Or do other thoughts that don’t relate to worshiping God occupy your time?
I hope you’re blessed to have a pastor who teaches God’s word line upon line from Genesis through Revelation and leads his flock in true worship. How many times during “worship” services are hymns of praise and worship sung, but verses are skipped in order to get done before noon? That isn’t worship. Sadly, that’s the way the vast majority of Sunday morning services are conducted. Other times, the worship team is more concerned about showing off their own talent, and praising the Lord is secondary. Worship is about God, and not about you or those on stage.
John the Baptist was a man who was prophesied in the Old Testament. “The voice of him that crieth in the wilderness, Prepare ye the way of the LORD, make straight in the desert a highway for our God” (Isaiah 40:3).
He could have had a problem with pride, but instead of wanting worship from his followers, he knew that he was to direct the worship to Jesus. “He must increase, but I must decrease” (John 3:30).
Praise and worship aren’t to be wasted on humans, but fully directed to God.
Why is it that Christians forget to worship God? There seem to be many distractions in our modern life. Telephones, television, jobs, school, soccer games, football games, baseball games, and much more. We can’t fully worship God when we’re walking with one foot in the world.
Parents have allowed secular things to take over their children’s lives and interfere with faith and worship of God. Fathers seldom step into their God-ordained place of leadership in a family, so mothers try to be mom and dad. Secular activities rule the family, but that isn’t how God had it planned.
“Wherefore come out from among them, and be ye separate, saith the Lord, and touch not the unclean thing, and I will receive you” (2 Corinthians 6:17).
God desired His chosen people, Israel, to be separate from the pagan people around them. He desires that of Christians, too. We aren’t to be unequally yoked with non-believers and should not participate in any activities that come ahead of God. Children need to be guided to faith and learn from the example of their parents to put God first. When a child sees his father living a Christian life, the child is given a good example to follow. Men, let your children see you worship God. Let them see you study your Bible and pray. Women need to do that too.
Scripture gives us many examples of people who were very close to God and who heard His voice clearly. King David is one of the best examples of a man who loved and worshipped the Lord. He wrote many psalms, and no matter how big the trouble, David always went to the Lord to seek His help and always ended in worship. That’s how we should be. We should feel close enough to God to talk with Him about our fears and concerns, but always praise Him.
David also committed a great sin. In our modern day, we might not see it as any big deal, but it was in David’s time and still is now in God’s eyes. God doesn’t change, but people try to change Him. David committed adultery. He wasn’t concerned about it, but when Bathsheba ended up pregnant, David tried to cover up the sin. Scripture doesn’t tell us whether or not Bathsheba repented of her sin, but she was very guilty, too. David went to the Lord with humility. The psalm which David wrote wasn’t one of his boldest songs of worship, but he recognized God’s attributes and his own transgressions. David knew that only God could forgive his sin, and knew what God desired.
“O Lord, open thou my lips; and my mouth shall shew forth thy praise. For thou desirest not sacrifice; else would I give it: thou delightest not in burnt offering. The sacrifices of God are a broken spirit: a broken and a contrite heart, O God, thou wilt not despise” (Psalm 51:15-17).
Remember David’s worship, humbleness, and repentance when you finally see your own sin and go to the Lord alone for forgiveness. God doesn’t want some human priest to tell you to do some useless penance, or chant hail Mary. It’s only God you are to worship and seek in all things.
Daniel was another one who understood about worshiping God. Daniel and three friends had been taken captive as young men (probably in their teens) from Jerusalem to Babylon. They were Jewish and truly loved the Lord. Babylon was an evil place filled with idolatry, and sin abounded. The Babylonians did not worship God Almighty but were pagans, so they had no idea about worshipping the true God.
Daniel’s faith could not be ruined, nor could the faith of his friends. I admire them very much. They were taken to the king’s palace to be groomed into paganism, but they wouldn’t bend a knee to the demon gods worshipped in Babylon. The faith of these young men was known, and their enemies plotted against Daniel and his like-minded friends Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego. Nebuchadnezzar was convinced to make a huge golden statue, and all people were required to worship that statue.
“And whoso falleth not down and worshippeth shall the same hour be cast into the midst of a burning fiery furnace” (Daniel 3:6).
The plot worked, and Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego were arrested for not worshipping the image. Where was Daniel? There’s no doubt that if he had been in town, he would not have worshipped the image, but his friends were thrown into the fiery furnace. God honored the fact that they didn’t worship the idol and protected them.
The evil men of Babylon wouldn’t stop persecuting Daniel. “Then the presidents and princes sought to find occasion against Daniel concerning the kingdom; but they could find none occasion nor fault; forasmuch as he was faithful, neither was there any error or fault found in him” (Daniel 6:4).
Daniel knew they were plotting against him but wouldn’t compromise his worship of God. He went into his house, opened the windows, and prayed three times a day toward Jerusalem, and gave thanks to his God. He only worshiped God Almighty.
“Then these men assembled, and found Daniel praying and making supplication before his God” (Daniel 6:11).
This time, Daniel was in real trouble, and he was thrown into the lion’s den. God remembered Daniel’s worship and protected him from the lions. He sent an angel to shut the lions’ mouths, but there was no mercy shown to those who rejected God. The king cast them into the den where the starving lions devoured them. Truly worshipping God is always wise.
Have you read about Job? He is described as a man who feared God and eschewed evil. He had a large family, wealth, and many animals. Then he came under attack by Satan. His health gave out, his children died, his animals were killed, and his wife was less than understanding. Her advice was cruel and unfeeling.
“Then said his wife unto him, Dost thou still retain thine integrity? Curse God, and die” (Job 2:9).
Job was a man who loved the Lord and worshipped Him. “But he said unto her, Thou speakest as one of the foolish women speaketh. What? Shall we receive good at the hand of God, and shall we not receive evil? In all this did not Job sin with his lips” (Job 2:10).
Worship comes in many forms. Job trusted the Lord and spoke in His defense. Then his friends showed up and gave him nothing but grief. In the end, Job was rewarded by God, and his health and wealth were restored, and he had more children. Job continued to worship.
“For I know that my redeemer liveth, and that he shall stand at the latter day upon the earth: And though after my skin worms destroy this body, yet in my flesh shall I see God: Whom I shall see for myself, and mine eyes shall behold, and not another; though my reins be consumed within me” (Job 19:25-27).
Faith is worship. Do you worship the Lord by standing firm on your faith and sharing with others?
As Christians, we should be the most worshipful people on earth. By faith and God’s grace, our sins are forgiven. Jesus is preparing a place for us to live eternally with Him. As the world becomes darker and Satanic evil abounds, God’s love and mercy protect us from the evil around us.
The final days are coming, but Christians have the blessed promise of being saved from the Great Tribulation that will soon bring great chaos upon the earth. The promise of the Rapture is something Christians should thank God for and worship Him continually. Jesus will come for us and take us to ever be with Him. There will come a time when even the most stubborn hearts will bow before Jesus.
“That at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, of things in heaven, and things in earth, and things under the earth; And that every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father” (Philippians 2:10-11).
God has done everything for us and only desires our worship. Only He is worthy of our worship, our praise, and our thanks. Worship God with your heart, soul, and mind.
“God is a Spirit: and they that worship him must worship him in spirit and in truth” (John 4:24).
God bless you all,
Nathele Graham
Recommended prophecy sites:
www.raptureready.com
www.prophecyupdate.com
www.raptureforums.com
All original scripture is “theopneustos,” God-breathed.
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“Pray for the peace of Jerusalem: they shall prosper that love thee” (Psalm 122:6).