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This Is How We Worship
Jon BurgessNo, O people, the Lord has told you what is good,
and this is what he requires of you:
to do what is right, to love mercy,
and to walk humbly with your God.
Micah 6:8
God makes it clear that the worship He is seeking is much more a daily discipline than a momentary emotion. The prophet Micah goes down a long list of ways to bring a sacrifice of praise to God that would be truly awe-inspiring to behold. Yet, what He is looking for is much more of a day to day reality than a once a week display of piety. How we treat each other is how we are treating The Lord. How we talk to each other is how we are talking to our Lord. It's not like showing up for a pop-quiz that the teacher didn't tell us about. He says, "the Lord has told you what is good" we have just chosen to do otherwise. We know what's required of us but we would rather serve ourselves than others. We choose to do right for ourselves even when it means wronging our fellow man. We choose to love ourselves and get our revenge rather than loving mercy and trusting God with our case. We choose to walk in pride apart from our God rather than in humility and submission to Him. Ultimately, we often choose to worship our way and on our terms which results in empty worship on Sunday and self-worship Monday-Saturday. This is not how we are called to worship.
This past weekend at New Hope Oahu we were singing one of my favorite New Hope originals: This Is How We Worship. Cyndi and were talking after about how that is part of how we worship, but how worship is so much more about the lyrics of our life than the lyrics we sing on Sunday. Worship is about the way we leave people feeling after we've interacted with them more than how we feel during a song. Worship is about doing what's right not what's convenient. It would be so easy if we could limit the whole expression of worship to a 20 minute set during a weekend service, but that's not what God is looking for. Doing what is right even when it's going to cost us so much more time, effort, and money is true worship to God. Loving mercy isn't easy. When someone wrongs us, hurts us, takes advantage of us we want the full hand of judgment upon them. However, when we wrong, hurt or take advantage we expect nothing but mercy. To love mercy is to love God and that person more then we love the feeling of "being right". Many relationships would be saved if we worshipped by loving mercy more then ourselves. Walking humbly with our God means choosing to walk with God even when we don't like where He is leading us, even when someone else is getting the credit, even when we have to apologize for something we didn't do. It's much easier to sing about falling on my knees in humility then it is to walk out humility on a daily basis.
To do what is right, to love mercy, to walk humbly with You- this is how we worship, or at least this is how You are calling us to worship. Help me to see that ever interaction with ever person- family, friends, co-workers, strangers- is either a worship to You or a worship of myself. Let my Lifesongbe pleasing to You my Lord. I pray that the words I'm singing will always line up with the life I'm living. If they don't that I would be quick to repent for how I have been treating the people You have put in my life.
