The ACT of worship

There are three distinct parts to worship I want to share with you. That is the A.C.T. of worship. I use these three letters as a device to help you remember three very important aspects to worship. The three things are:

1. A = Action
2. C = Communication
3. T = Truth.

Use these three things to know and understand God’s wonderful plan of devotion to Him.

A is for ACTION

As noted above A= ACTION. So let us begin there. The word “WORSHIP” is described in the dictionary as primarily a noun. But but it can also be designated as a verb. And as you can remember from grammar lessons in school, verbs usually denote some sort of action. Action is the ability to do something. It can be physical or even mental. In the context fo this article worship it is a physical action prompted by certain mental attitude you have regarding God. In this respect, worship is not something that sits on a shelf. And you can’t buy it in the store. The worship of God is personal as well as a physical act you do.

So how can you engage in the action of worship? The Bible provides us with a multitude of examples such as lifting our hands, bowing down, singing and so forth.

Worship is both an inner and outer expression, not only is it physical it is also mental. There is an attitude that goes with worship. The easy part is to do the physical outer expression of worship. But let me warn you – worship comes from the inside and manifests itself in outer action. Worship begins with your heart and soul. It is the absolute appreciation, devotion and love you have for Jesus. This is your chance to reflect on the great and mighty things He does for you as an individual. Christ’s obedience to go to the cross, to die for your sin, and resurrect so that you could live in heaven forever. This is something to worship Him for. If you are missing the relationship your are missing the whole point.

I could go on and give you hundreds of examples of what to do when you worship. But I believe that would be the wrong approach. It’s that which is inside you that desire the outward physical expression. I want to stress the point that worship is first and action you perform in devotion to Jesus.

C is for COMMUNICATION

Not only is worship and action we do it is also a form of communication to God. Which brings us to the next point in this discussion on the A.C.T. or worship. C equals “COMMUNICATION”. When we worship we communicate our love, admiration and appreciation. This is a personal interactive event. By far the most expressive thing we can do is sing out loud to Him. In singing we vocalize our feeling toward God. I like to think of worship as an intimate one on one exchange that we offer up to heaven. It is a sweet savor in the throne room. He is our audience to whom we sing. It is to him alone that we sing our praises. Even though most people sing in a congregational setting it still needs to be a one on one conversation.

God who has everything and everything is His has no need for anything. He needs nothing. As a matter of fact because he owns the universe that is only one thing we can truly give to God. This is our worship. When singing praise and worship form the heart we give to God exactly what he deserves. He knows your heart even better than you know yourself.

Never fall in the trap of faking worship. This would be lying. It would be like getting a beautiful present in an extravagant wrapping, ribbons and bows. Yet when the present is opened up there is nothing inside. It is empty. Image as a young child receiving such a gift. You would be very disappointed. When we sing to God and it is only “lip Service” of we are just going through the motions; God feels the same way.

God created us for fellowship. With fellowship comes communication. We communicate our thoughts and feelings through songs. Look at the Bible. From the time of Moses to David even Paul the Apostle up until the present time. God has gifted men inspired by the Holy Spirit to sing songs to Him. Songs are meant to share with God. Songs help you the worshiper to say with your mouth what is in your heart.

T is for TRUTH

Not only is worship an action and communication it is also something that is done in truth. Which brings us to the third point I want to share with you. In the A.C.T. of Worship the T equals “TRUTH”. Truth is honesty. It is integrity. When we worship we must be absolutely truthful regarding our motives. Do you worship to look good? I hope not! Do you worship because you are forced into doing it? Again I hope not. To worship and not be 100 percent immersed in the act it is nothing more than false worship. Believe me this greatly dissatisfies God. When you worship check your motivation for doing it. You worship because you have a deep heartfelt appreciation toward your Lord. You are grateful for what he did for you and you are thankful beyond your imagination. Truth is something we can grab a hold of it is a concept to understand. Jesus is the Truth.

Some final thoughts on the A.C.T. of worship

First worship is ACTION. It is something we actively do. It is done from the inside to the outside in expression. Second Worship is COMMUNICATION. When we worship it is a pure form of fellowship. We express from our heart the gratitude we have toward God. It is our chance to give to Him exactly what he deserves. And Finally worship is TRUTH. Truth is honesty in which you worship God. There is great danger in worship outside of the truth.

RESOURCE BOX

This article is an excerpt for the new book by John Pape, Jr titled “Building a House of Worship” For more information on how you can get your copy of this book go to…http://www.buildingahouseofworship.com