Heart of Worship: Living a Lifestyle of Worship
Worship is a lifestyle. It is not just something we do on Sunday mornings or when we are at a church service. Worship is a way of life that should permeate every aspect of our lives.
When we worship, we are acknowledging God's greatness and His sovereignty. We are declaring that He is worthy of our praise and our adoration. We are submitting ourselves to His will and His plans for our lives.
Worship is not just about singing songs or raising our hands in praise. It is about a heart that is fully surrendered to God. It is about a life that is lived in obedience to His Word.
When we live a lifestyle of worship, we are transformed into the image of Christ. We become more like Him in our thoughts, our words, and our actions. We become more loving, more forgiving, and more compassionate.
Worship is a powerful thing. It has the ability to change our lives and to change the world around us. If we want to see a revival in our churches and in our communities, we need to start by living a lifestyle of worship.
Here are some practical ways to live a lifestyle of worship:

• Spend time in prayer and Bible study. This is where we will grow in our relationship with God and learn more about Him.
• Sing songs of praise and worship. This is a great way to express our love and adoration for God.
• Read books and articles about worship. This will help us to understand what worship is all about and how we can live a more worshipful life.
• Attend worship services at your local church. This is a great way to be surrounded by other believers who are also worshiping God.
• Worship God in your everyday life. This means living a life that is pleasing to Him and that reflects His love to others.

Worship is a journey, not a destination. It is something that we will continue to grow in throughout our lives. But if we start by living a lifestyle of worship, we will be on our way to a deeper and more meaningful relationship with God.

The Mind of Christ
Worship leaders and musicians in the church need to be spiritual before musical. They need to strive to immerse themselves in spiritual disciplines to grow closer to Christ.

​This means spending time in prayer and Bible study, reading books and articles about worship, and attending worship services at their local church. It also means living a life that is pleasing to God and that reflects His love to others.
When worship leaders and musicians are spiritually mature, they are better able to lead others in worship. They are also better able to discern God's will for their lives and for the church.
Here are some practical ways for worship leaders and musicians to grow spiritually:

• Spend time in prayer and Bible study. This is the foundation of a strong spiritual life. When we spend time in prayer, we are talking to God and getting to know Him better. When we spend time in Bible study, we are learning about God's Word and how it applies to our lives.
• Read books and articles about worship. There are many great resources available that can help us to understand worship and to grow in our worship of God.
• Attend worship services at your local church. This is a great way to be surrounded by other believers who are also worshiping God. It is also a great way to learn new songs and to be inspired by the worship leader and musicians.
• Live a life that is pleasing to God. This means obeying His commandments and living in a way that honors Him. It also means loving others and serving them in His name.
• Discern God's will for your life and for the church. This is an ongoing process, but it is important to seek God's guidance in all that we do. We can do this through prayer, Bible study, and talking to other Christians who we trust.

When we strive to grow spiritually, we are becoming more like Christ. We are also becoming more effective in our worship and in our ministry to others.

I was reading a blog post this week that said 3 of 4 church pastors say the number one challenge in church work it apathy.   Apathy is defined as lack of enthusiasm, concern or interest.  I started thinking through this and decided what things could help.... Here are my FOUR HELPS.
1. Address it - We have to remind ourselves and those we lead what we see.  We need to remind people that we need them to invest in the ministry by giving their time, talents and financial resources.  We have to remind them that we don't want something from them, but something for them.
2. Belong to a Community - It is one of the greatest encouraging things to be part of community.  When you are in community with others, they help you carry the load.  They can also spur you on to greater things and keep you engaged.
3. Create Curiosity -  One of the things I think we all have to strive against is just floating.  We find something that works great and we want to keep it and sustain it as long as possible and sometimes much longer than the life of it.   Cultivate creativity by engaging the most people you can.
4. Deliver the Gospel -  Nothing excites people and motivates them more than when they see lives being changed.   We must share the gospel with those around us and when we do, God begins to change people   When God changes people, there is an amazing motivation that happens. 

So as you see, here it is ABCD's of getting rid of apathy
Address it
Battle it
Confess it
Defy it
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Ministry includes many people which most are volunteers.   What is a volunteer?  Webster says "one who renders a service or takes part in a transaction while having no legal concern or interest"   We have to have volunteers to help us as we minister to our community. What are those things that volunteers can slip into that cause us all more harm than good?  Here are just a few
1. When they come unprepared
2. When they have a sense of entitlement
3. When they are subversive and sow discontent
4. When they complain often
5. When they think 50% attendance is highly committed

