Worship God

[00:00:00] What can we do to worship God? How can we show God our devotion to our faith and our devotion to Him? Let's discuss.

[00:00:19] Welcome to the Walking in Step with God podcast. Here we empower you to walk boldly with God.

[00:00:26] Visit our website at walkinginstepwithgod.org for resources, videos of our messages, and more information about our ministry.

[00:00:34] Once again, that website is walkinginstepwithgod.org.

[00:00:42] Hello, welcome to Walking in Step with God. I'm Steve McDonald.

[00:00:47] Today we explore the topic, Worship God, as we continue our series, Grow Deeper in Faith.

[00:00:55] So much of our walk with God involves asking for God's influence in our lives.

[00:01:00] We ask for guidance. We ask for protection. We ask for favor.

[00:01:05] There are so many ways in which we ask of our Heavenly Father, and He lovingly provides.

[00:01:13] We know that we can depend on God for every aspect of our lives, in good times and bad.

[00:01:22] All relationships are two-way streets.

[00:01:26] Think about some of your closest friends or family.

[00:01:29] Would you agree that these relationships are an exchange of communication and support?

[00:01:36] What can we do to show up for our relationship with God?

[00:01:39] One of the most important things we can do is worship Him.

[00:01:44] When we worship God, we are demonstrating to Him our love, our devotion, and our thanks to Him.

[00:01:53] Our worship can show God how much we honor and revere His presence in our lives.

[00:01:59] Today, let's explore three ways to worship God.

[00:02:03] While there are many forms of worship, let's discuss how all of us can focus our minds and hearts upon our Creator

[00:02:10] in a way that directs our attention away from the busyness of our lives and towards Him.

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[00:02:39] Let's take a quick break.

[00:02:41] I'll be right back.

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[00:03:39] Welcome back.

[00:03:41] Let's continue in our discussion of three ways to worship God.

[00:03:45] Number one, prayer.

[00:03:49] Prayer is a fundamental aspect of our walk with God.

[00:03:53] God invites all of us to speak to Him at any time for any reason.

[00:03:59] He is always ready to hear us speak to Him, be it in our minds or even out loud.

[00:04:06] It doesn't matter what language you speak or your religious disposition.

[00:04:10] God hears every single word of our prayers.

[00:04:15] Often, we can become so caught up in our lives and situations that we may forget to pray.

[00:04:21] We forget that God wants to walk alongside us and grow with us.

[00:04:26] He wants to reveal His presence when things are going great as well as when things are not.

[00:04:32] I have personally learned it is important to do whatever is necessary to integrate prayer into my day.

[00:04:40] I know that I am likely to forget, so I make it a point to set aside time for prayer in the morning soon after I wake up,

[00:04:47] at bedtime, and I use an alarm on my phone to remind me to pray throughout the day.

[00:04:53] I make it a point to use my prayer time to have a conversation with Him,

[00:04:58] not just asking for something each time,

[00:05:00] but also taking time to thank Him for all of the things He is doing in my life,

[00:05:07] even the things unbeknownst to me.

[00:05:11] Prayer is a powerful form of worshiping God because it demonstrates our commitment to including Him in our lives.

[00:05:21] Number two, praise.

[00:05:25] Our God is a powerful and mighty God and deserves our praise.

[00:05:32] Depending on our cultural background and personality,

[00:05:35] praise looks different from one person to another.

[00:05:37] In God's Word, praise is described as a time of joyful noise,

[00:05:42] including singing and dancing.

[00:05:45] In some communities, praise is a lively and even noisy event,

[00:05:50] filled with shouts and dancing.

[00:05:53] In others, praise is more subdued,

[00:05:56] with a group of individuals singing or even speaking aloud their praise.

[00:06:02] However you praise, be it alone or in a group of individuals,

[00:06:06] I encourage you to express to God your love for Him spoken aloud or through some means of celebration.

[00:06:14] For me, praise is speaking aloud about the things that I am thankful for.

[00:06:20] I know others who praise by shouting and running around a sanctuary.

