"Enter His gates with thanksgiving and His courts with praise"; "praise God in His sanctuary" (Psalms 100:4; 150:1)
As I read these verses, I was reminded that worship is not so much about God coming into our presence as it is about our going into His presence. Furthermore, it is not that God descends to meet with us when we praise, but rather that we ascend unto Him.
If we are having a "bad" worship service, our first thought is that we need the presence of God. The fact is that God is already with us - what we need is to do something, for us to ascend unto the Lord in our hearts. Isaiah 2:3 "Come, let us go up to the mountain of the Lord...." The problem is never with God for He is always ready; the problem is with us, every time.
It is true that God inhabits our praise, that He dwells and abides in our praise. He is made King when we praise Him for we are declaring His Kingship and Lordship to a world that does not recognize Him as Lord. Our praises testify to the saved and the unsaved.
The worship leader cannot produce God's presence. His/her job is to lead God's people UP to Mount Zion. The weight of the responsibility for a worship service is often seen to fall on the shoulders of those on the platform, and the individual in the congregation is relatively free from feeling any responsibility for the service. Not so - we are all ministers before and unto the Lord. It is my responsibility, your responsibility and the responsibility of each person to offer up an individual "sacrifice of praise" to the Lord.
Rather than see how much we can receive on a Sunday morning, let us endeavor to give unto God, to minister to Him, to bless His name. God is not trying to grow lazy leeches who know how to sponge off the pastor and the congregation. God loves givers - people who come intent upon contributing.
Wherever you attend church, go this week and express your love to the Lord in a fuller measure - yes, even with all your heart, mind, soul and strength.
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