So…How Do You Worship?

Got to spend some extended time with my brother this last  week.  A couple of days….about 24 hours total.  He is a worship leader at a big church in our town.  We talked about worship. 

So, …how do you worship?  A couple of concepts from my brother.  Here is one.

We were talking and I have heard many teachings on worship…..most are by worship leaders…. and much of the teaching deals with how “they”  (worship leaders) think folks in a church should “act” when the music is playing.  From the quiet when you come in…..to the “you should raise your hands and jump up and down”  crowd.  So, me and Frank just talked.  I got a couple of points…here is one.

Abraham and his only son, he waited for 99 years for, (Isaac), went up this mountain to worship God.  Abraham did not go up to play music…not even mentioned….not to jump up and down and groove with a praise band….not talked about…..not to adjust the sound…not talked about…..not to get the most popular song of 88.3….never talked about……

Abraham and his only son went up a mountain….all alone….no music, …. no praise band…., no popular stuff……,  no…what the majority of folks want……..they (father and son) went up to sacrifice to God and just to worship…… the  Hebrew word means to “bow down….lay down,…..in front of God”  No music.  And Abraham…..was going to lay down his son….Isaac….to the lord. 

So,….. how do you worship?  Got some way you think is worship?  Check out this gig in Genesis 22 and look up the word Worship.  This might change the way you come to church and expect something from the praise team, the pastors, the Lord.  When was the last time you (or me for that matter)…just bowed down to God and listened to what he would have to say?  Worship.

louie

 

Caution! Mountain Worship Considered Dangerous

 

If you have gone up on a mountain, not driving the Blue Ridge Parkway,…but being up, going up a mountain, on foot, especially with a heavy pack or load…then you know it can be dangerous.  Isaac, the son of Abraham, figured that out pretty quickly as he was going up the mountain with his dad, Abraham to worship God. … as Isaac had a pile of wood on his shoulders for a burnt offering..and no offering toburn…none…nada…not even a squirrel in tow.  Looks like dangerous worship to me for Isaac!

Abraham, around 100 years old was with his son, Isaac, around 16 or so, and were going to worship the Lord on the mountain.  An old father and a young strapping stong wood carrying son…his promised son.  Father and son got on the side of the mountain and left the servants that helped them get there.  Father and son kept going up the mountain and the son continued to ask, “where is the sacrifice”.  Abraham said, God has it covered.  The story completes itself with Isaac being strapped on the wood and Abraham going to sacrifice him…when God had it covered with an animal in a bush nearby.

Couple of thoughts about this sort of dangerous worship.  First, you have to prepare, despite what you see with your eyes.  No sacrifice apparent.  Prepare the wood, the fire, the knife, the trip…all of it.  Second, the way may be hard,…carrying wood and provisions up a mountain and no real resolution in sight.  You may not want to go..maybe it is too hard, too inconvenient, to “not planned well enough”.   Third, you prepare and work through any obstacles (call it overcome if you like) and the results are a closeness with, a conversation with, a togetherness with God as you obey. 

You may be depressed,..like I seem to get sometimes, you may be in trouble, in debt, in a crack, in a slump, you may be going up a hill with wood on your shoulder and someone with  you has a lighter and knife…try this.  Be prepared to worship God.  He may just be there waiting on you. 

louie

 

Memorial Day

Memorial day commemorates men and women who died while in military service. 

I can not take away from what those in uniform that gave to our country and give to our country every single day.  I am so grateful for those who stand against the wall.  For those who serve in far away places.  Places we really have no concept of and places we really do not even know.   They do things we do not even want to know.  But we do want to move around with safety, we do want to go out at night, we do want to collect in our public places with safety…….but there are those who do things to protect us that would probably otherwise turn out stomachs. 

Some of them are not here today.  They gave their lives for us.  

I was in Washington DC on a business trip for 10 days.  Every single day I traveled out to Arlington on the train.  I laced up my shoes, somberly I tucked in my shirt and I ran each day among the  headstones.  I thanked the families, I thanked the soldiers, I thanked the husbands, I thanked the wives.  I thanked the sons born and not born.  I thanked the daughters born and not born.  I thanked the brothers, sisters, aunts and uncles that gave their lives for me and my family. 

Am I a choked up, grateful person.  Yes.  My dad, Ray Mercer, still alive, got a silver star and a bronze star…..just to name a few…..and he says that he has the medals……but there were those that gave their lives……..

Thank you. 

louie

 

The Altar and the Beads

Altar.  A place where sacrafices are done to make things right with God.  Before Jesus, sacrificing was done at the Temple year after year to pay for sins.  It was how things were made right with God. 

Jesus came so that we would no longer have to sacrifice…sacrificing is supposed to be over with.  It is supposed to be done…… And it is done.  Jesus said, It Is Finished….don’t go back to sacrificing.   I did it for you.

I was praying for a man last week after I preached to a group of folks and he felt that he had to rub beads, to pay the church, to do “stuff” to be forgiven.  I told him that God was not mad at him for his sins….that God actually loved him so much that He sent Jesus to die for his sins.   Nothing was required except to love God and give his life to Him.  He still has his beads….but now he also has Jesus Christ.  God will work on the beads. 

So, where do you stand with God?  I will tell you that He ain’t mad at you.

louie @ lmercer6@cfl.rr.com