“When the crowd saw Jesus, they were overwhelmed with awe, and they ran to greet him.”

Worship has to do with your reaction to the living God.  We usually related it to songs and only at a church building.  In reality, worship can happen anywhere and does not only involve singing, but how you live your life; your reaction to God in your everyday life.

First, acknowledge His presence.  Let’s begin by first asking, are you aware that God is around you all the time?  The way we live our lives sometimes reflect that we are unaware of His presence.  When people saw Jesus, “they were overwhelmed with awe.”  It was something they showed.  Initially, worship begins inwardly, but then it must be demonstrated.  Worship has to be poured out.  So, acknowledge His presence around you.

Second, stay amazed.  What do I mean by this?  Don’t take His presence for granted.  How can the four living creatures and the twenty-four elders stay in worship before Him day and night?  They are in awe of His presence.  When was the last time you actually were amazed at God?  See, for most of us, if God doesn’t give us our blessing or answer our prayers, He hasn’t done anything for us.  Really?!?! What about the fact that you have life?  What about the power of His love was so strong that He sent His only Son to die for you?!? We need to get over ourselves.  Stay amazed of His goodness.  Don’t minimize His power in your life to only a raise at work.  He’s so much more powerful than that!  Look at creation; His majesty is declared everywhere.

Third, keep an open communication with Him.  You were created to communicate with God.  It’s already in your DNA.  Don’t limit yourself to only worship or prayer at the church building.  The Bible says that our bodies are His temple.  God desires us, not our worship.  Worship is a natural response to His presence, but God is seeking worshippers.  God has perfect worship in Heaven, but He seeks people who, out of their own will, want to seek Him.  Speak to God and He’ll speak back to you.  Relationships are strengthened through communication.

Respond to God’s presence.  It doesn’t matter where you are.  I pray that you may experience worship in the oddest places!  Be open and sensitive to His presence around you.  His presence is worth more than anything in this world.  Pour out your worship.

Stay Amazed

Matthew 2:10-12 (NKJV)

Here we learn a couple of things on worship.

1)       The wise men made a journey to worship the King, which tells us that worship is a planned journey.  It’s something you have to prepare for and something that you will be doing for a long time.  It’s not a ten minute session and you’re done for the day.  It’s a journey.

2)      They went to worship rejoicing and with exceedingly great joy.  This was no funeral or a sad thing.  They didn’t care on the price they had to pay to endure the journey or the cost of the offering.  It was a moment of joy and gladness.

3)      They focus on Jesus.  Their focus was Jesus all the way.  They weren’t rude to Mary or Joseph, but their real visit was for the King.  When we worship, it must be with Jesus as our focus.

4)      They fell down.  This speaks of being humble.  When you are in the presence of God, your titles or status doesn’t matter.

5)      They brought gifts.  It was an ancient custom in eastern cultures to never present themselves before someone worthy or a king empty handed.  They had to bring a gift with them.  To worship the King is to present oneself with something to offer, whether it’s your offering, tithe, your heart or you, but something must be offered to Him.

One of the greatest results of true worship is what the wise men experienced.  In verse 12, it says, “they departed for their own country another way.”  When you worship, it changes the direction of your life.  It produces change!  Normally, we tend to avoid change, but when you have been in His presence, change is needed.  There are some issues in our lives that can be changed only in His presence.

25 David built an altar there to the Lord and sacrificed burnt offerings and peace offerings. And the Lord answered his prayer for the land, and the plague on Israel was stopped

How many times have you insisted on doing the best for God? Insisted on giving Him the best offering or praise? Insisting is a very demanding word. This offering was a demanding one. It was as if David was saying, this is going to be a personal offering from me, and God HAS to see that. He has to honor it.

Araunah was offering David to take the oxen and use it for his offering, at no cost to the King. David could’ve easily said “YES!!! I’ll take it all; this is going to be easier than I thought.” But David knew that the offering that God was looking for wasn’t a cheap, free or hand me down offering. He was looking for an offering that had been purchased just for Him, something special.

