Introduction

During the month of November, many of us celebrate Thanksgiving. We travel far and near to gather with family and friends to eat, dance, reflect and share what we are grateful for. Yet most of the time, many of us are living frustrated, confused and overwhelmed. We often let the circumstances of the year overshadow the great things that God has done even in hard times. 

1 Thessalonians 5:16-18 says, “Always be joyful. Never stop praying. Be thankful in all circumstances, for this is God’s will for you who belong to Christ Jesus.” Our human nature at times dictates our response to circumstances.

Gratitude, one of the best qualities available to us is directly tied to our focus on God. Giving thanks points you back to God regardless of your circumstance. I pray that this 5-day devotional will encourage us to elevate our attitude of gratitude in every situation.

Psalm 96:9 “Worship the LORD in the splendor of His holiness; tremble before Him, all the earth.”

One of my favorite parts of Sunday Service is Praise and Worship.  In most churches, this usually takes place at the beginning of the service.  I think it is one of the few times we give to God. Almost every other part of service is receiving a word, a blessing, a charge, a prayer - but Praise and Worship is our opportunity to give to God. An opportunity to pour out to him, your love, reverence, thoughts, feelings, honor and admiration to him. I am blessed to be part of a church that has mastered how to worship God on Sunday morning. Each time the praise and worship team gets on the pulpit to worship, I always feel the presence of God. 

Our worship team even took it a step further to dedicate a few Sundays throughout the year for a Worship Experience, titled - The Atmosphere. The Atmosphere has been a staple at Ignite JHDC and reflects the pure naked nature of worship. No holding back, no extra acrobatics, no drama - just worship. Guests and members alike come with an expectation to worship and that is exactly what they receive; an atmosphere of worship. What an amazing experience! This experience is what God desires of us all, not just on special Sundays but regularly in our day-to-day lives.  Psalm 96:9 “Worship the LORD in the splendor of His holiness; tremble before Him, all the earth.” The worship experience is not about me or my feelings, rather it is about expressing my thoughts towards God, connecting with God and experiencing God. It shouldn’t only take place at church but at the places where I can meet with God - ANYWHERE AND EVERYWHERE. Let’s work on creating an atmosphere of worship.

PRAYER: Dear Lord, I know Your desire is for all to worship You in the splendor of Your holiness. Father, help me to constantly worship You, even when I am not feeling my best. Let me experience You in a way that worship becomes natural to me. Teach me how to incorporate worship into my daily routine as a way to revere You and Your holiness. In Jesus' name I pray. Amen. 

Psalm 100:1 “Make a joyful noise to the LORD, all the earth.”

When I think of worship, I think of singing or dancing. During my research on the various types of worship, I discovered that there are several ways to worship God. Some are more simple and common like - singing, praying, service to others,and submission, while others are associated with a posture or a type of action such as - 

• Barak - to bow down

• Halal - to celebrate

• Shabach - to shout loudly

• Tehillah - to sing unrehearsed

• Towdah - to extend or raise your hands in thanksgiving 

• Yadah - to extend your hands vigorously as in complete surrender

• Zamar - to touch the strings, mostly rejoicing

While each method of worship is valid, the most common way to worship God is by singing or in my case, making a joyful noise. Psalm 100:1 tells us to make a joyful noise to the LORD. This scripture gave me the audacity I needed to worship God in my own way and not feel bad about it. I don’t come from a family of singers but I was in the choir at the very first church I was a member of. I learned quickly that singing was not my gift. Since it was not my gift, I usually felt ashamed to sing outside of my head. However,  meditating on Psalm 100 gave me the freedom I needed to worship God by making a joyful noise. 

