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Christian Worship: Are You Prepared, Participating, and Practicing?
by Robert Baines Christian worship is a reference to believers expressing admiration for and allegiance to God. It is a key element of Christian growth. There seems to be so much "people focused" entertainment and performances today. The following are insights about preparation, participation, and practicing what God is calling us to do: Preparation. Believers would do well to attention to preparation. Consider the following ideas: - Come to church fifteen minutes ahead of time. - Don't sit around people who are whispering and distracting you from worshiping. - Remind yourself what Christian worship is all about. - Resolve to express admiration and loyalty to God, not matter what is happening or not happening in your life and around you. Think about how some people go to a night club (This may be a stretch for you - smile.), with a mind to party, even if they have to party by themselves. Believers ought to come and celebrate the goodness of God, even if they have to do it by themselves and with tears in their eyes. Participation. This is not a spectator situation. Every believer should participate. There is a time for the choir to sing, but the congregation's singing is the sweetest. There are prayer leaders. But every believer ought to pray at least silently. The preacher preaches. But every believer ought to give feedback and say "amen," when they can identify with the truth. It goes without say that we all should partake in giving. And of course we have to partake in interacting with one another. Make it a practice to greet one another with the equivalent of a "holy kiss (see Rom. 16:16)." Practice. After the corporate worship experience, believers should leave with a mind to practice what they were singing, praying, and preaching about. Woe unto us, if we sing about love but make no effort to love. It takes away from our claim to be people of God, when we talk about serving the Lord but then give no service to the Lord. In summary, we should prepare, participate, and practice the purposes and parts of Christian worship. Make sure you read the article on "Christian Worship: Purposes and Parts." Dr. Robert E. Baines, Jr. uses his doctorate of ministry degree and twenty years of pastoral experience to provide quality and helpful Christian living information to 1,000's of visitors a month. Make sure you secure your free copy of his ebooklet, "How to Encourage Yourself: 21 Practical Tips," and sign up for his newsletter that features great articles, helpful devotionals, and Bible based teaching notes at www.RobertBaines.com. Article Source: http://www.faithwriters.com |