WORSHIP 365: THE POWER OF A WORSHIPING LIFE
David Edwards begins the forward of
his book with a question: What does it take to become a true worshiper, to
experience a relationship with God that transcends anything one has ever known?
This question becomes the central focus of his entire book, which he divides
into four parts of 3 chapters each. This book review was originally written for one of my worship arts classes, but I felt it okay to share it here on my blog. I will go chapter
by chapter in my summary, and provide questions that have been provoked within myself from the reading.
Part one.
The
first three chapters go very fast. Chapter one answers the question: What is
worship? Firstly, Edwards describes growing up before growing old, and growing
up in worship. From there, Edwards lays out the basics of worship by quoting
Psalm 100:4, stating: “Enter His gates with thanksgiving and His courts with
praise. Give thanks to Him and praise His name.” He says worship is not just
words, but also a lifestyle. Chapter two explains three things: worship is a
two-way street, anytime is a good time to worship, and we are ordained to
praise (“Praise and worship are a part of our spiritual DNA”). Chapter three
beings under the heading: Worship: Hungering for God’s Presence. When Moses had
the opportunity to meet with God, he had one thing to ask Him: Show me Your
way. Edwards talks about how worship is a part of knowing God, but also that
worship means drawing near to God.
Part two.
Chapter
four talks about putting on praise. One thing I found incredible useful in this
chapter is how Edwards explains that praise is a cure for depression. Putting
on praise is a way to combat the spirit of depression. Edwards talks about the
power of speech, quoting Jesus in Matthew 12:34, “the mouth speaks from the
overflow of the heart.” He goes on to ask: what’s in your praise wardrobe?
Chapter
five talks about the power of praise. “Go down before getting up”; Edwards
talks about how Jehoshaphat in 2 Chronicles 20 declared a fast for all of Judah
when they were surrounded; he sought God before anything. We, too, should
respond in this way in every situation in life; getting down on our knees
before God before we react to any news. It is there we find ourselves in the
presence of God, and the presence of God equals victory. He also says praise is
an instrument of warfare. After God had spoken and given Judah direction, they worshiped Him again, and yet the battle
still hadn't happened. We should not rely on the symbol but the real thing; we
should not rely on worship to give us strength, but on God. Judah sang into
battle and so should we, trusting God to come through. The Devil hates it when
we praise God because God has appointed it to us that we praise Him, and also
because it gets our focus fixated upon the Lord.
Chapter
six talks about the sacrifice of praise. Our praise shouldn't just come to God
when it doesn't cost us anything; it should also come even if it’s as a
sacrifice; allowing our prayers to be set before God as incense, and the
raising of our hands as an evening offering (Psalm 141:2). God provides a way
of escape in the face of danger and temptation, and our praise should come as a
result of that; sacrificial thanks. To sacrifice means to kill something; a
sacrifice of praise slays our pride, our fear, our wills and anything that
would seek to deter us from our worship of Jesus Christ.
Part three.
Chapter
7 talks about “the way in”. On the topic of entering His presence, Edwards
quotes Psalm 100:1-5. Praise sets the
stage for worship. We will never have to wait in line or behind a barricade
for His presence; when we worship God, we’re right there. Where we worship, we
are “peaced” together. Our worship should be broken and spilled out “in loving
surrender”, just as Mary poured expensive perfume on Jesus’ feet. We should not
miss an opportunity to worship the Lord, because opportunities will come and
pass. A life that is poured-out to the Lord leaves a lingering fragrance; each
opportunity we seize to worship Him leaves such a fragrance in our wake.
Edwards also is clear to say: “Your ministry to Jesus must come before your ministry for Jesus.” We are called to worship before we are called to go
out; we are called to follow before we are called to lead. Just as Jesus was
broken and spilled out, so should we be every single day of our lives.
Chapter
8 talks about “the presence and the presents”. We should live in such a way
that we are always open to encounters
with the Lord, and in a way that being in His presence becomes the most
important part of our lives. In the place of His presence we can build an altar
upon which we must offer our very lives to Him in loving worship and surrender.
Edwards offers eight points of understanding: 1. In order to live in the place of His presence, you must follow God’s
directions. 2. Living in the place of
His presence, we learn that God’s heavenly hosts are actively involved in our
lives. 3. When we are living in the
place of His presence, He speaks to us words of blessing and promise. 4. Recognize and celebrate the manifestation of
His presence. 5. Anyplace where God
lets down the ladder is a Beth-El. 6. Always
build an altar. 7. Always sacrifice. 8.
In order to live in the place of His
presence, we must live in a place of abiding. The presence of God is a holy
thing which makes an ordinary place extraordinary. When God shows up, His
presence causes things to change.
