Daily Devotionals
Daily Devotional: Psalms 30:8-12
Ps 30:8-12
To you, O Lord, I cry, and to the Lord I plead for mercy: “What profit is there in my death, if I go down to the pit? Will the dust praise you? Will it tell of your faithfulness? Hear, O Lord, and be merciful to me! O Lord, be my helper!” You have turned for me my mourning into dancing; you have loosed my sackcloth and clothed me with gladness, that my glory may sing your praise and not be silent. O Lord my God, I will give thanks to you forever!
Col 3:15-17
And let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts, to which indeed you were called in one body. And be thankful. Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly, teaching and admonishing one another in all wisdom, singing psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, with thankfulness in your hearts to God. And whatever you do, in word or deed, do everything in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him.
Based on examples and on Hebrews 10:25, I believe that it is important for us to meet together as a church to worship and praise God and to be encouraged, taught, and built up. But it is surprising to me that there is not more written about the importance of doing this and how the early church services were actually conducted. So, we serve God by doing what we know from scripture is right.
Singing songs of praise and thanksgiving to God implies celebration. This means that our worship should be something that lifts us up and excites us and not put us to sleep or leave our minds wandering to things that seem more interesting. It should not be stoic rituals that have no meaning or relevance.
Having said this, Jesus said our worship is to be in spirit and in truth. I believe this means that it is from the heart and is genuine, not just pretending or going through the motions. Have you ever sung a verse of a song and then forget if you sang it or not? I confess. I have done this when leading the singing! The problem is not the song. It is not the group of people. It is me, my heart, and my mind. We need to focus our worship to God. it is about remembering him, praising him, thanking him, and worshipping him, but in the process, we are lifted up, we are encouraged, we are taught, we are reminded of Jesus and our eternal goal!
O Lord God, thank you for the opportunity to meet with other believers and worship you in songs and in reading your word. Thank you for the encouragement this gives me and the empowerment it affords. Help me truly worship you from the heart and to be intently involved in each part of the service. Thank you for your wisdom in having us meet together on a regular basis. Be with our country and our leaders so that we can live in peace. I pray in the name of Jesus.
Robert
