What exactly is worship? That's a question that's been quite hard for me to understand for several years. In this post, as always, I definitely don't claim to have a perfect grasp of what I'm discussing. Worship is something that I've been trying to understand for a while, and I still have a lot of holes in my understanding of it. So take everything I say with an understanding of that.
I believe one reason that it's hard for me to mentally understand worship is that it's hard to understand with the head. It's really more of a heart action I think. Choosing to express thankfulness, communion, and love for God and especially with Him. Worship isn't JUST a feeling that you get when you're worshipping your Creator either. Like so many other things in life, it's a choice to worship your Creator that then causes the feeling. The feeling is the reward of the choice. I'm not saying that we should make the choice to worship God JUST to get the feeling either! I'm just saying the feeling and desire to worship grows out of the intentional choice we make to do so.
Often times I believe people who are more "thinkers" by nature tend to think they're not good at worship simply because they don't FEEL the desire to shout and jump around that some of the "feelers" do. But I don't believe people who are "thinkers" are any less capable of worship than people who are "feelers." I just believe they have a different mode of worshipping. In fact, I believe we ALL have a different and unique mode of worshipping. So thinkers, be encouraged that you are no less of a worshipper than the feelers! Even some feelers don't have the desire to shout and jump about. We all express our worship differently. Don't let anyone change the way you worship into the way they worship. Your way of worship is valuable and special and unique.
I don't express worship in the same way that most people do, and I used to feel badly about that. But something that God is teaching me is that we all have a Worship Language. We were each created with a different avenue in which we yearn to express our worship. My avenue of expression was never jumping around and shouting. My Worship Language was more along the lines of playing the piano, writing, and moving myself and others to the point of tears. So I encourage you to find your Worship Language. It can be anything. It doesn't have to be the way that others express worship to their Creator.
Another thing about worship is it's an extremely personal act. It's not something that I ever found easy to do in front of others. In fact, I don't believe you HAVE to do it in front of others. I kind of think of worshipping Jesus as kissing your spouse. Haha. It's not something you always want to do in a passionate, genuine way when other people are around. But some people can do it. They aren't bothered by the presence of others during their worship. I used to think that it was impossible to genuinely worship in front of others, because I thought that the second you stepped onto a stage and started "worshipping," you were actually performing. I thought stage worshippers were actually putting on a show for the audience. But I don't think that's true anymore, because I've SEEN some people worship in a genuine way from a stage. I've seen them pour their whole heart into their Worship Language from the stage. So, I guess my point is, you don't HAVE to worship in front of others, but I also know that some people flourish by doing so. So it really depends again on your own personal Worship Language and how you best express it. It's different for different people. Don't ever feel bad if your way of expressing worship is different than someone else.
I believe one reason that it's hard for me to mentally understand worship is that it's hard to understand with the head. It's really more of a heart action I think. Choosing to express thankfulness, communion, and love for God and especially with Him. Worship isn't JUST a feeling that you get when you're worshipping your Creator either. Like so many other things in life, it's a choice to worship your Creator that then causes the feeling. The feeling is the reward of the choice. I'm not saying that we should make the choice to worship God JUST to get the feeling either! I'm just saying the feeling and desire to worship grows out of the intentional choice we make to do so.
Often times I believe people who are more "thinkers" by nature tend to think they're not good at worship simply because they don't FEEL the desire to shout and jump around that some of the "feelers" do. But I don't believe people who are "thinkers" are any less capable of worship than people who are "feelers." I just believe they have a different mode of worshipping. In fact, I believe we ALL have a different and unique mode of worshipping. So thinkers, be encouraged that you are no less of a worshipper than the feelers! Even some feelers don't have the desire to shout and jump about. We all express our worship differently. Don't let anyone change the way you worship into the way they worship. Your way of worship is valuable and special and unique.
I don't express worship in the same way that most people do, and I used to feel badly about that. But something that God is teaching me is that we all have a Worship Language. We were each created with a different avenue in which we yearn to express our worship. My avenue of expression was never jumping around and shouting. My Worship Language was more along the lines of playing the piano, writing, and moving myself and others to the point of tears. So I encourage you to find your Worship Language. It can be anything. It doesn't have to be the way that others express worship to their Creator.
Another thing about worship is it's an extremely personal act. It's not something that I ever found easy to do in front of others. In fact, I don't believe you HAVE to do it in front of others. I kind of think of worshipping Jesus as kissing your spouse. Haha. It's not something you always want to do in a passionate, genuine way when other people are around. But some people can do it. They aren't bothered by the presence of others during their worship. I used to think that it was impossible to genuinely worship in front of others, because I thought that the second you stepped onto a stage and started "worshipping," you were actually performing. I thought stage worshippers were actually putting on a show for the audience. But I don't think that's true anymore, because I've SEEN some people worship in a genuine way from a stage. I've seen them pour their whole heart into their Worship Language from the stage. So, I guess my point is, you don't HAVE to worship in front of others, but I also know that some people flourish by doing so. So it really depends again on your own personal Worship Language and how you best express it. It's different for different people. Don't ever feel bad if your way of expressing worship is different than someone else.
Comments
Post a Comment