What is Worship?

Often when we hear the word “worship,” we think of a praise band, music, and singing. While this isn’t wrong, I’ve learned that worship goes much deeper than that. It’s more than a song with lyrics and a melody that moves you to tears.

I had a really good friend in Ecuador share Romans 12:1 with me to help me really understand what worship is and how God tells us to do so. It says,

“Therefore, brothers, by the mercies of God, I urge you to present your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and pleasing to God; this is spiritual worship.”

He went on to explain that there are a couple of phrases that I need to pay attention to. In this verse, Paul states very clearly that our worship is expressed in the way we live our lives. He tells us that if we want to worship God we should be a “living sacrifice.”

So, then, what does it mean to actually be a living sacrifice?

For my friend and I, it was being down in Ecuador. It was letting go of the plans we had made and giving our full time to the Lord. It was putting educations, jobs, desires, and dreams on hold in order to do what God had asked of us. For others, it looks completely different. Maybe it’s getting up early on a Saturday to feed those who don’t have food to eat. Maybe it’s spending an extra hour after school with a student who needs help. Maybe it’s having the tough conversations with your friends about their relationships with God.

Ultimately, being a living sacrifice is giving God complete control of your time, money, and life. It’s saying, “It’s not much, but use it as You choose.”

My friend also pointed out, “by the mercies of God.”

This isn’t something that we’re going to do on our own. It isn’t in our nature to do so. We will choose to live for ourselves every moment rather than live for something greater because that’s what sin does to us. So this means that to live in a way that worships the Lord isn’t something that we can do by ourselves. It means that we have to have His help. It has to be Him that changes our hearts and our desires. Being a living sacrifice isn’t easy and it isn’t comfortable. But, with the Lord’s help and strength we have the ability to do it.

Music and praise bands are great. They have their place in our worship lives – in fact, I believe that they help to keep us spiritually healthy. But, if that’s the only way you’re worshiping, then you aren’t really worshiping at all. Your life should be your worship song every single day in the way you live it.