Spiritual Disciplines: Worship

One spiritual discipline that we’re called to do as Christians that is often confused or unclear is worship. Often when we hear that word our first thought is music, the singing part of our Sunday gathering. While that is an aspect of it, worship is actually a far greater discipline that should engage multiple areas of our lives.

To give an analogy, there are many ways in which I let my wife know that I love her. Quite often it is spoken, but it is also demonstrated in different actions throughout the day such as a hug or holding hands while walking, or simply spending time with her. Then there are the special times and dates in our lives that we set aside to especially remember and honour each other through gifts, cards, meals and times away. And there are also other, more mundane ways in which I show her love each day through doing things around the house. As her husband, my posture and attitude towards her should always be motivated by love and putting her before myself (look at Ephesians 5:25-33).

On a much greater scale, this is how each follower of Jesus is to live for God. Our whole lives are to be an ongoing act of worship of God (Romans 12:1-2), and involve every area of our lives. There will be special times and gatherings, but worship doesn’t start and stop when we enter or exit the church building — it should be everyday in every action, even in the mundane and boring. It is a continual remembrance of who God is, and who we are in Him. It is both communal and individual, audible and silent. Eventually, when we are in the new heaven and earth, it will be ongoing, never ceasing, but until that time it will have to be a conscious choice on our part, and a choice that we are expected to make.