Worship...Places and Postures

In the course of this journey called my life, there have been many different terrains that I have traveled. My personal experience of what it means to worship God has changed many times over the years and it seems that I am on a new path that is very wonderful.

As a child, I attended a church service every week. I sat in the front pew on the right hand side of the sanctuary at the 8:30 a.m. service of a very traditional Lutheran church. Week after week it was pretty much the same...the liturgy which included several settings of the Divine Service, Responsive Prayer, the Litany, and brief time for individual and family prayer. I loved going. This type of service holds a very special place for me and I would welcome the opportunity to occasionally worship in that setting, but it is not the only atmosphere conducive for worship for me.

As an adult woman, first as an unbeliever and now as a follower of Christ, I have participated in many different worship atmospheres. Some of these have been in church settings. I have worshiped in different styles of traditional services along with some more contemporary ones. Most of my experiences have been positive and I was able to express my love and praise of God and I am pleased to have the freedom to do so without fear or condemnation.

Recently though, I came into a season where my time of worship was not what it should have been...not what it could have been. I found myself in a place in my life where I was "doing" church. I was over committed - in all the right things. Although I loved the areas of ministry that I was serving in, (and I am still certain that God was the one who directed me into them), my heart became hard. My personal time with God was good but the time I spent in corporate worship was dissatisfying and strained. Satan had stolen a small part of me and his deception was hindering my ability to express my praise and love.

The LORD is close to the brokenhearted and saves those who are crushed in spirit.
Ps 34:18

God moved me. He not only moved my heart, but He moved me away.

I have traveled over three years since that time and He has shown me many things. He has given me time... lots and lots of time. During this time, I have been able to see things that I desperately wanted to change. He has revealed things that He desperately wanted me to change.

I (along with my family) have worshiped in a dozen different churches since our move. I have worshiped in more than a dozen locations, that are not church buildings. God provided time for my family and I to rest and to heal from some hurt. We attended a mega church for over two years; actively giving, serving, and participating in a ministry that is thriving and providing a place for many, many people to learn more about Jesus.

The last several months, we are worshiping at a smaller (but still large around 5000 instead of 20,000) congregation. Each move that God initiates, He moves me closer to Him. My faith is increased. I trust Him more, and not just Him, but "the church". I can sit in a service that is planned and prayed over with the purpose of bringing people closer to Him, and it does! My heart is becoming tender. Worship has become new and refreshing. It has become a time of joy and something that I look forward to. Sometimes I laugh and sometimes I cry. His word has become alive again, the songs have become prayers again, the rejoicing has become real again and He is changing my life.

I am free to worship and I worship a God who is on my side!

I will praise you as long as I live, and in your name I will lift up my hands.
Ps 63:4

Come, let us bow down in worship, let us kneel before the LORD our Maker Ps 95:6

Sing to him, sing praise to him; tell of all his wonderful acts.
Ps 105:2

David, wearing a linen ephod, danced before the LORD with all his might
2 Sam 6:14

Worship - lifting hands, singing, kneeling, praying, dancing...