After a year and a half of worship posts, I believe it’s time to circle back and discuss the reason why we worship and, ultimately, what worship is.  It is so easy to get caught up singing songs on Sunday or listening to music and lose sight of the reason why we do these things.  Our brains are smart and can sing along with a song without having to be consciously involved.  But in order for our songs to truly be worship, our hearts must be involved.  It is not merely a singing exercise but an opportunity to praise and extol our Savior. Therefore, let’s re-examine what worship is and why we do it.

​As we close out the month of July, I would like to give you a gentle call to worship.  Sometimes life gets so busy and overwhelming that we forget how much God has given us, done for us, and won for us and so we forget to just stop and worship.  Worship Him for who He is, what He’s done, and His great faithfulness.  So today, would you take a moment to quiet your heart and mind and let the words of this song flood your soul and become a song in your heart?

​Once in a while, I like to highlight a song I would use for communion in a service.  These songs are special to me because they exalt Jesus, remind us of His great sacrifice, and fill our hearts with gratitude.  Therefore, today’s song feature will be one of these “communion” songs.

​As Americans, we live in a culture of low commitment.  People change jobs as easily as they change wardrobes, and relationship changes happen even faster.  Few young people stay in the area they grew up, either moving around for college, work, or adventure.  Most marriages are ending in divorce, many are not even getting married, and it is getting harder and harder to find people who will commit to ministry, church, or really anything.  Many of us have experienced the sting of being forsaken and abandoned by friends, leaders we looked up to, and people we have trusted.  However, the good news today is that God has never forsaken us, and He never will!

​I hope you all had a wonderful time celebrating the 4th of July! Though our nation seems to be spiraling into chaos and more restrictions, we still enjoy great freedom, and it is important for us to remember and celebrate them.  One of the many freedoms we enjoy here in the States is the ability to worship God without hindrance.  Many of our brothers and sisters around the world do not get to enjoy this luxury.  Therefore, we must capitalize on and fully utilize this privilege and not take it for granted.  

​Happy July 1st!  As Americans, we are getting ready to celebrate our nation’s birthday and the freedom upon which it was built.  July 4th is a monumental day is many ways.  However, no human organization is perfect, and we have seen our nation’s shortcomings in many ways these past few months.  Yet the truth is that true freedom is only found in Christ.  We cannot manufacture or guarantee it as a people, government, organization, or movement.  Only Jesus Christ can give it to us.  Therefore, as we celebrate freedom this weekend, I want to bring our attention to the freedom we have in Christ by sharing a worship song on this topic.

​We are at the end of June.  How the time has flown by these last couple of months!  It seems that even with the sheltering and chaos in our world, time keeps marching on at a blinding pace.  But God is still sovereign.  And as we hurtle through time and space—drawing ever nearer to Christ’s return—I have a worship song for us that will remind us of God’s faithfulness and the fact that though our world is changing, our God is the same yesterday, today, and forever.

Welcome to another week on “Here I Am to Worship”! I hope you were able to catch the powerful message I shared with you last week from Passion City Church.  Worship is an important part of our Christian walk.  Therefore, understanding and learning how to do it well is vital to walking in the abundant fullness of God’s intended design.  So I hope you were challenged to offer to God an extravagant, unrestrained response to His goodness in your life through worship. 

This week I’m going to share something a little different.  Instead of introducing you to a new song, I want to share with you a powerful message on worship. We are living in crazy times and deep darkness.  And sometimes, it can be difficult to remember the “why” behind our worship.  It can be difficult to remember to worship in the midst of trial.  However, worship is an important part of our Christian walk.  In fact, it is vital and necessary in order for us to walk in the joy and fullness God has intended for us. Therefore, this message from Passion City Church on “Extravagant Worship” is timely and much needed.

​We’re living in crazy times.  Just when we thought things couldn’t get much worse, they did.  However, in the midst of the crazy, in the middle of the uncertainty and chaos, we have a refuge we can run to.  Proverbs 18:10 assures us that, “The name of the LORD is a strong tower; the righteous man runs into it and is safe.”  Therefore, as we face a season where fear and anger abounds, let us run to our place of safety, the name of the Lord.