What is Worship? Part 1

Last night, in our "Loving God" class, we had a great discussion about worship. Worship is one of the primary ways (if not THE primary way) we express our love to God and experience God's love for us. But one of the most common "complaints" we hear today, particularly from young people, is that worship is "boring." An encounter with God...boring? How could that be? Perhaps it's time to think about what worship is...and what worship is not.

First and foremost, worship is not about "me." Worship is about God. Worship is about giving God the honor that he is due. Because we live in a consumer culture, we have turned that around and assumed that worship is only valuable if we "get something out of it." That's the attitude we bring to everything in life. We choose items we buy, stores we shop at, television programs and movies we watch, worthy causes that we invest in all on the basis of "what can I get out of it" or "how does this benefit me." So it's understandable that we bring that same mindset to worship, and when the worship service at our church "no longer meets my needs" or "doesn't fill me" or even "doesn't have the people I like in it," then we feel justified in moving on.

Because we've bought the lie that worship is all about me.

And if you (or I) are the source of the universe, the creator of all, the one who holds all things together, then worship can be about you (or me).

But, because we are not all of those things, perhaps we've gotten a wrong idea about worship. Perhaps we've been sold a bad bill of goods about what worship is and who worship is about.

Every time I hear the phrase "church shopping," I cringe inside, because what that person is really saying is that they are evaluating the entire church by how the worship service (or perhaps just the music or just the sermon) makes them "feel." That's the way we buy products that we shop for. How does it make me feel? Do I like this product, based on just a cursory examination? Now, certainly there are some things we should take note of when deciding on a church to be a part of. Does the church take the Bible seriously? Is the leadership focused on reaching people for Jesus? What is the mission of the church? But rarely do "church shoppers" get that far. Shoppers are looking for a feeling. And if worship fails to produce that "warm feeling," then they "shop" at another store.

But worship is not about feelings. Worship is not about me. Or you. Or any individual.

Worship is about God. And that means, then, that when we to worship, we come not looking to get our own needs met but rather we come to honor God.

Let's keep thinking about this...and what else worship might and might not be...and what that means for our lives...


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