Nothing we bring to God should be cheap, or unworthy of a King. This goes for everything in your life. We shouldn’t give Him the last 5 minutes of the day, or the change in our pockets. Everything presented to our God should be well thought out, and with a good price tag on it. King David knew this, and he was a King!

In reading this entire chapter, the verse that impacted me the most is verse 24. David didn’t even hesitate, he instantly reacted. He said “I will not present burnt offerings to the Lord my God that have cost me nothing”. It’s so easy to give things up that don’t cost us anything. It’s easy to give cheap things up. These are not the kind of sacrifices God is looking for. He is looking for the best; He is looking for special and unique.

Verse 25 says that God answered David’s prayer. Our blessing, our answer is at the other side of that special offering.

Often times we pray for something, we’ll get upset when we think our prayers weren’t answered, and quickly give up. Well, a word that has changed my life is Mathew 15:21-28. Pastor Chacon preached a sermon “God blesses those who never give up” based on these bible verses. This woman was so desperate. She refused to accept God’s “No!” How many times have you asked God for something and He’s said “No?”. The logical thing would be to say “ok, thank you anyway!” I mean, He’s God right? WRONG!

At times God is testing our faith and asking us for more. How strong is your faith in Him? Does that miracle you need, seem so far out of reach? It’s not! This woman BEGGED. Yes! The bible says she begged for Jesus to help her. She pleaded, she worshipped. She did everything she had to do to get His attention. At first He just ignored her. Mathew 15(NLT)23 But Jesus gave her no reply, not even a word. Then his disciples urged him to send her away. “Tell her to go away,” they said. “She is bothering us with all her begging.” Ouch! This would easily be enough for someone to give up. But this woman was different; she didn’t care if she annoyed those around her. She was going to keep begging, pleading and worshipping until He acknowledged her and heard her out.

Sometimes begging is not enough. We’ll come to church begging, pleading, screaming for answers and miracles to happen. What about Him though? Let’s not be selfish and forget why He created us to begin with. He created us to worship Him. Once this woman ran out of ideas, her faith took her to worship Jesus. It was only after she worshipped Him that He acted in her favor. Her faith had reached a different level, a level of worship.

Psalm 81:6-7 (NLT)6 “Now I will take the load from your shoulders;
I will free your hands from their heavy tasks.
7 You cried to me in trouble, and I saved you;
I answered out of the thundercloud
and tested your faith when there was no water at Meribah

Once we praise and enter into God’s presence this becomes worship. Worship is so simple. All it is, is your response to when you see God. When you enter His presence through praise you get a chance to worship and right there show Him just how much He means to you, this is a an intimate moment between you and your Creator.

I know I just scratched the surface but I’ll write more articles going deeper into worship another time, but let’s see an example of just how powerful praise and worship is.

John 12:12-13

¹² The next day, the news that Jesus was on the way to Jerusalem swept through the city. A large crowd of Passover visitors ¹³ took palm branches and went down the road to meet him. They shouted,

“Praise God!
Blessings on the one who comes in the name of the Lord!
Hail to the King of Israel!”

The people heard that Jesus was coming so they began to praise. This is an example of praise. They were calling on his name, they did this before He was even there. Like I talked about praise is calling on His presence, He wants to know that you really want His presence. The people left all their worries and cares behind and began to praise. That is how praise needs to be, not when it is convenient or when we want to listen and dance to a nice song, but when we really want God’s presence, this should be all the time. Look what happens to the enemy when you praise and leave aside what people think of you, your worries, and your problems.

John 12:19

¹⁹ Then the Pharisees said to each other, “There’s nothing we can do. Look, everyone has gone after him!”

I love this verse, in another version I have it say’s that the Pharisees said “We’ve lost”. The Pharisees here represent anything that keeps you from praising, they didn’t want the people giving praise to Jesus but when they did they realized that there was nothing they could do about it, they knew that once The people called Jesus presence there was nothing they could do. When we start to praise with everything that we have, giving the best to God we see how our enemies begin to disappear, our problems and our worries become nothing because once God’s presence is with us there is nothing that can stop is.

