My pastor said something yesterday, which was probably not picked up by anyone but me, which really got me thinking.
Toward the end of our worship time, he called forward anyone who needed prayer and had the elders and homegroup leaders go up to the front and pray for each person individually.
While that went on, the rest of us continued singing and, eventually he gave a final call to anyone who wanted prayer but hadn’t been up there yet.
He then addressed everyone else and asked us to do something, I can’t remember what it was but he started by saying: “Those who are just worshiping…..”
What he meant was, ‘everyone who is not either being prayed for or praying for someone’ and I’m sure everyone except me interpreted it that way but my weird little head caught two words and wondered if they should ever be put together.
What were the two words?
Just and worshiping.
My thoughts immediately went along the lines of “doesn’t that really demote the importance of what you’re doing to call it ‘just worshiping?'”
Sometimes a friend will call and ask if I’m busy and I’ll say ‘not really, I’m just….’ and that just might be watching TV or folding laundry or writing my tenth blog of the day.
The word ‘just’ indicates that what I’m doing is not particularly important and I’d be happy to do something else instead.
So can you use the word ‘just’ in front of ‘worshiping’.
Definitely not! Worshiping is WAY more important than just about everything else you could ever do.
You may JUST wash the car or JUST play a game with your family but you don’t JUST worship – Worship comes at the top of the importance scale.
However, I had a brain-wave today and worked out the one way that you can use just and worship in the same sentence – and it’s inspired by the Nike ad’s:
Just worship.
Whatever you do, just worship God. In every situation, just worship God.
With all your actions, all your thoughts, all your words and all your deeds, just worship God.
Worship doesn’t mean singing songs, worship means doing something that is holy and pleasing to God and gives glory to Him.
You can worship in song, but the worship comes from your heart, the words of your lips are empty without the right attitude of heart. Words are just words, but God judges the heart.
The attitude of heart that turns your singing into worship can also turn every action and every word of every day into actions and words that worship God.
The Church in the west has become mired in the idea that being a Sunday Christian is OK, but it’s not.
In the same way, we’ve become trapped into thinking that worship is just singing and dancing but it’s not.
I know someone who worships the Beatles. How do I know she worships them? Because I hear it in every conversation. The Beatles are on her heart and on her lips constantly.
I also know someone who worships God. How do I know? I know because God’s name and God’s works are on his heart and his lips all the time. Every conversation he has includes telling the greatness of the Lord. Every decision he makes is made based on what he knows of how God wants us to live our lives. Every action is joyfully done knowing that in everything he does, he serves his creator.
That’s the attitude we all need. We need to bring God to the front of our minds, we need to make Him the center of our hearts and we need to live lives that are worthy of the gospel of Jesus Christ.
Every day, every hour, every minute, just worship!