Posts about encouraging and instructing our worship

Like Incense

Let my prayer be set before You as incense, The lifting up of my hands as the evening sacrifice. Psalm 141:2

Incense was a vital component of worship in Israel, but one that we don’t often incorporate in Protestant services. However, knowing that incense symbolizes the intercession and prayers of God’s people, and knowing that so many facets of tabernacle worship were also object lessons, we can learn some important things about our worship and prayer.

The background on incense

In Exodus 30-34-38 God instructs Moses on the makeup and usage of the incense for Israel’s worship. He said to use stacte, onycha, and galbanum, and mix with pure frankincense in equal amounts. Frankincense you’ve probably heard of. Of the others, galbanum is the only one that scholars have positively identified. (However, if you Google them, “essential oils” is one of the autocomplete suggestions for each.) The bottom line is, it smelled terrific, distinctively terrific. But before any of the spices could be used there was some prep work. Each of the ingredients had to be crushed and ground to a fine powder. During the tabernacle and temple ceremonies, it was burned by fire on an altar. One final note: Israel was not allowed to copy the recipe and whip up a batch of the incense for their own personal use.

So let’s take some principles from all that.

Ground – Our sincerest worship often comes from our authentic brokenness and need.

Mixture – Worship and prayer is a mixture, not based on a meticulous, legalistic formula, but definitely a combination of God-honoring things like adoration, thanksgiving, confession, petition, and lament.

Fire – Fire is often used as a symbol of the Holy Spirit, so prayer and worship that are not Spirit-infused are empty.

Distinctive – If we treat worship and prayer as common and ordinary, we dishonor God.

Sweet – The aroma lingered in the space, on the worshiper after it was over. If we don’t carry the impact of our time with God out beyond the designated time and place, it has been empty. I think it’s a fair extrapolation to say that if we bring hypocrisy and sin into our worship, it’s a lot more skunky than sweet.

How would our prayer life and our worship life change if we, like David, came before Him with authenticity, directed by the Holy Spirit, if worship and prayer were a sacred blending of our heart’s cries, and if those moments were lingering and longed for?

Lord, let my prayers be set before You like incense.

Worship Him: Your Savior

By Paula Wiseman

They forgot God their Savior, Who had done great things in Egypt. Psalm 106:21

This is a cautionary tale.
The exodus is an object lesson.
God delivered Israel from Egypt
He delivers us from the bondage of sin.

But after the rescue,
After the Israelites were saved,
Other things competed for their attention
Situations made them doubt God

They forgot God their Savior
They forgot what He done.
They ignored what He was doing.
They discounted what He would do.

We must remember what God has done.
He loved us.
He sent Jesus to die for us
To save us from the consequences of our sins.

We must recognize what God is doing right now.
He loves us.
He sent His Spirit to live within us.
To teach, guide, comfort and confirm us.

We must rejoice in what God will do.
He will love us with an everlasting love.
He will send Jesus for us
To consummate our salvation in eternity with Him.

Forgetting is easy.
It is passive.
It requires no effort.

Worship is active.
It is intentional.
We must do no less, though.

Worship Him! God your Savior!

Worship Him: Your Redeemer

By Paula Wiseman

And they remembered that God was their rock, And the Most High God their Redeemer. Psalm 78:35

A Redeemer pays a required price
To secure the release
Of a slave. Or a prisoner.

God redeemed Israel from captivity
In Egypt and Babylon,
Making them His own.

Christ redeems us
From captivity to sin
Paying a price we could not.

Israel, in their pride
In their hardhearted, stiffnecked rebellion
Forgot the God who paid that price.

Until they needed Him again.

Let us not follow Israel’s example.
Let us live in grateful submission,
Remembering we are not our own.

Let us honor God with every moment,
Knowing He purchased our freedom,
Out of the depths of His love and mercy.

Worship Him, your Redeemer.

Worship Him: Your Light

By Paula Wiseman

The LORD is my light and my salvation; Whom shall I fear? The LORD is the defense of my life; Whom shall I dread? Psalm 27:1

The LORD IS your light.
Not that He GIVES it.
HE IS.
So what does this mean?

