Welcome back! I hope you had a great Thanksgiving this week!
I know I did. As I think about all the things I’m grateful for, I can’t help but say “Thank You, God!” Usually I get myself so worked up that I end up turning on some praise music and start worshipping God from there.
Wait a minute: wasn’t I already worshipping God before I turned on the music?
I guess what I’m asking is this: is music what makes worship worship, or is worship more than the music?
And if the second part is true, then what does “worship” even mean?
I won’t go into great detail here (more on that next week), but I wanted to give you a teaser and really think about that question.
Is music what makes worship worship, or is worship more than the music?
What Worship Is (And Isn’t)
This may wreck your long-held beliefs about what worship is… but worship isn’t about the music. Worship is a believer’s response to God, particularly His character and what He’s done.
Some of you grew up worshipping God with one or more styles of music, such as contemporary, gospel, choir or traditional (hymn-based). But let me say that music is only a tool that a Christian uses to worship God. The purpose of music is to gather believers together and help them worship God in a musical way.
But there are other ways to worship God.
Ways To Worship
The Psalms are pumped full of the different ways Christians should worship God. Psalm 100, for instance, describes Christians should verbally worship God by shouting, with joyful songs and with thanksgiving. Psalm 95:6-7 describes the posture of Christian worship: bowing and kneeling. Psalm 92 tells Christians to worship God on a 10-stringed lyre and harp.
Now obviously we don’t have the lyre; however, the possibilities are endless! We can worship God on guitars, pianos, trumpets, drums… you name it (thank God for technology!).
And yet worship in the Bible is much more than our words, postures and instruments. Mary led the people in singing and dancing (Exodus 15:20-21) when they crossed the Red Sea. Paul told Christians in 1 Corinthians 12:1-11 to worship God by the use of their physical and spiritual gifts, such as ministry, leadership, artwork, etc.
This last statement might not make sense as first; however, when you remember that worship is a believer’s response to God’s character and what He’s done, it’s easy to see how one can worship God through ministry: they can lead others to Christ through discipleship, service and the such. The minister worships God in this way because He is responding to God’s character and what He’s done by telling and helping others know God through His spiritual gift of ministry.
Do you see how worship is more than the music?
God has gifted everyone with uniquely different spiritual gifts and passions. Whether yours is dancing, music, singing, encouragement, ministry or leadership, use it to worship God.
I’ll show you how.
How To Worship God
- Reflect on what you are grateful and thankful for. What things did God do that made you glad? Specifically, what prayers did He answer? Or what things did you notice that made you glad (nature, health, your state of life, etc.)?
- Recognize the gifts God gave you. What are you good at? Is it music, dancing, ministry, encouraging, or leading (click here for more spiritual gifts)? Is it your passion-what you love to do?
- Worship God! Use your gift to express your thanks gratitude to God! Maybe you’re thankful for how beautiful God made the flowers: paint/draw a picture of flowers in a filed. Or perhaps you’re thankful how God delivered you for some stronghold: start a ministry or small discipleship group telling others about God’s grace, love and purpose for believers. Or if you’re like me, maybe you love blues, country or one or more music styles and enjoy writing songs: write a bluesy-country song about what you’re thankful for.
This is true worship. It is more than the music; it is about how your heart responds to God’s character and what He’s done for you. It’s about taking that gratitude and praising God through the spiritual gifts He has gifted you with.
Take a moment to be thankful.
GeGe 
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