How to Pray for My School - a Guide for ParentsSample

WORSHIP

Devotion

Worship is a beautiful expression that comes naturally to those who experience God and His existence. Most understand worship as relating only to singing and music. And although music is a biblical expression of worship, worship is so much more than just one action. Worship should rather be defined as an expression of our lifestyle, of how we live.

Worship, according to the image described by John in the book of Revelation, is joining the four living creatures (the ox, lion, man, and eagle) in their position before the throne of God and looking to Him in awe. Every time we see God, we see something completely new. We then appropriately begin to sing, “Holy, Holy, Holy is the Lord God Almighty, who was and is and is to come!” (Revelation 4:8, LEB) That’s worship – encountering the God of the universe and singing our response to everything we see. When we encounter the glory of God in Christ, we begin to shine. We can't help but worship as we encounter the Ultimate Sacrifice and High Priest, Jesus Christ.

When we say that worship is a lifestyle, we are saying that worship is not a program or part of the Christian routine; it is directly related to our identity. It is something we do because of who we are. We are worshippers. Sons and daughters of the God Most High are Worshippers of the God Most High. One cannot separate the action of “seeing” God and the response of worshipping God. God’s beauty, glory, majesty, kingship, rulership, sovereignty, wisdom, wonder, grace, kindness, gentleness, patience, longsuffering, goodness, justice – all in all His existence inspires worship. When we encounter any one of these attributes, it ought to reverberate or echo throughout our entire being.

When we use the word attribute, it should not be understood as something that we attribute to God, but rather as a reference to the fact that they are already present or inherent to God’s being. He cannot choose to be kind, loving, patient, just, etc. He must be these things because they are part of who He is. You cannot remove these attributes from His Being, otherwise, He will cease to be God. When God identifies Himself by using the name YHWH (Yahweh), meaning “I Am," He is identifying Himself as the origin of everything in existence. Everything that exists flows from Him; nothing can exist apart from Him, who is Existence! This is important because such a great Being ought to be worshipped, or better yet in the words of C.S Lewis in his reflections on the Psalms:

Man’s chief end is “to glorify God and enjoy Him forever." But… these are the same thing. To enjoy fully is to glorify. In commanding us to glorify Him, God is inviting us to enjoy Him.

That’s worship!

We are called to engage God, and as the awareness and experience of His ‘being’ permeates through our entire being, it starts affecting the lives of others. They become aware of God because when they meet us it would be like meeting God’s character. That’s the whole purpose of being someone who bears the image of God!

When You Pray:

As you and your family discuss what you have just read, I encourage you to pray that the schools in South Africa and around the world become an atmosphere of vibrant worship. Pray that the pupils will encounter God and, in turn, that all will experience God through them. Encountering Him is worship.