We live in a time where our faith is constantly being challenged and opposed. After swimming upstream for any significant period of time, we can become weary. It’s absolutely natural. The problem comes when we let our guard down. This is why it is so important to live a lifestyle of worship. It keeps our eyes on our Creator through all of the difficulties that come our way. It takes our focus off of us, and puts it on God. Worship can help us to enter into rest and renewal.
Worship, at its core, is obedience. It is doing whatever God asks of us. One of my favorite verses is 2 Timothy 2:4, “No man that warreth, entangleth himself with the affairs of this life, because he would please him that hath chosen him to be a soldier.” Yet, our lives are full of whatever distracts us day by day. How often do we put television, books, or social media above reading our Bible, let alone being out in the world living out our faith where others may be compelled by our love? Don’t get me wrong, those things can be fine in moderation, but become a problem if they take the place of doing what God has created us for. Scripture says that “If anyone, then, knows the good they ought to do and doesn’t do it, it is sin for them.” (James 4:17) This doesn’t only apply to telling the truth, not stealing, not coveting, etc. It also applies to fulfilling our role in the kingdom. If we know what God is calling us into and we resist it, it is sin.
It’s a bit ironic. The one thing that will bring us the most joy and fulfillment is the one thing that we tend to run from. How do we know if we are worshiping God through our lifestyle? We need look no further than the Lord ’s Prayer. He showed us how to pray, because He knew what would honor God best, and release the most power of Holy Spirit in our lives. The line that states: “Thy kingdom come. Thy will be done even in earth as it is in heaven” (Matthew 6:10). Jesus came to bring the kingdom of heaven to earth, and do the Father’s will in it. So the answer is, we will know we are living a lifestyle of worship because we will see His kingdom come alive before us. If you are meant to be a musician, fill the earth with beautiful music. If you are drawn to a particular country or culture, make sure you are not being called to be a missionary to a foreign land or specific community of immigrants. If you are called to heal, house, feed, help, love, or preach, you’d better be doing it or making strides toward it.
In order to do these things and do them well, they need to come from a place of love. Jesus had compassion on everyone He healed. He loved them. Power doesn’t come before love. How do we cultivate that? We can only have God’s heart for others if we worship Him. When we turn our hearts toward Him, it allows Holy Spirit to change us from the inside, and give us His love for others.
We know that we are saved by grace and no amount of work can save us, but it’s our work that serves as a natural outflow of our renewal in Christ. The Holy Spirit longs to establish His kingdom on earth through us, as we give up control of our desires for His. Then we will see greater fulfillment than we can ever imagine pursuing our earthly desires.
The Bible teaches us that “he who is faithful in little will be given much” (Matthew 25:23). You see, we must prove that we are willing to faithfully walk in His plan. That is the path to becoming road worthy, or battle tested. We don’t shrink back from God’s plan for us. We charge in, headlong, knowing that we have His favor, and He will build upon each experience until we are full in faith. That’s where we want to be: road worthy… battle tested. God has to know He can count on us to do what He has appointed because we are committed to a lifestyle of worship, and have proven that we will do as He asks. Start your journey today, and it will be worth every moment.