“Come, let us worship and bow down. Let us kneel before the Lord our Makers. For He is our God, and we are the people of His pasture and the sheep of His hand.” (Psalm 95:6-7a,NASB)
The heading in my Bible calls this “A Call to Worship.” We might even say we are being invited to worship.
Invitation, according to Merriam-Webster is “an often formal request to be present or participate.”
The definition made me realize worship will occur with or without our presence. We are being asked to participate in something already ongoing.
As we continue reading the psalm, we then read,
“Today, if you would hear His voice, do not harden your hearts …” (verse 7b-8, NASB)
I found these verses to be sobering. The choice is ours – will we pause and take time each day to worship Him, and thus keep our hearts soft and malleable. Or will we continue on with our day, rushing and ignoring Him, thus causing our hearts to harden.
The study, Praise: A Walk Through the Psalms, suggests reading Romans 12:1:
“Therefore I urge you, brethren, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies a living and holy sacrifice, acceptable to God, which is your spiritual service of worship.” (NASB)
“A living sacrifice.” Maybe the sacrifice we are being asked to make is the sacrifice of time. Will we give Him our time – in reading His Word, in prayer, and in worship?
“As believers, we declare worship, not only with our lips but with our bended knee.”
(from Praise by The Daily Grace Co.. page 34)
What are you praising God for today?
Right now,
I am praising God for these daily reminders,
these invitations to come fully to Him and bow my knee.
Time is precious and seems to only become more precious with the passing of time. In her post, “Hello & Goodbye”, Jennifer Ross shares wisdom which was passed on to her. Waiting is an important part of our journey with the Lord. I often remind myself that it is a verb, an action word, therefore, even in waiting I am doing. May we wait on our Lord each day we have been given. Be blessed as you read her words.
Come, sit a spell. Bring your coffee, your posts, and your thoughts. If you link up, kindly visit those who have drawn up a seat around you.
Image by InspiredImages from Pixabay
You’re right it’s a daily choice to spend time with the Lord in worship.
And thank you for featuring my post Joanne! ☺️
Blessings, Jennifer
May praising become as natural and necessary as breathing. Thanks for taking us there this morning, Joanne.
We are invited join worship that is already in progress. I’ve never thought of it like that before, Joanne. What a comfort to know we don’t have to drum up any sort of worshipful feelings on our own, we can just join in with a prayer of praise. Hugs, friend.
Joanne, in reading, “present your bodies a living and holy sacrifice, acceptable to God, which is your spiritual service of worship,” I was struck by how presenting our physical bodies is a spiritual service. Maybe because we’re talking about the spiritual realm in Bible study, the connection between the physical and spiritual hit me in a new way. Wonderful post that blessed me today.
A call to worship, adore, praise, and commune with Him – thank you, Joanne, for the extended invitation that is always right before us. May we see and respond wholeheartedly!
Beautiful thoughts here, Joanne. Love how you said worship is ongoing and we are invited to that which is already happening–with our without us. I pray to desire to worship my Maker, Lord, and King. And it’s a stewardship of our time.
I’ve realized I can’t be a living sacrifice when I keep crawing off God’s altar.
Joanne, I love the thought that we are invited to join worship already in progress! I never considered it that way before. What a tremendous privilege. This morning I was meditating on Psalm 113:3, which fits so well with your post!
“From the rising of the sun to its setting,
the name of the Lord is to be praised!” AMEN!
I’m grateful for the sweet times of fellowship with God that have been the gift of 2024. I am trusting for grace to establish good habits of worship and a deeper God consciousness.
I was just writing in my journal today about my tendency to rush into my day lately, getting to my list without first spending time “in worship.” It is a daily choice, and an obedient one, too, — one that calms our minds, hearts, and soul, and brings us joy. Gosh, why do I skip it, or not stay in a heart of worship all day?!!
A daily sacrifice of praise–what an opportunity!
It is a sacrifice to make time to worship, but oh what blessings. And as Romans 12 says in another version, it’s only reasonable after all God has done for us. I love that you pointed out worship is ongoing all the time.
After a visit to my doctor, I’m praising him for good health considering my age. And I know better than to take it for granted.
May praise come from my lips all the day through.
We choose what we worship every day. So good, Joanne.
Hey-thanks for continuing on with your testimonies of God’s goodness for so many years now. 🙂