The Heart of Worship

What does worship look like? We often picture the congregation singing and worshipping in songs and hymns. Is that all there is? Rom 12: 1 “…to offer your bodies as living sacrifices, holy and pleasing to God – this is your spiritual act of worship.” No, it is much more. It is the giving of one’s self and all of it – heart, mind, soul and spirit to magnify God, to make His name great and to praise His works and His character.

Worship is when the Christian gets up to pray for the church, when believers gather to study the bible, when the pastor expounds God’s word and when a believer enters the waters of baptism. Worship is when the Sunday school teacher teaches God’s love to the kids, when the worship team leads God’s people to sing His praises, when the artist labours at painting the masterpiece, when the athlete trains to win the race, when the employee submits a high quality piece of work and when the student studies diligently for exams. Worship is when a parent stays up late to nurse a sick child, when a mother cooks for the family, when a daughter takes her elderly parent for check-ups at the hospital, when a friend rings to give words of encouragement and comfort. Worship is when the Christian chooses to do the right thing even when it hurts and when nobody sees. Worship is enjoying God’s creation, taking time to play, to rest and to enjoy time with family and friends. The list goes on.

The act of worship should be our natural expression of love to God. It is when our spirit pursues after God, finds excitement in knowing Him and is somehow compelled to please Him above everything, that we are truly worshipping Him. In John Piper’s words, “The chief end of man is to glorify God by enjoying him forever.”