The Life Of A Worship Leaderနမူနာ

Walk in Worship

Have you ever been in a worship service where you felt like it was just you and God? You can hear every whisper from His lips, every pulse from His heartbeat, and every washing of His word. What about leading a worship service where you feel the same way – not you and your anxieties, not you and the pressure, just you, God, and the people?

“Of all the music that reached farthest into heaven, it is the beating of a loving heart.” – Henry Ward Beecher

Personally, there have been times when either my mind was racing or my mouth was moving, but my heart was standing still. It may have been due to things on the brain concerning the week, stress, or even worry.

Oftentimes we are influenced to believe that once we worship, or if we worship, all of our concerns are melted away. I mean, we are to leave our problems behind before we come to God, right? Wrong.

The most expressive times I find in worship are when I bring my worries, stress, concerns, and requests to the feet of Jesus. What I bring to the Lord in worship is significant to what I expect of Him. What I give to God through the obedience and will of Christ is what He desires. There is an anticipation, not for God to answer my prayers, but rather for the opportunity to be honest with Him.

Confession - that’s one word we don’t often use very often in the church. Confession is when we agree with God. Through prayer and worship, we confess who He is. We confess His love. We confess our sin. We confess His forgiveness and proclaim the work of the Gospel. This is where we find the mercy, grace, and strength in our times of need.

We respond to God in worship through prayer and confession. When we seek His ways to live repentant lives, He will bless and guide our ways. Just as we have seen in the kings of old (2 Chronicles 17:3), the Lord still walks besides us today (Luke 24:15).

Honest or not, God sees it all and knows it all. Scripture reminds us that we are to “take every thought in to the captivity of Christ.” - 2 Corinthians 10:5. We are also told “Let us then approach the throne of grace with confidence, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help us in our time of need.” - Hebrews 4:16

Often we find ourselves going through the motions in a Sunday service. We sing the songs, pray the prayers, and listen to the message. But what does it mean?

Where is the impact and where are our thoughts? On what words are we truly meditating according to Philippians 4:8? In this scenario, our response of worship may seem thin; it may even seem that it does not break through the ceiling. Worship is not what we get from God, but what we give to God.

He does not answer our concerns/prayers based on how much we praise Him. This would be conditional. What He wants is for us to praise Him – no strings attached – unconditionally.

Psalm 28:7 says: “The LORD is my strength and my shield; my heart trusts in Him, and I am helped. My heart leaps for joy and I will give thanks to Him in song.”

Where is the writer in this scenario? Sounds like he came from the shadows of despair and into the light of joy. How? He found the strength of God in the time he needed help. We see that the Psalmist was rescued, and therefore his heart leapt for joy in giving thanks through song.

Our worship is changed when our hearts are changed. As our hearts are changed, so are our lives and the songs which we sing. Like the Psalmist, we should approach God with a heart of trust, with a soul of humility, and with a mind that brings every thought captive into the obedience of Christ.

In this exchange, we find true freedom, true significance, true acceptance, and, most of all, true, unconditional love. This rescue causes our hearts to sing for joy with thankfulness.

We can sing a new song. No matter the pressure or emotion we experience, His presence is what we seek. His ways are before us and He will never leave us nor forsake us. This kind of love compels us to walk in worship, in His word, and in His spirit (John 14:23; John 4:24) with every step. Through Jesus, in every step, walk in worship.