Expanding Your Worship Experiences
As Jerry and I headed east on our 2022 East Coast trek in May, I had low expectations for the Kansas section of I-80. My wife grew up east of Dodge City, and my midsummer or winter visits birthed memories of dry and barren, with no real hills. But our third day was Sunday and I wanted to worship, so I popped on Mercy Me, and I focused God while riding. Gentle hills emerged and in May, the fields sprouted different hues with green. Wild grasses waved in the wind, and the plowed crops intrigued me with their precision.
These green and lush rolling hills took me into splendid worship. At Salina we turned south, and my amazement grew. East Kansas offered lush vistas. Yes, that night I called home and apologized to my wife...I had assumed all of Kansas matched its southwest portion.
That day provided marvelous worship. Yes, Sunday, a solitary one. No large group. No soaring spirit in the songs, no deep introspection. But I experienced God’s glory, I listened and sang along, and he touched my heart. In Kansas. Can anything good come out of Kansas? Absolutely. Great worship.
But what sparked that worship? In part, Sunday brings my most frequent worship as I gather with my church family. I get there early and stay late to connect with people. The music soothes my soul, and the message challenges me from God’s word. Typically, since the New Testament church, Sunday is the day to gather and worship. A habit. A good one.
But THIS Sunday, we had a lot of miles to put on to ride from the West Coast to the East in 18 days. Some time ago, I learned that worship isn’t limited to the church meeting place on Sunday at 11:00 AM, or Saturday at 5:00 PM, or… To summarize it, worship is life. Every dimension of it. Here’s how I got there.
Worship comes from an older English word “worthyship,” or being of ultimate value. That matches the statement Jews made each day, “And you must love the LORD your God with all your heart, all your soul, and all your strength” (Deuteronomy 6:5 NLT). Our connection to God encompasses every fiber of our being. That’s faith, a love of God and Jesus that guides our lives, with Jesus as “Savior, who is Christ the Lord” (Luke 2:11). Lord simply means boss, the one with the most worth in our lives.
Now comes the key verse: “everything that does not come from faith is sin” (Romans 14:23). In every dimension of life, we look for God’s ultimate worth, we realize the hills and mountains and grasses point to their Creator.
So, don’t skip the gathered worship, but expand your worshipping, as you realize we can worship every moment of day. Even in Kansas.
Kick Starting the Application
Did you previously think of worship mostly as our gathering? How can you worship at all times? How do you best worship in nature?