As leaders most of the people we work with in our ministry are volunteers.  It's important that we remember a few things as we minister to them and we allow them to help us minister to others
1. SPUR OF THE MOMENT CHANGES
It's important that we plan well so we can make sure we don't have to make those spur of the moment changes on a regular basis.  It should be a shock to most people when we have to do this.
2. THE ONLY CALL AND TEXT VOLUNTEERS RECEIVE ARE WHEN SOMETHING IS NEEDED
We must minister to people and the best way to do that is to communicate well and minister to them as often as you can.
3. WASTING TIME
One of the greatest commodities that people have today is time.  We have to make the best use of time and we do this by publicizing start and stop times and stick to them.  
4. FORGETTING THEY ARE VOLUNTEERS
It's really easy to become a user of people and sometimes the "same" people.  We have to remember that people who are in our ministries are usually full time mothers, employees or students and are gracious to give us the time they give.
5. USING SPIRITUAL WORDS TO MANIPULATE
People love their ministers and pastors and often they respect our leadership.   We have to be careful not to use bible words in situations to put pressure on our volunteers.   Things like, "submit to my authority" and "God impressed upon me" can be used for the wrong reason.

I was reading a few weeks ago and came across at Craig Groeschel quote.   Craig said "When comparison ends, contentment begins"!  What a great word and I thought I would share 4 things to help us as we do our best not to compare ourselves to each other.   It's important in minister especially worship ministry to rely on the giftedness that God gave you and give that gift back to Him at 100%.
​1. Remember that you are fearfully and wonderfully made
God made you just like He wants you to be.  He knew that the gifts you have are the ones you could use to help build His Kingdom.   God doesn't make any mistakes.
2. We all have different strengths and weaknesses
Look around, we are all gifted in many different ways.  It is this gifting difference that makes ministry so fun.   As you minister, you realize how God brings people in to help you with gifts different than yours.
3. Choose compliments over comparison
One of the quickest ways to become discouraged is to compare yourself to others.  I would rather see us build others up and put others first!  Look around today and see who you can build up.
4. Rely on God's opinion of you
You are a child of God, His word even calls you a "Friend of God"   God loved you so much that He gave his one and only son to save you from yourself.  His opinion of you is very high!

1 Thessalonians 5:18 reminds us to be thankful in ALL things.  
In the last few years of my life, I have come to realized my attitude can be less than impressive sometimes. I don't like that fact, but it's true.  I think it's most true when something doesn't go the way I thought it would or should.  My mom use to call this "bent out of shape". 
I have learned that you can't have a bad attitude and be thankful as the same time.  It's a choice we all have to make and Paul reminds us to be thankful for all things. I heard a pastor proclaim, "All means all and that's All all means".  It's very true, we can be thankful for things that go the way we think, but when something goes sideways, how do we usually respond?   
One personal example in my life is my moms struggle with dementia.  For about 7 years now my sisters and I have watched my moms cognitive health decline, while her physical health is extremely good for a lady of her age.  We have watched her go from struggling with names, to a point that she doesn't know we are anymore.  She has said to me on many occasions in the past few months, "Am I suppose to love you"?   I will say yes mom, and she responds "I thought so"!!!!
How can you be thankful for things like this, because this falls into the "ALL" category.   It's not easy, but it's something we must learn to do.  I have had good and bad days when trying to figure out my gratitude for my moms disease.   For me, I have come to realize that God is in control and as a follower of Christ, I have to trust Him fully.  He knows me best!  I have sad days still, but in those moments I just ask the Lord to remind me of the things about my mom that I am grateful for, and you know what happens?   My attitude changes.
I am thankful my mom is still around, that I can hold her hand, I am thankful that I can still spend time with her and laugh together.  I am also thankful that she knows the lyrics to most gospel hymn I play and we can still SING together.  I choose to be thankful, and in that choosing, God does a work on my heart and mind to change me!

One of my personal goals this year of 2022, has been to become an early riser.  I have always been what one would call a night owl and a morning person, but after reading some leadership books, I decided I wanted to create a better morning routine for me.  
I have a daily alarm that goes off at 5:15, and as a joke, and a trigger to get me going, I usually shout, "Feet on the Floor, Look out the Door" as I get out of bed and look outside.   It's just a personal trigger to help me get up and going.
With our move to North Georgia, and purchasing a home with a screened back porch, this has become my morning oasis.   I grab a cup of coffee and my iPad (yes I am fully digital in my bible reading and journaling).  I may do a post about my process soon.
I find my place in the chair on the back porch and sit in the dark just listening and enjoying the surroundings that can only be detected with your ears.   One amazing thing is my porch faces the East and so as I sit, I begin to see a small sparkle of light begin to come through the trees.   As I sit, think, read, and pray the light becomes more pronounced as time goes by until finally I actually see the sun come up through the trees.
As I ponder, the thought of being the light to the world reminds me that light permeates darkness and darkness cannot keep it out.  I want my life to matter and the best way that can happen is to shine the light of Jesus in all that I do.   People today need the light of the world given to them, because, they trample through darkness in their personal lives each day.  
A smile or a "have a great day' can shed light into the darkest places in someone's life if we will just remember to do it.
The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness can never extinguish it. John 1:5