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. Don’t copy the behavior and customs of this world, but let God transform you into a new person by changing the way you think. Then you will learn to know God’s will for you, which is good and pleasing and perfect.     Romans 12:1-2 (NLT)
“All Come All Ye Faithful†is a familiar hymn that I sing during this season. Like many hymns, I may sing it without thinking about what I am singing. Do I think about:
– Jesus is my King? Do I have reverence and holy fear that befits a king who has no equal? Jesus reminds me that I should not fear someone who can only kill my body but instead fear the One who can kill body and soul! (Matthew 10:20)
– How I worship? Do I attend church because it is “the thing to doâ€? Church is a building that gives me a place to come together and proclaim my love and thankfulness to my LORD. Do I think about what I am saying when I sing? Does it come from my heart or is it “just wordsâ€?
– What I am going to be doing in heaven? Revelation speaks about the angels continually praising God (Revelation 4). Am I going to be happy in heaven doing that when I am “bored†singing hymns or “irritated†repeating praise choruses? Is my heart preparing for eternity? Do I spend time thinking about all that God has done and continues to do for me?
Worship is emotion. It would be impossible to express my love and thankfulness without connecting with my heart! Unless my love and thankfulness is just for show! God made my emotions. They should be used not allowed to dry up and die!
Take a few minutes today and join in singing, at least, with your heart this well-loved song of adoration.
O Come All Ye Faithful, Sung by the Celtic Women
These are some really good questions to think about. I don’t ever want to go through the motions in my walk with Jesus. Thanks for this great post!