Worship

Worship has always been amazing to me and I remember when I first knew something about worship. It was an amazing feeling to me and I felt good. You have to keep in mind I was 20 when I gave my life over to Christ....I thought everything was going to be perfect from here on out. Oh boy was I wrong, this life is a struggle and anyone who pretends it's not will one day see that they have been fooled. In August our youth ministry was going well and I was all about it. A kid giving their life over to Christ, it was AMAZING! December came along and we started seeing some things take place. I wasn't sure how to take care of it, I read all the book, blogs, listen to all the podcast. Nothing would work and I struggled with that. To make a long journey short I believe for the first time we are seeing worship at it's best. When I look around do I see hands up? no, do I see emotions? no but I see people searching for something deeper in life. You see it's east to worship when life is easy, but the true test is in the middle of trials. There were days where I didn't know if I was going to make it. But my God is mighty to save and we sing about it every Wednesday. Everyone needs compassion and forgiveness and we sing about that. We serve a God that takes us as he finds us and we even sing about that. Worship is not just an emotion or a lifestyle. Now both of those play a role in the big picture....but what is the big picture? It's surrender and admitting you can do this thing called life on your own. I am seeing more and more that worship started at the cross. We focus so much on the death of Christ on that cross, but you see life begun in that same spot right next to Jesus. The criminal on the cross is the reason I gave my life to Jesus. Different events took place, but when I heard about Jesus taking that guy and giving him life I started thinking. Now it took me three years to give my life over to him. I believe has Christians and people we need to make sure we show that same type of compassion and love to people.

This is what we are doing different in youth now to help us truly understand what Christ has done. Instead of me just giving me a lesson, I am having students dig in the Bible and finding verses that catch their attention. I have them draw a picture that reminds them of that verse. Here are a few that I have been returned back to me on my desk.

James 1:22 (The Message) don’t fool yourself into thinking that you are a listener when you are anything but, letting the Word go in one ear and out the other. Act on what you hear! Those who hear and don't act are like those who glance in the mirror, walk away, and two minutes later have no idea who they are, what they look like. 25But whoever catches a glimpse of the revealed counsel of God—the free life!—even out of the corner of his eye, and sticks with it, is no distracted scatterbrain but a man or woman of action. That person will find delight and affirmation in the action.

Psalm 27:3 When besieged, I'm calm as a baby. When all hell breaks loose, I'm collected and cool.

1 Corinthians: And now these three remain: faith, hope and love. But the greatest of these is love.

John 3:16 16"For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.

Looking at these and then the pictures they drew, it amazes me to see a search taking place. Before we can ever be rescued, we have to know we are lost. My prayer for people now is for them to see that without Jesus they are lost. There is nothing that any pastor, friend, or family member can do about it. All that we can do is pray for them to see that they need a guide. So what does this have to do with worship? It's simple he has giving us his life and he is the king of this world and I believe allowing him to rescue us and searching him out can be the greatest acts of worship. It's not music, a service, works, or good deeds.... it's loving Jesus because he first loved us.