Hello my dear friends,
Worship of the Lord is one of the greatest activities granted to us by
Him. Worship is far more than a bland ritual performed out of a
religious duty. Biblical worship is grace-driven and based upon a love
relationship with Jesus. The Psalmist offers the invitation to worship.
He invites us to come.
Coming with you,
Denny
Psalms of Discipleship—Principle #27
Life Principles For Those Who Choose To Follow Jesus And Live The Discipled Life
Key Scripture: 6 Come, let us worship and bow down; Let us kneel before
the LORD our Maker. 7 For He is our God, And we are the people of His
pasture, and the sheep of His hand. Psalm 95:6-7
Core Value: Worship
Worship is more than singing a song and beating a tambourine. Worship
is more than just showing up at a specific location on a specific day at
a specific time with specific people going through specific rituals.
Worship is simply bowing one’s will to the will of God while at home, at
work, or even at church. Worship is a grace-driven activity that
enhances the spiritual growth of the Quality Disciple.
Is your
experience a ritualistic, works-driving worship or are you responding to
His irresistible grace that draws you into His presence? His invitation
to you and to me is one of grace: to come and worship Him.
Principle #27 & Personal Application: Quality disciples follow the
lead of the Great Shepherd into an intimate worship experience.
• The invitation is to come and worship
• The invitation is to come in humility
• The invitation is to come before the Lord our Maker
• The invitation is to lead to this great confession: He is our God and we belong to Him
Reflect & Respond: Some Really Good Questions To Ponder…
What is my “worship style?” In other words, in what ways do I worship the Lord?
What is my greatest challenge that keeps me from cultivating a habit of worship?
Prayer:
Lord Jesus, I gratefully accept Your offer to come and worship You. I
come with a posture of humility as I bow down my knee and my will to
You. I confess that You are my Maker and my God. I look to You as the
Shepherd of my soul.
The Essential Core Values Of The Quality Disciple Are…
Grace—Worship—Bible Study—Prayer—Community—Service—Evangelism
Dr. Denny Bates & Something New Christian Publishers © 2013 All rights reserved.
You can learn how to live as a Quality Disciple and a DiscipleMaker4Jesus by visiting my website at www.dennybates.com and my teaching blog at http://www.dennybates.com/#!blog/c1a4e
This
is a note written by my friend, Byron Matthews (Makayla’s Dad). Many of
us have been lifting up this precious little girl for a few weeks now.
May the Lord continue to touch and heal her body. If you want to follow
her journey, check out this link:
http://www.caringbridge.org/visit/makaylamatthews
"From a shepherd’s view, I learned that real sheep have an odd
condition. They find themselves many times when they cannot get up.
They call it a “cast sheep”. For some reason, a sheep when they lay
down can get their center of gravity too far over and roll over on their
backs, leaving them unable to actually get back on their feet. This
horrifying position can actually kill them if they are not helped back.
Even when they are healthy, they can lie down in lush grasses and find a
hole that rolls them too far over. How terrifying it is when one
moment you are completely satisfied, and the next you are on your back
and have no way to regain control. You are helpless. You can’t help
yourself."
Byron is correct. Sometimes, life just happens. We
can’t help ourselves. We need a Shepherd, a Good One. His name is Jesus.
We need to place our confidence and trust in Him.
Here is a reminder of what He has promised to do and a reminder of what we must do.
This is what the Lord will do: He has promised to care for us:
23 The LORD directs the steps of the godly. He delights in every detail
of their lives. 24 Though they stumble, they will never fall, for the
LORD holds them by the hand. 25 Once I was young, and now I am old. Yet I
have never seen the godly abandoned or their children begging for
bread. Psalm 37:23-25 (NLT)
This is what we must do: We need to place our confidence in God:
12 Don't be so naive and self-confident. You're not exempt. You could
fall flat on your face as easily as anyone else. Forget about
self-confidence; it's useless. Cultivate God-confidence. 1 Corinthians
10:12 (MSG)
Learning to trust with you,
Denny
