Worship and Praise

God is our Father. Jesus is our friend. The Holy Spirit is the comforter. These are some of the ways scripture defines God for us.

Sometimes I think we focus so much on God as Father and friend that we forget that God is also the Almighty, the Creator of all things worthy of our praise and not just our friendship. The Lord is not just our cosmic buddy.

I am beginning to understand more and more that praise, pure praise needs to become a more integral part of our prayer life. God has become so much a friend that we forget He is to be worshiped, glorified, honored and adored.

God has no need of our praise. He is complete with or without our worship and yet He demands it of us. Why is that?

It isn’t because he needs it but that we do.

God wants our praise and worship not because it fills an emptiness in Him but because it fills an emptiness in us - is good for us. It puts us in a right relationship with him. If we worship God, if He holds primacy in our hearts then there is no room to worship ourselves; to make the mistake that we are supreme or that it’s all about us. We are less likely to “play” God in our own relationships and judgments. Our focus needs to be on God because He is the source of our very existence. When we focus our attention and praise on the Lord there is less room for other “false” gods to occupy our thoughts and hearts. I don’t mean just pagan gods, gods with ancient names with images carved from stone. There are other gods in our lives. They are more subtle in their control over us. They have no names and they don’t look like “gods” but they steal our thirst for the creator and cause us to lust for the created.

Lord my God, I love you with my whole heart. I offer you the praise honor and glory due your name for you have created all things. You are Lord and King for all ages. May we your humble servants come to worship you in spirit and in truth. May you reign in the hearts of all people. Amen.