Ways to Worship
The book of Psalms, which could be said to have been Israel's hymnbook, exhorts us to worship God in a number of different ways. For example, in Psalm 32 we read:
"Shout for joy all you who are upright in heart" (Ps 32:11b, emphasis added).
Although quiet, reverent, worship has its place, so does shouting for joy.
Sing for joy in the Lord, O you righteous ones; praise is becoming to the upright. Give thanks to the Lord with the lyre; sing praises to Him with a harp of ten strings. Sing to Him a new song; play skillfully with a shout of joy (Ps. 33:1-3, emphasis added).
We should, of course, sing to the Lord in worship, but our singing should be joyful , which is another outward indication of one's heart condition. We can also accompany our joyful singing with various musical instruments. I must mention, however, that in many church gatherings, the electrical musical instruments are often so loud that they drown out the singing completely. They should be turned down or turned off. The psalmists never had that problem!
So I will bless Thee as long as I live; I will lift up my hands in Thy name (Ps. 63:4, emphasis added).
As a sign of surrender and reverence, we can lift our hands to God.
Shout joyfully to God, all the earth; sing the glory of His name; make His praise glorious. Say to God, "How awesome are Thy works! Because of the greatness of Thy power Thine enemies will give feigned obedience to Thee. All the earth will worship Thee, and will sing praises to Thee" (Ps. 66:1-4, emphasis added).
We should tell the Lord how awesome He is and praise Him for His many wonderful attributes. The Psalms are an excellent place to find appropriate words with which to praise God. We need to go beyond the continual repetition of "I praise you, Lord!" There is so much more to say to Him.
Come, let us worship and bow down; let us kneel before the Lord our Maker (Ps. 95:6).
Even our posture can be an expression of worship, whether it be standing, kneeling or bowing.
Let the godly ones exult in glory; let them sing for joy in their beds (Ps. 149:5, emphasis added).
But we don't have to be standing or kneeling to worship—we can even be lying in bed.
Enter His gates with thanksgiving, and His courts with praise. Give thanks to Him; bless His name (Ps. 100:4, emphasis added).
Giving of thanks should certainly be a part of our worship.
Let them praise His name with dancing (Ps. 149:3, emphasis added).
We can even praise the Lord with dancing. But it should be dancing that is not fleshly, sensual or purely entertaining.
Praise Him with trumpet sound; praise Him with harp and lyre. Praise Him with timbrel and dancing; praise Him with stringed instruments and pipe. Praise Him with loud cymbals; praise Him with resounding cymbals. Let everything that has breath praise the Lord (Ps. 150:3-6).
Thank God for those who are musically gifted. Their gifts can be used to glorify God if they play their instruments from a heart of love.
| Read the previous article in this series, Worshipping in Spirit |
This article is an excerpt from the book, The Disciple-Making Minister. The actual book itself may be ordered by visiting our online store. To view our copyright policy, click here. © 2011 by David Servant
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