Feb 22 - DAY 10 - The Heart of Worship

Day 10

The Heart of Worship

offer yourselves as

a living sacrifice to God,

dedicated to his service

and pleasing to him.

This is the true worship

you should offer.

Romans 12:1 TEV

I told someone recently, “Don’t make me pray that life humbles you!”

Like the alcoholic who must first admit that he has a problem, the first step to growing in faith is being humbled.

As A.W.Tozer says – page 79 in the old book – “the reason why many are … still making little forward progress is because they haven’t yet come to the end of themselves. We’re still trying to give orders, and interfering with God’s work within us.”

If you want to grow in faith, there are two options …

First, we can wait until life humbles us.

•      Even if we’re lucky enough to never have to worry about things like money and jobs, we all eventually will lose loved ones. And with time, the losses will mount. And unless we die suddenly or young, life will inevitably catch up with us. We’ll eventually grow old – withering, fading, and becoming feeble, forgetful, incontinent, and/or immobile along the way.
•      This method of growth – stubborn waiting – works for some people. They wait until they are knocked down. They wait until they have no other choice than to reach up for help. And eventually they arrive at faith. But it sure is a painful way to grow!
•      And it’s also a risky way to grow. Without rock of faith beneath your feet, life’s tragedies shake us profoundly (and much more than necessary). Without the experience of standing on the rock through smaller tremors, the big quakes are just as likely to snuff the embers of faith rather than fan them into a flame.
•      It’s risky in another way too. If we wait for a sufficient number or kind of humblings before we turn to God, we may risk dying without him.

Secondly, we can humble ourselves pre-emptively.

•      This is called surrender.
•      And this kind of surrender is not a defeat.
•      Surrender is the simple observation that God is big and loving and we are small and sinful. And it’s falling into strong arms.
•      Surrender is admitting our own limitations and trusting in God’s guidance.
•      “Surrender,” as Rick Warren says, “is best demonstrated in obedience.”

In Christ’s Love,

a guy who doesn’t want to say,

“Don’t make me pray that life humbles you!”

(Humble yourself first!)