Living A Life of Worship

Desirae L'Heureux Clarke, Bowridge Children's Director

Have you ever looked in on a kids or youth worship session? They don’t hold back! This summer at VBS we were blessed with some youth helpers who were passionate about sharing their favourite worship songs with the kids. You should have seen how energized the whole sanctuary was! We jumped, clapped and sang. It was truly a joyful time. 

Worship plays a huge part in communal remembering. As humans we’re naturally forgetful. I think intentional moments of musical worship ground us and remind us of who God is and what he has done for us. These moments of worship at VBS also reminded me of the importance of community. It was so special to have youth lead the kids, and the leaders of all ages jump along. The generations were gathered together for one purpose - to glorify God. I’m sure all the volunteers  were as encouraged and inspired as I was. There’s something significant about gathering together to worship. It’s a time to remember God’s faithfulness together and to be encouraged by one another.

When the Bible talks about worship it’s not only talking about musical worship. That’s a part of it, as we see in Psalm 95:1-2, which  says “Come, let us sing to the Lord! Let us shout joyfully to the Rock of our salvation.Let us come to him with thanksgiving. Let us sing psalms of praise to him.” In the Old Testament, a lot of worship was done through offerings (as seen in Deuteronomy 26:10). Even though we aren’t called to slaughter animals anymore, we’re still called to give offerings, whether that be finances, talents or time. These are all acts of worship to the Lord. 

In the New Testament worship looks a little different. With the sacrifice of Jesus believers no longer needed to make those sacrifices of the Old Covenant. Instead, Paul calls on believers to live their lives as an offering of worship to the Lord. This is a huge calling! Romans 12:1 says “And so, dear brothers and sisters, I plead with you to give your bodies to God because of all he has done for you. Let them be a living and holy sacrifice—the kind he will find acceptable. This is truly the way to worship him.” How can we live our whole lives as worship? We work to honour God and never forget all he has done for us! You can see how musical worship fits in, we honour God and we remember all his great deeds. As we live a life of worship we can’t help but grow in a deeper relationship with our Father. What a beautiful thing! And as you grow closer to the Father, living in the joy of his wonder the people around us will start to notice and our life of worship becomes an outward display of the love of God. May your life of worship draw those around you closer to the Father!

 “Therefore, let us offer through Jesus a continual sacrifice of praise to God, proclaiming our allegiance to his name. And do not forget to do good and to share with others, for with such sacrifices God is pleased.” Hebrews 13:15-16