The Truth of the Matter: How important is Worship?

The Truth of the Matter: How important is Worship?: Hello all you Christ Seekers!!!! Did you have a productive week? Was it all you expected and wanted it to be? Well, today I was reading a...

How important is Worship?

Hello all you Christ Seekers!!!! Did you have a productive week? Was it all you expected and wanted it to be?  Well, today I was reading about the importance of Worship. We have constant battles everyday between good and evil. How does worship play a role in this battle? The Apostle Paul described true worship perfectly in Romans 12:1-2: “I urge you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God to present your bodies a living and holy sacrifice, acceptable to God which is your spiritual service of worship. And do not be conformed to this world but be transformed by the renewing of your mind that you may prove what the will of God is, that which is good and acceptable, or well pleasing and perfect.” This says it all. We are so blessed to have God's mercy which is why you worship. God did not have to make the sacrifice to give us His only begotten son. That whosoever believes in Him shall not perish but have everlasting life. (John 3:16). Just that alone is a reason to be thankful. We have His Grace. This scripture also talks about presenting your bodies as living sacrifices Holy and acceptable to God. This means all of our members (body) from the mind to the feet should be saturated with the Truth. (The Word). This helps us with the issues of the world. When your mind is planted on God you will live according to His standards. There should be evidence that you are saved. If you are a child of God, but people are always telling you they did not know you were, then something is definitely not right. Now there is a flip side to that for those that appear so good but are evil. (This subject will come later as we speak on discernment). Having your mind focused on God allows you to be equipped to know that God will take care of the evil battles that come against you. Worship gives you strength. True worship is God-centered worship. People tend to get caught up in where they should worship, what music they should sing in worship, and how the worship looks to other people. Focusing on these things completely misses the point. Jesus tells us that true worshipers will worship God in spirit and in truth (John 4:24). This means we worship from the heart and the way God has designed. Worship can include praying, reading God's Word with an open heart, singing, participating in communion, and serving others. It is not limited to one act, but is done properly when the heart and attitude of the person are in the right place. Also, worship only belongs to God. There should be no other God before Him!!! It is important that no one in your life take precedence over God's will for you!! That is why when you worship Him, he should be all you are focused on. Allow Him to take you to a deeper level. True worshipers have more patience, they are kind, they watch what they say, they do not offend nor do they take offense, they are humble, they do not brag, they do not lie, they are hard workers, they are consistent, they study the Word so they have knowledge. You never have to wonder about their motives because their love is so apparent. Worship is the acknowledgment of God and all His power and glory in everything we do. The highest form of praise and worship is obedience to Him and His Word. To do this, we must know God; we cannot be ignorant of Him (Acts 17:23). Worship is to glorify and exalt God—to show our loyalty and admiration to our Father. That is why it is so important!! Keep in mind that "The Truth of the Matter Talk Show" will air in March 2012. And remember knowing the truth about everything really does matter. 

Who is Protecting Our Children?

Hello all you "Christ-Seekers!!!" I am back with "The Truth of the Matter Blog" and each week we are going to be discussing the truth about everything as it relates to The Word of God!!! I am so glad to be back! Today here in Atlanta we received some sad news. There was an amber alert that had been out regarding a child that had gone missing. Well, she was found today and unfortunately she is no longer with us. She was murdered. This is so devastating. So I began to think. Who could hurt an innocent child? How could anyone look into their innocent eyes and harm them. My Word for today was, Mark 9:36-37 which says,  ³⁶ He took a little child whom he placed among them. Taking the child in his arms, he said to them, ³⁷ “Whoever welcomes one of these little children in my name welcomes me; and whoever welcomes me does not welcome me but the one who sent me.”  The Bible does not specifically use the term “child abuse.” There is no record of a single instance in the Bible where a child is being abused. What the Bible does tell us is this: children have a special place in God’s heart and anyone who harms a child is inviting God’s wrath upon Him. When Jesus’ disciples tried to keep children from coming to Him, He rebuked them and welcomed little children to His side, saying, “Let the little children come to me and do not hinder them for the kingdom of God belongs to such as these” (Mark 10:14). Then He took the children in His arms and blessed them (v. 16). 

Children are abused and mistreated in several different ways, all of which are abhorrent to God. Too many children are the victims of angry beatings and other physical and sexual abuse as their parents or other individuals take out their own anger and frustration out on them. Anger is almost always sinful, and anyone who abuses a child in anger or hatred commits multiplied sins. “An angry man stirs up dissension, and a hot-tempered one commits many sins” (Proverbs 29:22). It is so sad when a child is the victim of tragedy, but it is so encouraging to know that children are not held accountable by God for their sins until they reach a certain age, and that if a child dies before reaching the "age of accountability,' that child will, by the grace and mercy of God, be granted entrance into Heaven. We know our children no matter what will always go to Heaven and if we live as we should one day we will all be reunited. That is the hope that we all have as parents that have lost their children. My heart aches for all of those parents that have had to endure the lost of their children especially to heinous crimes and I will continue to pray that you have peace in the darkest time of your life. Just remember that God is watching over all of our children and no matter what happens He is always protecting them.