Volume 1; Issue 2
The week goes by, but the worship never ends.
Ask almost any person in a church and they will usually respond with the same answer. What is praise and worship? Most will answer “when we are singing in church on Sundays and Fridays”. The sad truth is that this is an unfortunate belief and the scope of what worship is for most Christians. It is sad and regrettable since the very creation of man was for the PURPOSE of worshiping the creator of heaven and earth.
Many see the musicians and worship leaders in churches as just musicians and worship leaders. They are the ones given charge of leading a congregation of a group of people into worship at church. Is worship just a few songs that lead the way into the word to be preached? The answer to that, if you ask a true worship leader is “no!” I say “true” worship leader because I mean those who live according to what it is that they do. I don’t mean the ones in church that are, for lack of better or preparation, are thrown into leading a few, hurried songs to get that time over with.
Like I stated above, any true worship leader’s answer to that question would be a straight NO. You see, when you begin to take the position of “worship leader” seriously, that is when you begin to learn something that ALL Christians should know, understand and comprehend. The reality is that worship is not a few songs, a few hallelujahs and a couple of moments of chills and goose bumps. Worship, as it was first conceived by God, was a way of LIFE.
As a Levite, those who live to worship God, I have learned that singing songs and playing an instrument is but a microscopic part of worship. It’s not about nice songs, or nice instrument solos or the like, but rather a way of life. Worship is about living so as to make every moment, every action and every movement, something that will give glory to God. Worship is about lifting God up at every moment of every day. Worship is about giving glory to God through the storms of the week, through the struggles of the days and the trials of the night. Worship is about doing EVERYTHING in a fashion that will undoubtedly give glory to God.
That doesn’t mean that we (Levites) don’t make mistakes, but we are called to be separated and to live not FOR worship, but IN worship. Every new week and every new day brings a new trial and a new struggle, but through it all, our lives must be worship to God. Heck, just standing in the midst of adversity can be worship. Standing tall and against sin, overcoming the enemies plan and surviving the attacks of this world can be worship, if we live IN it.
Levites of old, who serviced in the temple, were a separated people. They lived, ate, drank and even bathed “temple”. Their lives were, by inheritance, focused entirely on the life of worship and service to God. They were the ones who handled the worship for the people and led the people into worship. Sure, now a days, we need NOT a mediator to reach to God other than Christ and the Holy Spirit since the veil of the Holy of Holies was torn when Jesus died, but the desire and mission of the modern day Levites should and MUST remain the same as those of old. Again I say, we aren’t perfect, but we can all, “Levite” or not, LIVE in worship to God.
We must put away the concept of being a Christian when we are at church and we must begin to lead our lives in worship. We must all be Levites unto the Lord, living in worship and service to the one who created us with his very finger tips, in his image and likeness and who breathed life into us. We must live separate from this world while still in it. We must live in worship. We MUST live in worship.
In the next issue, overcoming our vision, in order to see what God wants us to see…
-EliW
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