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The Discipline of Worship
The Discipline of Worship
Pastor Richard Hovey
Pastor Richard Hovey
"Worship happens whenever we intentionally cherish God and value him above all else in life."
"Worship happens whenever we intentionally cherish God and value him above all else in life."
Adele Calhoun
Adele Calhoun
Defining Worship
Defining Worship
“If the Church’s worship is faithful, it will eventually be subversive of the culture surrounding it, for God’s truth transforms the lives of those nurtured by it. Worship will turn our values, habits, and ideas upside-down as it forms our character; only then will we be genuinely right-side up eternally. Only then will we know a Joy worthy of our destiny."
“If the Church’s worship is faithful, it will eventually be subversive of the culture surrounding it, for God’s truth transforms the lives of those nurtured by it. Worship will turn our values, habits, and ideas upside-down as it forms our character; only then will we be genuinely right-side up eternally. Only then will we know a Joy worthy of our destiny."
Marva Dawn, Reaching Out Without Dumbing Down
“The more we focus on God, the more we understand and appreciate his infinite worth. As we understand and appreciate this, we can’t help but respond to him. Just as an indescribable sunset or a breathtaking mountain top vista evokes a spontaneous response, so we cannot encounter the worthiness of God without the response of worship.”
“The more we focus on God, the more we understand and appreciate his infinite worth. As we understand and appreciate this, we can’t help but respond to him. Just as an indescribable sunset or a breathtaking mountain top vista evokes a spontaneous response, so we cannot encounter the worthiness of God without the response of worship.”
Donald Whitney, Spiritual Disciplines for the Christian Life
Practicing Worship
Practicing Worship
What is it I value most in my life? What gets me moving in the morning? What do I look forward to most in my day?
How do I spend my time? My money?
Are there things that need changing on the lists above?
Consider the character of God. List characteristics of God that come to your mind. What do these call you to or mean to you?
Take time to thank God for the gift of this day, your life, his Spirit within you. Ask him to help you keep him at the center of your life this day – seeking first the Kingdom of God.
Throughout your day, check your actions: do they reflect the character of God and are they pointing to God? or are they reflective of a desire that is for something other than God?
“Late have I loved you, beauty so old and so new: late have I loved you. And see, you were within and I was in the external world and sought you there, and in my unlovely state I plunged into those lovely created things which you made. You were with me, and I was not with you. The lovely things kept me far from you, though if they did not have their existence in you, they had no existence at all. You called and cried out loud and shattered my deafness. You were radiant and resplendent, you put to flight my blindness. You were fragrant, and I drew in my breath and now pant after you. I tasted you, and I feel but hunger and thirst for you. You touched me, and I am set on fire to attain the peace which is yours.”
“Late have I loved you, beauty so old and so new: late have I loved you. And see, you were within and I was in the external world and sought you there, and in my unlovely state I plunged into those lovely created things which you made. You were with me, and I was not with you. The lovely things kept me far from you, though if they did not have their existence in you, they had no existence at all. You called and cried out loud and shattered my deafness. You were radiant and resplendent, you put to flight my blindness. You were fragrant, and I drew in my breath and now pant after you. I tasted you, and I feel but hunger and thirst for you. You touched me, and I am set on fire to attain the peace which is yours.”
St. Augustine, Confessions
St. Augustine, Confessions
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