[00:06:25] I don't believe there is a wrong way to praise,

[00:06:28] but the idea is to express thanks to God in a way that you would not do otherwise day to day with others in your life.

[00:06:37] God is not typical in any shape or form,

[00:06:40] so let us praise Him in an atypical way.

[00:06:45] Number three, give.

[00:06:49] When we started today's message, we were reminded of a few of the ways God gives.

[00:06:55] God gives in so many ways.

[00:06:58] God gives us protection.

[00:07:00] God gives us strength.

[00:07:03] God gives us healing.

[00:07:05] A powerful way that we can express our thanks and worship God is by giving.

[00:07:12] In the same way that God pours into our lives,

[00:07:15] when we give, we are making a decision to pour into someone else's life.

[00:07:20] Giving allows us to use our God-given gifts, talents, and resources to enrich the lives of others.

[00:07:27] There are, of course, so many ways to give.

[00:07:30] Giving of your time.

[00:07:32] Giving of your resources.

[00:07:33] Giving your skills, gifts, or talents.

[00:07:36] Giving can be as simple as holding a door open for someone walking behind you,

[00:07:41] to offering lunch for someone who is homeless,

[00:07:44] or donating to a cause that is important to you.

[00:07:48] If you have a desire to give as a way to worship God,

[00:07:51] I recommend asking Him how you can give.

[00:07:54] God knows the exact way in which you can utilize your resources, gifts,

[00:07:59] or talents to pour into someone else's life, or even many others.

[00:08:06] In today's message, we discuss three ways to worship God.

[00:08:10] We discuss the idea that prayer is not only a fundamental part of our faith journey,

[00:08:15] but it's also a way to worship God as we make time to communicate with Him.

[00:08:21] We learn the power of praise.

[00:08:24] While praise may look different from culture to culture,

[00:08:27] the common thread is that praise is another powerful form of worship

[00:08:31] that is used to express our thanks to God

[00:08:34] in a way that is unique and different from our normal day-to-day interactions with others.

[00:08:41] Lastly, we learn that giving is another way to worship God.

[00:08:45] Giving of our talents, gifts, and resources

[00:08:48] allows us to be used by God as a vessel to enrich the lives of others.

[00:08:54] Our God is an almighty God and is worthy of worship.

[00:08:59] In our walk with Him, let us make sure

[00:09:01] not to limit our faith experience to just receiving from God,

[00:09:06] but also making time to worship Him for all of the ways that He impacts our lives.

[00:09:12] If you are not already, make worship a priority in your life today

[00:09:17] and for the rest of your days.

[00:09:21] Let's close out a prayer.

[00:09:23] Father Almighty God, we come before you today.

[00:09:25] We thank you for this day.

[00:09:27] We thank you for this message.

[00:09:28] We thank you for the wisdom that you have shared through me.

[00:09:32] And we just, we worship you, Lord.

[00:09:34] We thank you for all that you do in our lives.

[00:09:36] We thank you for all the ways that you show up.

[00:09:39] We thank you even for the things that are unbeknownst to us

[00:09:41] that you are orchestrating behind the scenes on our behalf.

[00:09:44] We just thank you and we look for ways to show you our thanks.

[00:09:48] We ask, Lord, for courage when we're feeling a little nervous about showing you our praise.

[00:09:55] We ask for guidance when it comes to ways in which we can give to others.

[00:10:01] And we just look forward to the ways, Lord, that you will guide us step by step in this way

[00:10:06] so that we may worship you not only today but for the rest of our days.

[00:10:12] Amen.

[00:10:15] Are you interested in learning more about the sources guiding this message?

[00:10:19] Then I invite you to stay tuned after our break for the Going Deeper with the Word segment.

[00:10:24] Here we examine how God's Word provides clear guidance and direction about worshiping God.

[00:10:31] If you're catching this episode on YouTube or in our Facebook group,

[00:10:34] please be sure to click that like button and also be sure to leave your comments

[00:10:38] about today's message and worshiping God.

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[00:11:04] God bless you.

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[00:11:42] Welcome to Going Deeper with the Word.

[00:11:44] In this segment, we welcome people of all backgrounds, religious or not, to review the Word of God.

