Vibrant Worship & Prayer
Over the next six weeks, we will explore the five core values of our church. Our first value is Vibrant Worship & Prayer!
It’s no surprise that worship and prayer are central to any church’s values. Even when we add the adjective vibrant, it still holds true. The dictionary defines “vibrant” as full of energy and enthusiasm.
During the process of defining our church’s values, our team came up with detailed descriptions for each. As I mentioned last week, we can sometimes get a little wordy. As we worked to condense each value into a few words, I asked the team to keep the longer paragraphs so I could share them with you. Here’s the description we crafted for Vibrant Worship & Prayer:
We believe that the vibrant practice of pursuing God through personal and corporate worship and prayer is an ongoing, life-expression of every believer. It’s not just a church service; it’s a way of life. Valuing and celebrating the presence of God—Father, Son, and Holy Spirit—should be an important part of every believer’s daily life.
Today, we will dive into four key elements of this value:
I. Whole-hearted Pursuit of God
There are both personal and corporate aspects to this. Let’s begin with the personal. Last week, I shared a passage written by David, which I believe reflects a person wholeheartedly pursuing God:
Psalm 63:1-4
You, God, are my God, earnestly I seek you; I thirst for you, my whole being longs for you, in a dry and parched land where there is no water. I have seen you in the sanctuary and beheld your power and your glory. Because your love is better than life, my lips will glorify you. I will praise you as long as I live, and in your name, I will lift up my hands.
This is the kind of whole-hearted pursuit of God we value. Just being in His presence changes us.
Paul gives us further insight in Colossians 4:2, where he writes, “Devote yourselves to prayer, being watchful and thankful.” He expands on this in Romans 12:1:
“Therefore, I urge you, brothers and sisters, in view of God’s mercy, to offer your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and pleasing to God—this is your true and proper worship.”
Paul emphasizes an essential aspect of worship here: offering our bodies as living sacrifices. This means laying down our personal preferences, desires, and wants as sacrifices to God.
Worship and prayer are a lifestyle, not a task to be checked off. It encompasses every part of our being. We were created for this—to offer our entire lives as acts of worship. Worship brings us into union with God, and when God becomes everything to us, we begin living as we were designed to.
There’s also a corporate element to worship. In 1 Chronicles 16:29, we see:
“Ascribe to the Lord the glory due his name; bring an offering and come before him. Worship the Lord in the splendor of his holiness.”
When we gather as a community, it should be the outflow of what God has been doing in our lives throughout the week, not our only moment of worship.
A beautiful illustration of corporate worship can be found in Exodus 33:7-11, where the Israelites waited outside the “tent of meeting” to see the glory of God:
“Whenever Moses went out to the tent, all the people rose and stood at the entrances to their tents, watching Moses until he entered the tent. As Moses went into the tent, the pillar of cloud would come down and stay at the entrance, while the Lord spoke with Moses…the Lord would speak to Moses face to face, as one speaks to a friend.”
Isn’t that amazing? God spoke to Moses as a friend. Today, because of Jesus’ sacrifice, the curtain separating us from the Holy of Holies has been torn, and we can all stand in the very presence of God, both in private prayer and in corporate worship.
II. Beholding Him in Reverence & Awe
Let’s turn to Psalm 86:11-13 to explore this further:
“Teach me your way, Lord, that I may rely on your faithfulness; give me an undivided heart, that I may fear your name. I will praise you, Lord my God, with all my heart; I will glorify your name forever. For great is your love toward me; you have delivered me from the depths, from the realm of the dead.”
To behold God in reverence and awe, we must first be taught His way. Understanding who God truly is is key. Misconceptions or wrong views about His character can hinder us from entering into a relationship of reverence and awe.
For a long time, I believed that God was just waiting for me to make a mistake so He could punish me. This distorted view of God affected my relationship with Him. I needed to learn to trust Him as a loving Father—waiting for me, the wayward child, to return home.
When we understand that God is a good Father, it’s natural to hold Him in reverence and awe. This truth leads us to echo David’s words: “Great is your love toward me!” The perfect God of all things loves us—and that should bring us to awe and reverence.
III. Valuing & Celebrating His Presence
This aspect of worship builds on the last one. When we worship, we enter His presence, and as we come to value this, we are transformed.
Psalm 100:1-5 beautifully captures this idea:
“Shout for joy to the Lord, all the earth. Worship the Lord with gladness; come before him with joyful songs. Know that the Lord is God. It is he who made us, and we are his; we are his people, the sheep of his pasture. Enter his gates with thanksgiving and his courts with praise; give thanks to him and praise his name. For the Lord is good and his love endures forever; his faithfulness continues through all generations.”
Can you hear the celebration in these words? How easy is it for you to celebrate in the Lord, or is it a struggle?
Consider this story from 2 Samuel 6:14-16, 20-22:
“Wearing a linen ephod, David was dancing before the Lord with all his might… When Michal saw King David leaping and dancing before the Lord, she despised him in her heart. David replied, ‘It was before the Lord… I will celebrate before the Lord. I will become even more undignified than this.’”
David understood what it meant to celebrate in worship. His boldness—“I will become even more undignified than this”—is inspiring, especially for those of us who might be more reserved.
We must also remember John 4:24: “God is spirit, and his worshipers must worship in the Spirit and in truth.” True worship involves both passion (spirit) and knowledge (truth). Worship in the Spirit without truth can lead to shallow, emotional experiences. Worship in truth without the Spirit can result in dry, joyless legalism. True worship combines both: a joyous appreciation of God informed by Scripture.
IV. It’s a Way of Life, Not Just a Church Service
We love gathering together to celebrate Jesus each Sunday, but worship should be an outflow of your personal walk with God, not just a lifeline of worship.
Hebrews 11:6 tells us:
“And without faith it is impossible to please God, because anyone who comes to him must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who earnestly seek him.”
Coming to church is important, but it’s not enough. You must believe that God exists and that He has a purpose and reward for you. As we say in our vision statement, “The Log Church will be fertile ground where everyone matures in Christ.” This belief in God starts the journey toward maturity.
Conclusion
Vibrant worship and prayer is one of our core values because it deepens our relationship with our Creator. As we grow closer to God, we are transformed into the image of Jesus.
2 Corinthians 3:16-18 illustrates this transformation:
“But whenever anyone turns to the Lord, the veil is taken away… we all, who with unveiled faces contemplate the Lord’s glory, are being transformed into his image with ever-increasing glory, which comes from the Lord, who is the Spirit.”
Do you want the veil removed? Do you want freedom? Seek the Lord, and be transformed into His image. This is our goal as a church. Will it be yours?