Everybody Worships

Taste and see that the LORD is good; blessed is the one who takes refuge in him. (Psalms 34:8)

There is something inside the genetic code of every human being that makes us designed for worship. It works best when we worship God. worship misleads us when we worship gods that are not gods, it creates huge disappointment. It misshapes us.

N.T. Wright, in his book Surprised by Hope, writes:

“When human beings give their heartfelt allegiance to and worship that which is not God, they progressively cease to reflect the image of God. One of the primary laws of human life is that you become like what you worship; what’s more, you reflect what you worship not only to the object itself but also outward to the world around. Those who worship money increasingly define themselves in terms of it and increasingly treat other people as creditors, debtors, partners, or customers rather than as human beings. Those who worship sex define themselves in terms of it (their preferences, their practices, their past histories) and increasingly treat other people as actual or potential sex objects. Those who worship power define themselves in terms of it and treat other people as either collaborators, competitors, or pawns. These and many other forms of idolatry combine in a thousand ways, all of them damaging to the image-bearing quality of the people concerned and of those whose lives they touch.”

The Scriptures tell us that hope deferred makes the heart sick. If we worship a god that cannot hear, that cannot see, who does not exist, we become misshapen and quickly become greatly disappointed. But in the moment when we connect with the creator of the universe, a strange thing happens. In that moment we realize that we were empty and now we are alive.

We were created to worship. But that worship is not about the music we sing or the means we employ. Instead, it is about a spiritual practice that reminds us that we are not defined by all the things in the world that try to define us. It’s about being defined by the story that transcends all of human history, Jesus and his deep love for us. We need to become Our goal should be to become desperate for worship. To realize that in it lives the power and his authority of Jesus poured out for us. It is the fuel that moves us into life and mission, it is the fire that moves us deeply into the presence of God. It is a fragrance that is pleasing to God and the perfume of his presence that we carry with us. Worship is crucial to living the extraordinary life.

Are you desperate? How you gonna get there? What is your plan? What are your next step? How do you experience God’s presence? What might you add it or subtract out to do so? One Sunday I asked you to write down own thing, your next step. Did you do it? If you did, have you shared it with anybody?

We were made for worship. It is crucial to you becoming both who you want to become and who God made you to be.

Peace, hope and love

Doug