Day 12

Worship Everyday

A Living Sacrifice

12 I appeal to you therefore, brothers,[a] by the mercies of God, to present your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to God, which is your spiritual worship.[b]

Romans 12:1

One of the most misunderstood words in today’s church is worship. It’s a word we’ve been arguing about and struggling with for hundreds of years. Part of the issue is that over the years, we’ve too often reduced the definition of worship to only refer to the thirty minutes of music on a Sunday morning. However, worship should be much deeper and more complicated and, simultaneously, simpler than just music. The Scottish Theologian, John Drane, says that worship is “responding with all that we are to all that God is.” The Bible says in Romans 12:1 that “honoring God with our bodies daily is our spiritual act of worship.”

How do you respond to all that God is? It starts with acknowledging the ever-present nature of who God is. Far too often, we disconnect the God we worship on Sunday from the God of our Monday through Saturday. The risk here is that God becomes distant for six days, and then on Sunday, as we engage in corporate worship, we are faced with trying to walk across a bridge to meet someone we barely know. It becomes such a challenge that it’s easier to disconnect than to try to get across the bridge. After a while, God becomes like a distant relative. We know that relative's name but not much else. If we can begin to see God in the everyday and begin and maintain an ever-present relationship with His presence, our Sunday worship becomes an overflow of our week. In his book, The Practice of the Presence of God, Brother Lawrence tells us that if we can worship while doing our everyday tasks, we can worship better when we gather together. 

And why is God worthy of all of our praise and adoration? We find the answer in Romans 11:36, “For from Him and through Him and for Him are all things. To Him be the glory forever, amen!” God knows you. He sees you. And wants a relationship with you. Draw near to him as He draws near to you.

Application: This week, in your day-to-day life, find those everyday moments that can be filled with worship. Take a 15-minute walk and talk to God out loud. Or talk with Him as you sit in the car line waiting to pick up your child from school. Maybe in the 10 minutes you’re doing the dishes, put on your earbuds and have your own worship time.

Written By: Matt Brashier