What Is Worship?

Each week,  we are privileged to be a part of a team that leads worship in our 9:30 and 11:00 a.m. services. This is something we truly enjoy doing and look forward to each and every week. Besides doing my part to bringing glory to the Lord, one of my favorite things about leading worship is getting to see people in the congregation worshipping Him. we absolutely love seeing others worshipping God. It brings such joy to my heart. Sometimes we feel we have the best seat in the house on Sundays.

We definitely felt this way two Sundays ago. Some Sundays just seem extra special when it comes to our worship time. That Sunday was one of those. As we sang about the greatness of our God and celebrated His amazing grace that has broken our chains, we could see something special going on in the room. For those of you there, you know how awesome it was.

There is something very special about an incredible worship service like that. There is something special about singing to the Lord and glorifying His awesome name. There’s something special about coming together on Sundays to worship together as the Body of Christ.

As great as that is, we wonder if some of us think that’s what worship is really about, though? Is worship just about coming together on Sunday mornings? Is is about singing powerful songs to Jesus? Is it just about music? Is it just about something we do in a church building? We may say “no” to all of those questions, but do we really believe otherwise?

So, if worship is more than those things, what is it exactly? During IGNITE, our Youth Ministry at CCF, this past Sunday morning, we just so happened to be talking about worship. We walked the students through what worship is, why we should worship, and how to do so. When it comes to what worship is, we think one of the best ways to answer that question is to explain that worship is giving God His worth. When the word “worship” first came into the English language, it was spoken as “Worth Ship.” It’s about what you give worth to. Essentially worship is giving worth to God. And in reality, God is the only one worthy of our worship.

This goes back to the very first of His commandments. God tells us in commandment  #1, You shall have no other gods before Me.” Why? Is it because God is insecure? Is it because God needs a self-esteem boost? No, it’s for the fact that He is the only one worthy of our praise. Worship really is about giving God His worth.

Now, we can do this in a variety of ways. We can give God His worth by loving Him, by praising Him, by being devoted to Him. But we think the best answer is found in Romans 12:1. It says, “…I urge you…in view of God’s mercy, to offer your bodies as living sacrifices, holy and pleasing to God–this is your spiritual act of worship.”

What is worship? Is it an event? Is it a time we carve out of our busy schedules each week? Is it a song? Is it music? No, those are parts of worship, but worship is so much more. It’s about laying down our lives as living sacrifices to God to give Him the worth that only He deserves. So, how about today we worship God by laying down our lives for Him!