Everyday worship

Today I've been dwelling on who God is. I know how He is identified in  Scripture - holy, just, righteous, Creator, etc. - but on a personal level sometimes I lose sight of just who He truly is to me. On Sunday mornings and Wednesday nights I enjoy the opportunity to join other believers in singing songs that exalt His greatness and I can rock it out in the car anytime I want to tunes that glorify His name. I strive to live a life of worship, but truth be told it's easier to do that when I am engaged in an event or opportunity where that is expected of me.


But what about when I'm not in the midst of a "planned" time of praise? Do I think to dwell on who He is and respond with spontaneous worship during the mundane times of my day? In other words, do I worship God - can I worship God - without someone prodding or leading me to do so?


King David had a lot going on in his life. Not only was he king over Israel, but as a man who was after God's own heart (1 Samuel 13:14 & Acts 13:22) he became in a real sense the spiritual barometer for the whole kingdom. If you take time to read his story in 1 and 2 Samuel, you will find that his life was far from cushy. He was despised by Saul who in turn tried on numerous occasions to have him killed and later when he was king there were occasions where his own son and some of his closest aids sought to take the throne from him. Every time these things happened, God came through in a big way and rescued David from his enemies.


And then there was the whole mess with Bathsheba (2 Samuel 11), where David slept with her while her husband was away fighting Israel's battles and consequently got her pregnant. When David couldn't convince the man to sleep with Bathsheba so that he would think that he - and not David - was the one who got her pregnant, David arranged for this man's murder. This doesn't sound a whole lot like a man after God's own heart, yet God in His grace and mercy forgave David and continued to use Him in spite of sin.

So David had plenty of reasons to be full of praise to God. In 2 Samuel 22, David took some time to praise God specifically for all of the many ways that He had intervened in his life (it's also recorded in Psalm 18). Read how spontaneous praises to God flowed from David's mouth as he dwelt on just how good and marvelous God truly is (verses 2-3):

• The Lord is my rock
• My fortress
• My deliverer 
• My God 
• My mountain where I seek refuge 
• My shield 
• The horn of my salvation 
• My stronghold 
• My refuge 
• My Savior 

I don't think he left anything out, do you? Notice how all of the praise and adoration he could give was directed upward to God. The focus wasn't so much on what he was getting from God (which was a lot) but rather on how great a giver God is. This is a difference which we must realize. Worship and our expression of it should never be centered on us but rather on the great God that we serve. 

As we seek to express worship to God daily, may it be in such a way that we recognize Him for his glory and majesty and not just on how He has blessed us and may it be spurred on because we are constantly struck with just how incredible He is.