6 Ways to Nurture Your Spirit Through Worship {Thursday Therapy}
So . . . here's the latest post in a series to help you nurture your spirit—a very important part of spiritual self-care. And today we're lookin' at six different ways to nurture your spirit through worship. And no, this isn't an all warm, sparkly post. There are a few barbs tucked in among the warm and sparkly parts of worship.
Now, let's get started
You know you were created to worship God. And when your spirit responds to his spirit, worship takes place. That doesn't always mean it feels good. Sometimes it doesn't. Especially when your mind and emotions are on a marathon race in your mental hamster-wheel—going round and round with the latest drama/crisis in your life.But you worship anyway because your emotions and thoughts really do need to adjust themselves to the spirit reality of a BIG God who is madly in love with you and wants to shut down the wild, mental, hamster-wheel ride going on inside of your brain.When you worship, your spirit grows bigger because all of you—your spirit, soul, and body—is focused on God. And deep within, you change. Your spirit becomes more than it was. It becomes healthier. More like Jesus.
Pardon me, this is a rant
Ahem, allow me just a quick rant: Many people choose a church to attend based on if they like the worship or not. They want worship to draw them into the Lord's presence. This is both good and bad. Worship should draw you into the Lord's presence, but it shouldn't dependent on others. The basis of worship is a choice you make, and it should cost you something (see 2 Samuel 24:20-24). A wonderful worship team shouldn't be a requirement for worship. If you just have to choose the right setting and music for worship, then consider that your worship is more self-centered than God-centered. Perhaps you need to pay the price of learning to worship without all the bells and whistles you think you need.Now, back to the good stuff . . . the how-to part of this post.
6 ways to nurture your spirit through worship
1. Worship through joy and singing. Verbally praise the Lord—alone and with others (see Psalm 100:2 and Psalm 109:30). This is usually what we think about when we think about worship. But worship is far more than singing . . . read on.2. Worship by making God bigger in your mind than whatever it is that is distracting your thoughts and emotions.
That's what exalting the Lord means—to magnify him and bring him closer so other things become smaller and put into proper perspective in your life. Psalm 103 tells you how to do this.
3. Worship with truth—living a life full of integrity, honesty, and according to God's precepts is a form of worship (see John 4:24). This is worship in the midst of your daily living. 4. Worship through humility. Every time you humble yourself before the Lord it is an act of worship (see Psalm 95:6).5. Worship through right relationships, for it is through holiness that we see God (see Hebrews 12:14). Yep, that means forgiving others and asking forgiveness, working on your godly character, and seeking to live in peace with others.
I know. Oh dang. Bet you hadn't thought of yucky relationships as motivation for worship before.
6. Worship as an act of your will by ignoring your bad mood or depression. Decide to praise the Lord through remembering all the times his Spirit has swept over you, how he sings over you in the night, and what he has saved you from (see Psalm 42:5-11.)So, there you have it. Now the put-it-into-practice part of this post: Choose one of the above six ways to nurture your spirit through worship today. And tomorrow . . . rinse and repeat.To find other posts in this series, click here.Have a great weekend, Susan"Jesus likes it when we share." -Adelaide, age 3. Pass this along to everybody and their brother. OK, maybe not everybody's brother, but you know . . . all of your friends would be nice.