Let’s be honest, not every believer has the gift of bringing people to tears by singing musical notes, but we all have the ability to make a joyful noise. Jeremiah 1:5 reminds us that God knew us before He formed us in our mother’s womb. That means, He knew some of us couldn’t sing so He gave allowance for us to make a joyful noise when we worship Him. To us and others, it may be painful to hear but to our creator it is a form of worship. Are you able to make a joyful noise to Him today? Try it out and take note of how you feel after. For me, the one word to describe my feeling is Freedom. Freedom to worship Him naked and unashamed. 

PRAYER: Heavenly Father, thank You for loving me just the way I am. Thank You for creating me unique and special. Help me to worship You the best way I know how and give me the confidence to make a joyful noise when I am worshiping You. I now understand that the times I have been silent in my worship because of what I considered lack of talent to sing, was preventing me from worshiping You the way You created me to worship You. Give me the confidence I need to make a joyful noise and allow me to be bold enough to worship You at all times. In Jesus' name I pray. Amen. 

Hebrews 12:28 “Therefore, since we are receiving a kingdom that cannot be shaken, let us be thankful, and so worship God acceptably with reverence and awe.”

Yesterday we received the release to worship God by making a joyful noise and I hope you took on the challenge to do so. Now that we are empowered to make a joyful noise, let’s take it a step further by examining acceptable worship. Hebrews 12:28 says “Therefore, since we are receiving a kingdom that cannot be shaken, let us be thankful, and so worship God acceptably with reverence and awe.” Reverence and Awe. Two powerful words that are rarely used to describe anything other than God. To have reverence is to have a deep level of respect for God, deeper than your respect for anything else. Essentially, it is the utmost respect; the greatest respect you can give. Awe is an overwhelming respect, admiration or wonder of God. Similar but different. To be in awe is to be completely overtaken with emotion about something.  

When we worship God, it is important to revere Him for being our God. Yes, God is so much more than our God; He’s our Lord, Savior, friend, confidant and so much more. But when it comes to worshiping, there must be a deep level of respect or reverence for Him. Reverence because He is the creator of all things but was never created. He always existed. He knows the end before the beginning, He’s so many things and yet He is God at the same time. These are just a few characteristics of God that no one else can claim. He is God all by Himself. He’s also the God of wonders. Creating the world in six days, creating man in His own image and giving him dominion over the earth, existing as the trinity and countless others. Only a God of wonders could do and be such. Again, no one else can claim the wonders that our God has. He’s a miracle working God that does wonders on a daily basis. 

Understanding this should make it easy to present an acceptable worship. This sort of worship is not about the worshiper or what we receive but it is a worship that is solely focused on God and who He is. Not to say that during our worship it is impossible to be distracted or for our minds to wander, but knowing how to worship will keep us focused even when distractions come. God wants our undivided attention when it comes to worship. He wants to know you are focused on Him and what He created you to do - worship. He wants to connect with us and for many of us, it starts with worship. Worship opens up the lines of communication and the sensitivity to hear from God. Acceptable worship is a key to access God in the spirit and experience Him in a direct way. What are some ways you can revere and be in awe of God during your worship? Put it to work and watch God move. 

Prayer: Father God, I have an understanding of what acceptable worship is. I long to present my worship in an acceptable manner. Lord, help me to stay focused, revere You and be in awe of You during my time of worship. I want to experience direct access to You, hear from You, spend time with You and stand in awe of You. Teach me what I need to do to cultivate an acceptable worship to You, in Jesus’ name I pray, Amen. 

John 4:23 - 24  Yet a time is coming and has now come when the true worshipers will worship the Father in the Spirit and in truth, for they are the kind of worshipers the Father seeks. God is spirit, and his worshipers must worship in the Spirit and in truth.”

In the book of Genesis, we learned that God created us in His image. He is a spirit and He created every human being with a spirit. From a deeper dive into John 4:7-24, the Samaritan woman explained how her understanding of worship was associated with a location. Her ancestors worshiped on mountains and Jews worshiped in Jerusalem.  Her knowledge of worship was limited to a physical location, not what was within the person. Can you imagine only worshiping God at a specific place occasionally? Well back then, that was the case and to be honest, some may argue that for some people today, it remains the case - the only difference is the location is a local church. 

