Day 3: Worship with Your Whole Heart
Bible passage: Psalm 111; Psalm 27:8
More Than a Song
Today is Friday 3rd of January 2020. Welcome to Day 3 of our 21 Days of Prayer and Fasting. Over the last two days we have asked for clean hearts and come close to God. Today we do what clean hearts do in His presence. We worship.
The writer of Psalm 111 begins with a decision. “I will thank the Lord with all my heart.” Psalm 111:1 (NLT)
Why We Worship
Because of Who He Is
Worship does not begin with how we feel. It begins with who God is. Psalm 111 goes on to list His deeds. Everything He does reveals His glory and majesty. He is gracious and merciful. He gives food to those who fear Him and always remembers His covenant. All He does is just and good (Psalm 111:3–7).
He is the reason we exist. He gave us our last breath and He will give us the next one. Before we ask Him for anything, He has already done more than enough to deserve our thanks.
With All My Heart
The psalmist says “with all my heart”. Half-hearted worship is easy. We can sing the words while our minds are on lunch. Whole-hearted worship brings everything: mind, emotions, will and body. It holds nothing back and it is not embarrassed.
He also says that he will do this among God’s people. Worship is personal, but it is not private. Something happens when we lift our voices together that does not happen when we are alone.
Seeking His Face
In Psalm 27, David hears God inviting him to come and talk with Him, and his heart answers that he is coming (Psalm 27:8). Worship is a response to an invitation. When we set out to seek God, we find that He was already looking for us.
To seek someone’s face is to want the person and not only what they can give. That is the heart of worship.
Worship That Changes Us
Nobody spends time in God’s presence and stays the same. Jesus said that the Father is looking for people who will worship Him in spirit and in truth (John 4:23). As we worship, our problems return to their proper size and our hearts are surrendered to Him again.
Your Own Words
Three Steps for Today
Read Psalm 111 aloud. Let it give you words for who God is and what He has done.
Write your own prayer of worship. Use your own words. Tell God who He is to you and thank Him for specific things.
Offer your day. Paul calls us to give our whole selves to God as a living sacrifice, which is true worship (Romans 12:1). Offer Him your work, your conversations and your rest today.
Prayer for Today:
Lord, You are the one true God. You are the reason I am alive, and all that I have comes from You. I worship You with my whole heart. I am not ashamed to say that I love You. I belong to You. As I seek Your face today, change me, and let my whole life bring You glory. In Jesus’ name, Amen.
Keep going
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