He is the light within me and you.
All the good, the hope, the joy,
All the wisdom and understanding,
All the guidance and counsel.

He is the light around us.
He gives discernment in the situations we face.
He connects us with fellow believers
To strengthen and encourage us.

He is the light revealed in us.
He is the compassion and love we show others.
He is the gospel we carry out.
He is in our every word and action.

He is your Light and my light,
Who rescues us from the darkness of sin.
He is our salvation.
With that eternal question settled…

We have nothing to fear.
We have only to worship.

Acceptable

By Paula

Let the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart Be acceptable in Your sight, O LORD, my strength and my Redeemer. Psalm 19:14

I have always viewed this verse as a prayer, something I wanted God to do for me.
Transform my words, and the thoughts that gave rise to them, so that they are acceptable to You.

It’s an honorable, worthy prayer, born of a desire to please God.

It’s not exactly worded like a prayer though.
These are the words that accompany an offering left on an altar.

See, that changes things.
My words are not held up as something for God to fix.
They are an act of worship.
My thoughts are not something I want Him to sanctify.
They are offered to Him as a sacrifice.

Would the last ten conversations I had make much of an offering?
Even if I only counted the substantive ones?
Would the things my mind and emotions landed on yesterday bring delight to the one I claim as LORD?
Were they His kind of thoughts?

May these gifts I give You be acceptable.
May the things I say,
May the things that linger in my heart and mind,
Be gifts worth giving You,
O LORD, my strength and my Redeemer.

Hello My Name Is Asaph

By Paula

So [David] left Asaph and his brothers there before the ark of the covenant of the LORD to minister before the ark regularly, as every day’s work required; 1 Chronicles 16:37

Perhaps the greatest celebration in David’s reign as king was when the Ark of the Covenant was brought to Jerusalem. Even though David was prevented from building a temple to house the Ark, he made every preparation for that time. Not only did he procure building materials and furnishings, but he also considered how to best manage the utilize those ordained by God to serve, that is, the priests and Levites. Because David was a musician and songwriter himself, it is no surprise that the role music was to play in Israel’s worship was a priority for the king.

David chose three men: Heman, Asaph, and Ethan to oversee the worship music. They weren’t literal brothers but rather belonged to the same tribe. All three men are mentioned performing multiple duties and we have psalms written by each of them. Pulling together some snippets about these men from 1 Chronicles, it seems Heman served as the primary singer, the lead, the director even. Asaph seems to have been the primary songwriter. Ethan then, may have been the lead musician. Perhaps, the first worship band.

So how did Asaph and the others lead worship? What was their philosophy and can we learn anything from it?

Asaph’s worship was a daily activity (1 Chronicles 16:37). Somehow, I don’t think worship was just a vocation for him. I doubt David would have chosen him if it were. The Message says Asaph and the others were “responsible for the needs of worship around the clock.” That takes devotion both to God and to the congregation they served. They viewed worship as a calling, as a sacred trust, rather than a chore or obligation.

Asaph’s worship centered on God’s character, His words, and His actions (Psalm 50, 73-83). If we do a quick read of Asaph’s, several themes emerge. God’s holiness. Lots of holiness. His power and might. His dealings with men. His judgment of the wicked. But also His restoration of those who have sinned, and His intervention on behalf His people.

Asaph’s worship was inspired (1 Chronicles 25:1-7) These verses mention Asaph and the others prophesying and by Hezekiah’s time, he was called Asaph the seer. (2 Chronicles 29:30). From what we know of the New Testament gift of prophesying, it doesn’t necessarily mean to foretell the future. Even in the Old Testament, the prophets didn’t always make predictions. They did however always deliver God’s message, His unvarnished truth to the hearers. When we clearly understand God’s message to us, our natural response is worship.

Is worship a daily activity, a weekly routine or a special event for you? Is it, or should it be all three?
What role does music play in your personal worship? In the worship at your church?

Like Incense

The background on incense

So let’s take some principles from all that.

Worship Him: Your Savior

Worship Him: Your Redeemer

Worship Him: Your Light

Acceptable

Hello My Name Is Asaph

Encounters Series

Covenant of Trust Series

Foundations Series