Jesus introduced the Samaritan woman to a new way of worshiping- in Spirit and in truth. There was no physical location, wherever you were, you could worship. The only requirement for a true worshiper is that they worship in Spirit and in truth. That is what the Father was looking for. Worshipers who were not caught up in the customs or traditions; worshipers who were interested in worshiping God from within. To worship Him in Spirit, you must know that you have a spirit that lives within you. Not just any ordinary spirit but the Holy Spirit. You must also know the truth, which comes from reading and meditating on the Word of God.  

True worshippers are not perfect. They don’t have it all together. Rather they focus on their spirit, the Holy Spirit, and the truth to guide them in their worship. The Samaritan woman had the privilege of having direct access to Christ and an intense discovery of Christ and what it meant to be a true worshiper. She was not a descendant of His chosen people, she was involved with numerous husbands, and she was also a woman, a gender that was expected to stay in the background. She was the least qualified yet she had the most direct encounter with God. The Samaritan woman was a true worshiper. She spoke to Christ from the heart and received His word in her heart. 

True worship comes from the Spirit and from the heart. It is not dependent on the current situations, feelings or emotions. It is from within, specifically from the Holy Spirit that lives within you as a believer. The next time you are worshiping God, remove all the feelings and emotions, search within for the Holy Spirit, and hold on to the truth that you received from the word. 

Prayer:  Lord God, we come to You as the truth, knowing You reveal the truth to all those who ask. As we worship You in Spirit and in truth, Father, help us to remember the truth and rely on the Holy Spirit. We don’t want to be distracted by our emotions or discouraged by what may be happening around us. We want to worship You the most acceptable and truthful way possible. Speak to us directly on the truth and let your Holy Spirit guide our worship, in Jesus’ name we pray, Amen. 

John 4: 39 - 41 Many of the Samaritans from that town believed in him because of the woman’s testimony, “He told me everything I ever did.”  So when the Samaritans came to him, they urged him to stay with them, and he stayed two days. And because of his words many more became believers.

True worship can transform to infectious worship. Have you ever been in an environment where one person starts worshiping and it is obvious that they just encountered God, then seconds later, the same thing happens to a person across the room?  I have. That is infectious worship. In this example, there was no conscious action to share the worship but in many cases there is. When you meet or see someone who is a true worshiper, they are not ashamed or afraid to tell the world of their experience. We hear and see it today through testimonies just like the example of the Samaritan woman. 

In John 4: 39, we see the impact of infectious worship. By the woman returning home to tell everyone about the testimony or her experience, several people went back to meet Christ. They were so impressed by the Samaritan woman’s testimony that they had to see for themselves.  They wanted to see and experience the same thing she did. And because she was transparent in her encounter, many became believers. 

A true worshiper will encourage others to experience true worship by sharing their experience and ushering them to a place of true worship. Motivating others to experience and have access to God the same way they have. Knowing that if He can bring others to a place of true, acceptable, naked, unashamed worship that can take place wherever they are in the spirit, their lives will never be the same. Samaritans became believers. And as unbelievable as this may seem, true worship is still allowing this same type of transformation to happen today. Souls will be saved and things will be revealed through the access that comes through true worship. Consider making your worship infectious by sharing your experience with others. Your testimony can be the turning point in someone’s life. 

Prayer:  Thank You Lord for revealing to me Your desire for worship. As I conclude this devotional, help me to remember what worship is, create an atmosphere of worship, build up my confidence to make a joyful noise, cultivate acceptable worship, become a true worshiper, and become a vessel for infectious worship. I want to be a true worshiper and have direct access to You. Guide me on the steps I need to take to get to where You want me to be. Thank You in advance for the transformation that will take place in my life and the lives of those around me through worshiping You. In Jesus’ name I pray, Amen.