Reason Enough
Give unto the Lord the glory due unto his name; Psalm 29:2a
Statistically church attendance is down and going down more every day. As the world has gotten busier and busier we’ve pushed our time for the Lord to the bottom of our to do list. There are so very many things to do, why should we take that time out of our lives to worship? What are our reasons for worshipping? Why should we move worship back to the top of our priority list?
What would it take? What would it take for worshipping God to become the most important part of our lives?
O come, let us worship and bow down: let us kneel before the Lord our maker. Psalm 95:6
I can’t help but wonder, what would it take for us to fall to our knees in praise of this God we serve? Would recovery from a serious illness be enough? Would avoiding serious injury in an accident be enough? Would doctors finding a malady that could have caused death if left undiscovered be enough? What would it take for us to stop and think perhaps I owe more to this God than a couple of hours a week sitting in a pew? I think we realize where our help comes from in the moment of a great rescue from tribulation… but, we so quickly forget. I’ve seen it time and time again. Those who cry out to Him in desperation or come and praise Him for what He’s done in their lives, but who all too quickly disappear from view once things get back to normal. What would it take to change us long term? What would it take for us to take our relationship with Him more seriously than the momentary worldly pleasures that so easily grab out attention?
For the preaching of the cross is to them that perish foolishness; but unto us which are saved it is the power of God. 1 Corinthians 1:18
The fact of the matter is the cross is reason enough. That He sacrificed Himself to pay for my sins, conquered death and the grave… that is enough for me to spend every second of my life worshipping Him and telling others about Him. The truth of what He saved us from, of His unmerited favor on us is far more than enough for us to spend the rest of our natural lives praising Him and never come close to giving Him the honor He is due. He has conquered death, and we have gained an eternity in heaven through absolutely no work of our own. That alone is enough!
My lips shall greatly rejoice when I sing unto thee; and my soul, which thou hast redeemed. Psalm 71:23
That He loved us before we loved Him, is enough. That He created this beautiful world that we live in is enough. The fact that He lowered Himself and came to live a life that teaches us how to live, is enough. That I’ve been gifted an existence in a nation that allows free and unrestricted worship is enough. That I have easy access to the very Word of God is enough. That I was blessed enough to be born into a community full of Bible believing churches is enough. That I was raised in a God-fearing and worshipping family is enough. When you put all of these things together, I am one of the most blessed people I know. Many of us are, and yet, we so easily forget and treat this life we’ve been given as ordinary.
When we look at the true spiritual blessings of the Lord, it’s easy to become overwhelmed with just how good He is to us. When we add our worldly physical blessings, we have plenty of reason to run toward every opportunity to worship Him.
I will bless the LORD at all times: his praise shall continually be in my mouth. Psalm 34:1
The true miracle of the blessings of God is that they never run out. There’s no need to hoard them for ourselves, In fact, the more we share and tell others about the goodness of God, the more blessings we receive. If you’ve been feeling far from God, tell others about times when you felt close to Him. Foster those memories, Read His Word. Learn exactly Who He is. Meditate on the truths of who He is. Ask Him for more evidence of His goodness. Ask Him for a desire to know more and more about Him. And talk about what you’re learning. We are built to share, built to live in community, and build to praise Him. When we do all of those things, we can experience the blessings of the Lord in a deeper and more constant way.
Take time to consider the blessings of the Lord. Salvation alone is reason enough to worship Him forever, but we’ve been given so much more!
