Worship is more than singing. It’s more than just lyrics to a song. Worship is standing in the presence of God and declaring praises to His name. – Unknown
Worship
Once, my pastor explained that the word “Thank You” is the password into the presence of God. As Psalm 100:4 says, we should enter God’s presence giving thanks and praise. When Jesus taught His disciples the Lord’s prayer, the first thing He says in the prayer is: “[h]allowed be Your name.” This means holy, greatly revered, and honored. First, Jesus honors and praises God for who God is prior to asking for anything. Therefore, God loves it when we come to Him with a grateful heart, appreciating all of the good things He has given us. If you can’t think of anything to be grateful for, start with the fact that you are alive! You have blood running through your veins and your heart is beating. Thank Him for the most seemingly insignificant things, and it will get easier and easier. Gratitude is a carrier of God’s presence.
Therefore confess your sins to each other and pray for each other so that you may be healed. The prayer of a righteous person is powerful and effective. James 5:16
Pray
Prayer is literally talking to God and is our most powerful spiritual weapon. God loves talking to us and listening to us through prayer. When Jesus died on the cross, the veil was torn so that we could have direct access to God forever. 1 Peter 5:7 says to: “Cast our cares on Him because He cares for us.” This is one of my favorite verses in the Bible. To me, Jesus is saying that He can handle anything and everything. He never gets tired of hearing from us and actually delights in talking with us.
If you’re having a bad day, need comfort, or looking for wisdom, simply talk to Him. You don’t need flowery or eloquent language. The more we talk to Him, the more comfortable we feel sharing what’s on our hearts and minds, and in turn, He shares what is on His too. Two of my all-time favorite books are: Gangster Prayer by Autumn Miles and Fervent Prayer by Priscilla Shirer. These impactful books revolutionized the way I thought about prayer and got me fired up!
Read His Word
Because God is His word, He primarily communicates to us through it. Through reading it, you get to know His character more fully. This increases our faith and draws us closer to Him. It is sharper than any two-edged sword, and it has the ability to completely change situations. Speak His promises out loud over yourself. This website has God’s promises written out as affirmations in the first person for you to boldly declare. To see how I use God’s Word to remain confident, read my blog post here.
How do you draw close to God? Share your tips with us below!