Chapter
9 talks about the promise of His presence. God manifests Himself in worship.
While we know that God is present everywhere, He is manifested in worship. But
it’s not about our agenda; it’s about God’s. We cannot bring our personal
agenda into our worship of God. Worship is all about relationship. There is a
holy equation… praise & worship = His presence, and His presence = an
encounter. It’s not that we ought to have a selfish expectation that it’ll
happen, but that we should know it does happen. Jesus tells us that He is with
us, and Edwards quotes Matthew 18:18-20. Wherever two or more are gathered in
His name, He promises to be there. The Holy Spirit is also active in worship,
and works within each believer to do whatever He has to in order to awaken and
deepen our awareness of and need for Jesus’ presence in our lives.
Part 4
Chapter
10 talks about throne room encounters. God is enthroned upon our praises, so
when we praise Him, He is in our midst. Examples that Edwards uses are Isaiah,
the 11 disciples (Matt 28:16-20), Pentcost (Acts 2:1-4), the Antioch church
(Acts 13:1-3), and the Philippian Jail (Acts 16:25-34). Edwards says, “Throne
room encounters equal great things.” He concludes the chapter with “One of the
common threads that weaves its way through each of the worship encounters we've
discussed is that the worship of the Lord came first and then the doing for the
Lord followed.” “…ministering to the
Lord must always come before ministering for
the Lord. If we keep to that, our spiritual progress both personally and
corporately will extend and expand beyond anything we ever dreamed. Worship is
the goal of evangelism, and evangelism is the fruit of worship.”
Chapter
11 talks about the fruit of our own throne room encounters. One such fruit is
purity: we are changed in His presence. His presence leaves us pure, because
nothing leaves His presence unchanged, and He is pure. Thus what enters into
His presence becomes pure. Another such fruit is purpose; we are challenged in
His presence. We receive direction in God’s presence, and the throne room is
where decisions are made and battle plans are drawn. Another such fruit is
power; we are charged in His presence. In God’s presence His power is
displayed. Edwards makes a bold statement in saying, “People can argue all they
want about whether or not they believe in God’s manifest power—but while they
argue, God continues to manifest His miraculous power and the world continues
to be manifestly in need of it.” He goes on to say that as believers, we are
called to proclaim the praises of the One who has changed our lives. The purpose in this is to call others to
worship the one true God. Edwards also makes a clear distinction in this
chapter between being childlike and
being childish in our worship to God.
His final piece of the chapter comes under the heading “Undignified” and talks
about the story in 2 Samuel 6 where David said “I will become even more
undignified than this…” when talking about his expression of worship to God.
Chapter
12, the final chapter, is titled “Power to Worship.” In this chapter, Edwards
talks about the five distinct stages in Isaiah’s worship encounter. 1. Recognizing God’s awesome glory, holiness,
and power. 2. Recognizing and acknowledging
one’s own sinful condition. 3. Humbling
oneself in the presence of the Lord and confessing one’s sins to God. 4. The Lord shares His need for a messenger
(God calls us). 5. We respond to
God’s call. Isaiah responded “Here I am Lord, send Me.” Worship is about
revelation and response; God reveals Himself to us and we respond to that
revelation. There are certain worship stimuli we should be aware of: Quickening
our consciences with God’s holiness, feeding our minds with God’s truth,
purging our imaginations with God’s beauty, opening our hearts to God’s love,
and devoting our wills to God’s purpose. Worship should be both private and
public; we ought to worship God in private (just between ourselves and Him) and
our lives in public should be as worship to Him Our homes should be His
dwelling places, and His dwelling place should be our home. Edwards beings to
wrap up the final chapter by calling his readers to make a decision, while
reminding them that life is found where the river flows. There are four stages
to the river: ankle-deep (people who want to be in control of their destiny),
knee-deep (people who want a bit more but still want to be in control),
waist-deep (people who want more; it’s hard to still stand but people try to
still stand nonetheless), and over-your-head deep (people who have surrendered
completely to the flow). Edwards concludes the chapter with God’s question to
Ezekiel: “Do you see this, son of man?” Edwards concludes his book by stating
that this could be rephrased as “you haven't seen anything yet!”
Questions From The Reading
There are several questions I have
from the reading. Most (if not all) of them are directed introspectively,
though. Why is it that I used to think this way, but seem to have moved away from it? Why is
it that I have become so dull, dead, and empty-hearted in my “worship” that
I've become repulsed by even the thought of it? Why do I feel encouraged by
this book, and so strongly agree with it, yet feel so discouraged when I look
at how much my own worship has declined in the past couple years? Why is it
that this decline has taken place at
Bible College? My concluding question for myself would be this: What am I
going to do about it?
