I really did not want to head to church tonight. My day was all different, and I wasn't feeling it. I just wanted to stay home and play on this new laptop. I know you're saying, "How dare you??" God blessed you WITH the laptop. True, true. But Carmen wasn't thinking about that y'all! I wanted to stay HOME! But my daddy said "No, you really need to go if you don't feel like going. That's when you get the best Word. We're going." Okay, case closed. Well let me just tell you!!!!!!!! Bible Study was beyond on point! I mean I was truly blessed! I learned about making my worship a LIFESTYLE. Worship is something serious. I'm basically about to type the notes I took and post them on here. No need to even try and create a special explanation. You'll see.
Okay, so worship is declaring worth, basically acknowledging God's worth. (Ex: when we praise saying, "Lord You're so worthy.") It is an act or respect, it is submission, telling God you're ready to listen. Another thing, we were created for God's own pleasure. You've heard me mention before about how when God created you, even He had to take a step back in awe of His work (YOU). Also, he (the preacher, well elder. Call him what you want just give him a respectful title!)said that there are three parts to us: Spirit which is the REAL you, Soul which is the emotional part, the will you have, and then the body, or flesh, which is just a shell. Through this we know that if we believe in Christ and that He raised from dead after dying for our sins, and get this, THE REAL US WILL NOT CEASE TO EXIST! This means that you will always be around, just not on Earth! Now if that didn't just "wow" you, I don't know what else to say! Let me continue because that was indeed a shouting moment! Okay okay. Getting to know God is very crucial! When you walk with God, don't just walk with Him like it's a simple stroll. Life is not a simple stroll. This is a journey we're on, a real journey. Use this time, this LIFE, to get to know Jesus. Use this life to understand Him and His ways. God's ways our totally different from our ways and the rest of the world's ways. Again, worship should be a lifestyle, not just an occasional occurrence. Next, continue to spend time getting into God's presence. You have to work at it. Like I said in my other post, "Why Don't You Trust Him?" you have to keep praying until you feel God move! Don't just do this aimlessly. Take it seriously. When He sees that you are truly trying He will move in your heart. Worship will change your life! You'll notice that life will go better and you'll feel happier, more optimistic when you truly worship. Your focus should be after God's own heart. David was like that. He was a man after God's own heart. True, David sinned. He sure did. Had him a good ole time doing worldly things. But you wanna know the thing about David that saved him? That man would mess up, but come to his senses and truly repent. Not just "Oh, I'm sorry God. Didn't mean that." No. David truly worshiped, truly repented. He was interested in knowing God's heart! Go read about David. You'll see. Make God's heart your focus. Now if you're new to worshiping and you are already slightly uncomfortable because it's new, just have faith. Faith is not always on what you feel, but what you believe. So don't sit there waiting on a "feeling" just have faith while you worship. Just say it out loud. "I love You Lord"; "You're awesome"; "Thank You Lord". Say it until you truly believe it and you will feel His presence. I believe that faith starts in the mind. The more your mind believes it, the more it is going to come true because you have so much faith in it. No matter what, keep trying continue to fill yourself up with God, His Word and prayer. You have got to put in the work in this relationship!!! This is not a Jesus only thing. He needs you to take part in it. The more you put work in, the more you want to respect Him. Fearing God is respecting God. You become more sensitive to God's word. Also, you become more sensitive to God's ways. That conscience can mess you up. And last, obedience is crucial. You have to obey God. It can't be 50% God, 50% what you want. That's all I have. I'm sure this is really long so if any of you actually read this and made it this far, read on a little more at the scriptures I've posted down here. They were read during the study. I'll let you figure out where they applied in this message. Until next time, Peace, Love, and Truth. :)
P.S. I forgot to mention that at the end, we all wrote down things that were hindering our worship and then placed them at the altar. I encourage you to do the same. When I got all of it down on paper I was shocked at what all I had allowed to hold me back. I also felt the greatest relief upon letting it go. Try it.
God, whom I serve in my spirit in preaching the gospel of his Son, is my witness how constantly I remember you. - Romans 1:9
Therefore, I urge you, brothers and sisters, in view of God’s mercy, to offer your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and pleasing to God—this is your true and proper worship. - Romans 12:1
These people honor me with their lips, but their hearts are far from me. - Matthew 15:8
speaking to one another with psalms, hymns, and songs from the Spirit. Sing and make music from your heart to the Lord - Ephesians 5:19
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