Improve Your Awareness

Last week, we had the opportunity to gather for an All-Church Worship Night in the Chapel. It was a wonderful time of extended singing, scripture reading, and communion. Those who were in attendance said it was refreshing, uplifting, and beautiful. If you were able to attend, we hope you were blessed by it as well. If you weren’t able to make it, know that we will do another one soon! But we don’t have to wait until the next Worship Night or even the next Sunday to come around for us to worship. Worship can be and is a corporate (that is, together or united as one) expression, but it is not designed to be limited to when we are together. Okay, so what is worship?
 
Worship is our response to our awareness of God.
 
This is a big statement and obviously goes beyond music. Romans 12 tells us, “Therefore, I urge you, brothers and sisters, in view of God’s mercy, to offer your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and pleasing to God—this is your true and proper worship.”
 
This verse comes on the heels of a hymn of praise to God at the end of Romans 11. So, because of the “Therefore” and “in view of God’s mercy,” we see that we worship as a response to who God is and what He has done. And that response is more than just singing; we offer our bodies as a living sacrifice. That is, we sacrifice our will on the altar, die to ourselves, and conform to the image of Christ, choosing to live our lives His way.
 
To respond to our awareness of God, we first have to be aware, right? This is often a bigger hurdle for us than the response. We are so distracted, busy, and addicted to entertainment and comfort that we often relegate our allowance of awareness to a service on Sunday and maybe a quiet time with the Lord a couple days a week. Then, when we do come to a time of corporate worship or a quiet time, we often struggle to engage because we are not in the habit.
 
So how can we make awareness of God more prominent in our lives? Well, that’s where scripture, prayer, and music certainly come into play; they aren’t the only vehicles for worship, but they are an excellent place to start.
 
Here are some practical ways to incorporate more scripture, prayer, and worship music in your daily life:

• Pray throughout the day. 1 Thessalonians 5:17 calls us to “pray without ceasing.” This can be hard for us, especially if we were raised thinking that we have to have our hands folded and eyes closed to be able to pray. The reality of it is that God is always with us, always listening, and always ready to commune with us through prayer. Think of your prayer with God as an ongoing conversation you have with Him throughout the day. As you drive, as you work, and as you feel yourself drawn towards the things of this world, turn your mind to the Lord and pray. Certainly, there are times when prayer can be more structured, but it doesn’t always have to be.
• Listen to God’s Word. We are blessed to have such ease of access to the Bible, something we often take for granted. Time in God’s Word should have a dedicated time in our day to be read, but that doesn’t have to be the only time we interact with it. Again, as you drive, as you work, and as you do anything that leaves your ears free, listen to God’s Word. The YouVersion app has great narrators to help you take in scripture. Listen to Dale’s sermons on the CFC app or website. You can find those HERE.
• Sing to the Lord on your own. This is one that can be hard for us, especially if we don’t consider ourselves to be good singers. But let us tell you: God gave you the voice that you have, and He wants to hear it. Think about hearing your child’s voice and how sweet it sounds to you. God loves to hear your voice even more! The more we get comfortable with singing on our own, the more ready we will be to sing when we gather together. You can listen (for free) to all the songs we sing as a church on one Spotify playlist. Click HERE.

God created us for a relationship with Him. By the power of the Holy Spirit and through the finished work of Jesus Christ on the cross, we have unfettered access to the Father. Let’s not waste our attention. Let’s choose to be aware of God and respond accordingly.
 
We look forward to worshiping corporately WITH YOU this Sunday!