After they showed the video what Pastor said hit me hard, he said “well then why don’t you guys do this since you guys can see Him any time you want” I mean that is so true, in our devotional time we can see him. This is called worship, what our response is when we see Him. At church when it’s time to worship do we stand there with our arms crossed? I mean would you do that if  He were there in person? I don’t think so, but that’s the thing, He is there! That’s the whole reason of worship, not to just sing songs but our response knowing that He is there.

Next time you worship, think about what you would be doing if Jesus were there, cause He actually is there.

John 12:3 “Then Mary took a twelve-ounce jar of expensive perfume made from essence of nard, and she anointed Jesus’ feet with it, wiping his feet with her hair. The house was filled with the fragrance.”

Mary was before Jesus’s presence, and she showed him exactly what she thought He was worth to her. She brought out a sacrifice, I mean I’m sure it was a sacrifice to give up her most expensive perfume! Why didn’t she just use something that wasn’t expensive? Because she knew that He was worth so much more than that.

Now how do we show what He is worth to us? When we give Him the best of our worship, when we choose to live our lives for Him, instead of sitting at home watching t.v we decide to read his word or to worship Him. I mean what is that saying when we choose to watch television or do something else instead of seeking His presence? That what we are doing is worth more than Him? Ask your self that question “what is Jesus worth to me?” and answer it by your actions, lifestyle, and worship.

Matthew 17:5-7 (NIV)

While he was still speaking, a bright cloud enveloped them,

and a voice from the cloud said, “This is my Son, whom I love;

with him I am well pleased. Listen to him!”

When the disciples heard this, they fell facedown to the ground,

terrified. But Jesus came and touched them.

“Get up,” he said. “Don’t be afraid.”

I love this Scripture because it tells us how powerful and terrified the Glory of God is. When you really come face to face with His Presence, it’s no day in the park. You are confronted with the reality of sin in your life. It makes you want to run from Him, but at the same time you can sense that He wants you to draw near. It’s beautiful and terrible, but so worth being in His Presence. The Bible states that a cloud enveloped them and then they heard a voice, it was there they fell facedown in worship, but at the same time afraid of His Presence. It is interesting what Jesus says to them. He says, “Get up, don’t be afraid.”

When you’ve been washed through the Blood of Jesus, sin and everything related to it has to go. There’s nothing evil that can stand in His Presence. When you come to His presence, God wants us to be BOLD. Hebrews 4:16 (KJV) says, “Let us therefore come boldly unto the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy, and find grace to help in time of need.” He wants us to be bold about it, not scared or terrified.

Jesus is teaching us that we don’t have to be afraid of His Presence. God doesn’t want us to coward in His Presence, but to enjoy it. You won’t seek that which you are afraid of. God wants you to seek Him, but when you find Him, He doesn’t want you to be terrified. Jesus, took the disciples by the hand and said, “Don’t be afraid.” Facedown worship is very powerful. When its done sincerely, it demonstrate the heart’s condition: total surrender to God. There is a fear of the Lord, which is to honor Him and there is a fear of God, which doesn’t allow you to be in His Presence. God wants you to honor Him, not be afraid of Him.

Jesus knows that there was going to be a day where He will let Himself be found, but He didn’t want us to be afraid of Him. When God showed up on Mount Sinai, the people were terrified as well. They told Moses to go before them and to represent them before the Lord. God’s intention was to live in the midst of His people, but they didn’t let Him because they were terrified. This time around, Jesus assured the disciples it was alright to be in His Presence. The same goes to you: it’s alright to be in His Presence. Don’t let fear come between you and your God. Allow yourself to be absorbed by Him. He wants us close.

“…They bowed down and worshiped the LORD because

they knew that he had seen their suffering and was going to help them.”