[00:11:51] The Word of God provides guidance, direction, and instructions for living our lives and walking with God.

[00:11:58] Today, we examine how God's Word provides clear guidance and direction about worshiping God.

[00:12:04] Let's review examples of God's Word that can lead and guide in steps

[00:12:08] and back up the principles we learned in today's message.

[00:12:12] I'll be reading scripture today from the Amplified Bible.

[00:12:16] By the way, if you're watching this message online, we invite you to share your comments as we review each verse.

[00:12:23] Here's our first verse.

[00:12:26] Psalm 100 verses 1 and 2.

[00:12:31] Shout joyfully to the Lord, all the earth.

[00:12:33] Serve the Lord with gladness and delight.

[00:12:37] Come before His presence with joyful singing.

[00:12:41] In this verse, King David expresses the importance of praise.

[00:12:48] In this example, we see praise defined as shouting and joyful singing.

[00:12:54] As I mentioned in the message today, I think the act of praise is important more so than the method of praise.

[00:13:01] I think what is important is that we should not feel embarrassed or restrictive about how we praise,

[00:13:08] and it should be done in a way that is not, I repeat, not similar to other celebratory activities in your life.

[00:13:17] God deserves a manner of praise that is used only for Him.

[00:13:21] For me, speaking aloud is my form of praise.

[00:13:25] I encourage everyone to show praise that reflects their heart and joy for the Lord.

[00:13:34] Question.

[00:13:35] How do you praise?

[00:13:37] Do you praise in public, private, or both?

[00:13:42] Let us know in the comments.

[00:13:46] Let's have a look at another verse.

[00:13:51] John 4, verses 23 and 24.

[00:13:57] But a time is coming and is already here, when the true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and in truth.

[00:14:05] For the Father seeks such people to be His worshipers.

[00:14:09] God is spirit, and those who worship Him must worship in spirit and truth.

[00:14:17] In this verse, Jesus explains the importance of true worshipers.

[00:14:21] By this, He explains that true worshipers will worship in spirit and in truth.

[00:14:27] By spirit, we examine a motive of our hearts, that worship should not be done for show and display,

[00:14:32] but because we know and honor God in our hearts.

[00:14:36] By truth, we ensure we are transparent in our worship, holding nothing back in our acts of worship.

[00:14:42] By worshiping in spirit and truth, we can ensure our acts of worship are performed with the right intentions and state of mind and heart.

[00:14:52] Question.

[00:14:53] Have you ever performed acts of worship, or lack thereof, due to what others might think?

[00:14:59] If so, what were the circumstances?

[00:15:01] Do you consider your acts of worship today to be in spirit and truth?

[00:15:07] Let us know in the comments.

[00:15:10] Let's look at one last verse.

[00:15:15] Luke 6, verse 38.

[00:15:18] Give, and it will be given to you.

[00:15:20] They will pour into your lap a good measure, pressed down, shaken together, and running over.

[00:15:28] For with the standard of measurement you use, it will be measured to you in return.

[00:15:36] In this scripture, Jesus explains that when we give, it does not go unnoticed.

[00:15:41] Giving is another amazing way to show God your love.

[00:15:46] When we give, Jesus says that the measure in which we give shall be returned.

[00:15:51] He even says that the measure of giving that is returned to us will be complete and even exceed the measure in which we gave.

[00:16:03] Question.

[00:16:04] What is your favorite way to give?

[00:16:07] Is there a method of giving that you have been hesitant to do in the past, but you would like to explore?

[00:16:14] Let us know in the comments.

[00:16:17] Today we touched on just a few ways to worship God.

[00:16:20] In reality, there are so many other ways, including reading of scriptures, exploring in nature, quiet time with God, and so much more.

[00:16:30] As we seek a life that walks with God, let us ensure that we also make time for worship to demonstrate to God our love and our thanks.

[00:16:39] Thank you for your time in reviewing these verses with me today.

[00:16:43] Please be sure to share in the comments how these or other examples of God's word have helped you learn more about worshiping God.

[00:16:50] Was this message a blessing to you?

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