[I was working on the daily devotional pieces for the arts camp when I came across an article I share from here, lightly edited. This may be information you’ve read repeatedly or it may be new to you, but I invite you to read it with an open heart. What might God be saying to you about your personal worship? ]
The Bible also makes it clear that worship goes beyond singing to encompass all of life. Yes, singing to God is certainly part of worship. “Sing praise to the Lord, you saints of His, and give thanks at the remembrance of His holy name.” (Psalm 30:4 NKJV) [And when we know God’s faithfulness, we can stand steadfast.] “My heart is steadfast, O God, my heart is steadfast; I will sing and give praise.” (Psalm 57:7 NKJV). But the reality is that all of life is worship. Everything we do is supposed to flow out of a heart that loves God above everything else.
“Therefore, whether you eat or drink, or whatever you do, do all to the glory of God.” (1 Corinthians 10:31 NKJV)
Eating, drinking, working, resting, walking, and sleeping are all to be done to the glory of God. In other words, every activity should be done in such a manner that God is honored. Worship of God is to infuse every area of our lives. We worship God when we give thanks to Him for a wonderful meal He has provided. We worship God when serve others instead of ourselves. We worship God when we obey the commands He has given us.
“He who has My commandments and keeps them, it is he who loves Me. And he who loves Me will be loved by My Father, and I will love him and manifest Myself to him.” (John 14:21 NKJV)
If we go to church on Sundays but don’t obey the commands of God, then we’re not worshiping God. Obedience to God is an outward sign of a heart that prizes God above everything else.
“…to be pure in heart really means to have an undivided heart, a heart that is unmixed, like metal without alloy, or milk that’s undiluted. It means singleness of mind, the issues of life brought down to one burning focus, concentrated in my devotion to Jesus Christ. It means loving Him, serving Him, desiring Him with a pure heart.” (- Pastor Adrian Rogers)
Our goal and desire should be to have an undivided heart that is devoted to Jesus Christ above everything else. When we have a pure, single-minded focus on Jesus, the result is a life of worship.
“Are you seeking for Christ with all your heart? James 1:8 says, “He is a double-minded man, unstable in all his ways.” The word for double‑minded literally means “two souls.” Here’s a person trying to face both ways at the same time. Trying to live with one foot in the church and one in the world. They’ve got just enough of the world in them that they can’t be happy in church and just enough Christ in them they can’t be happy in the world. They’ve become a spiritual schizophrenic, a two-soul person. We are to love the Lord with all our heart.” ( – Pastor Adrian Rogers)
God can’t have second place in our lives. If we want to worship Him then we must put God first, above everything else. When we love something more than God, we devalue Him. We’re saying that a job, person, possession, or hobby is better than God. This is the opposite of Biblical worship. It’s idolatry.*
Jehovah,
You alone are worthy of our worship. Purify our hearts and tune our spirits to hear your Voice. Help us to seek you with all we are so that we worship you in Spirit and in Truth, we ask in Jesus’s name, AMEN.
*https://www.lwf.org/gods-desires-for-you-a-biblical-guide/what-is-worship-according-to-the-bible