One of the things that hinder worship is holding on to your burdens. When we come to worship, we let go of those things that hinder us. But most of us are so tied up to our burdens that it’s hard for us to let go. We become use to carry the extra baggage. Every week it gets harder and harder for us to lift our hands and praise because we’ve become so exhausted with our baggage. No matter what your problem or situation is, you have to learn how to give it to God.

The Israelites were facing a very serious situation, over 400 years of slavery. It was an injustice being done to them. They would raise their complaints up to God who heard and saw everything. But God doesn’t want your complaints, He wants your worship. How much is He worth to you, not in dollars but in priorities? How much do you value Him that you can take time to think of Him without thinking anything else? When you worship God, you are telling Him that He’s number one in your life. But when you can’t worship Him because you have all these problems, you’re actually telling Him that He’s not priority.

God had to prepare a man named Moses to tell the Israelites that God had seen their suffering and He was going to do something about it. When the news of hope hit them, the bowed down and worshiped the Lord. When they heard that God had seen their suffering and that He was going to do something about it, they dropped their baggage and fell facedown to worship. You can only give authentic worship when you let go of all your problems and surrender them to God. When you drop you burdens and turn them over to God, your worship becomes more genuine. He knows what you’re facing, He’s not caught off guard by your situation. He wants to see what your reaction will be, will He still be your priority or will you let those things distract you from Him. You were not created to carry any burdens but His. You need to let go of those things you’ve been carrying around for years and allow Him to handle the situation. He’s way better at it than you are. He can take care of your burdens much quicker than you could ever do.

He knows the pain and suffering, but He still wants your worship, not your complaints. That’s when you know you’ve become a real worshiper. When you can worship Him in the midst of a storm, your a worshiper. Many times you have to worship in faith that He will move on your behalf, but you still have to give Him worship. It’s not easy, but it will lift you up and build your faith up. In the end it’s not whether He moves on your behalf or not, He’s the King and we must worship Him as one. It is great to know that He sees what’s going on with my life and that He wants to do something about it. Knowing that can liberate your spirit. You don’t have live bound to the devil’s lies. Knowing that He will be there for you can release those burdens away and allow you to focus on the One who should have your attention at all times: GOD! Why won’t you worship Him free from burdens? Let Him take care of your problems, just worship the King!

Music is an art; it’s a melody, its sound. One of the first things kids learn to do is dance to music. This is no coincidence though; it’s the way God created us. It’s the way He designed us. God created us as musical beings; He created us to make music for Him

Over the years I’ve come to realize that there is a lot more to music than meets the eye. I can worship God while at work as I hum my very favorite worship song. There is absolutely nothing wrong in singing your favorite song to God, one that an artist inspired by God wrote. Hear me out though, how awesome would it be to write your own song to God? If God gave us these creative minds and abilities why not put them to use? I like to write songs and put music to them. This is one of my favorite things to do for God. I figure if someone can right everyday about how much they love a boy and how he doesn’t love her back, why can’t we write songs to God everyday and share those? A song that will help someone get closer to God when they are going through the most difficult of situations.

So write Him a special song, doesn’t have to be something elaborate or complicated. Just something that comes from the heart. Share this song with your church and your friends and let God use you musically. Here are 5 verses that speak of this:
1. Psalm 40:3
He put a new song in my mouth, a hymn of praise to our God. Many will see and fear and put their trust in the LORD. (NIV)
2. Psalm 96:1
Sing to the LORD a new song; sing to the LORD, all the earth.
Psalm 96:1-3 (NIV)
3. Psalm 98:1
Sing to the LORD a new song, for he has done marvelous things; his right hand and his holy arm have worked salvation for him.
Psalm 98:1-3 (NIV)
4. Psalm 144:9
I will sing a new song to you, O God; on the ten-stringed lyre I will make music to you, (NIV)
5. Psalm 33:3
Sing to him a new song; play skillfully, and shout for joy. (NIV)