Why We Worship

Often, when I talk with people who have worshiped with us at Friendship Church, I’m told, “I get so much out of the service.”

I appreciate hearing that, of course. But the fact is that what we get out of worship is not nearly as important as what we put into it.

Worship isn’t really about us. The old English ancestor of our word worship is the word, worth-ship. When we worship God, we say how worthy He is of our honor and complete surrender. That’s what we offer God when we worship.

So, some may wonder, what’s the good in that? Is God such an egomaniac that He needs to exact praise from people? Actually, it turns out that we need to praise God more than He needs our praises.

A few years back, I read a true story from a pastor who was visited by a young man going through a tough time. The woman to whom he was engaged had broken things off. This had followed a string of break-ups of other relationships and friendships. He was frustrated because he just couldn’t seem to stay connected with people. It made him feel depressed and inferior.

At first, the pastor was surprised by the young man’s story because he seemed likable. But as their conversation wore on, something began to dawn on the pastor. The young man used the word “I” alot. He was totally self-absorbed.

The pastor got an idea. He told the young man to worship on each of the next four Sundays and then come back for another visit in the pastor’s office.

A month passed, the young man visited the pastor, and in the course of this second conversation, the pastor began to notice a change in the fellow. He was less self-conscious, more interested in others. In a year’s time, continuing this pattern of hour-long conversations with the pastor followed by four Sundays of worship, the changes in the young man were remarkable. In fact, by the end of the year, he had become engaged to another young woman.

Was it magic? No, it was as simple as this: Through regular involvement in public worship, the young man realized that he wasn’t the end-all and be-all of the universe. For one hour a week, He was compelled to focus on God and that influenced the rest of his week.

When we join others to worship God, things happen in us.

First: We get rid of the pressure to be our own little gods. We know that the job of “God” has been filled and we can rely on God to do His job well, including take care of us through thick, thin, life, death, and beyond. We’re also ready to take our marching orders from Him.

Second: Secure in our place in God’s kingdom, we can love others, listen to them, and be concerned for them, giving them the same love God gives to us.

Worship is more about what we put into it than what we get out of it. But because of God’s fantastic compassion for us, it turns out that the more that we put into worship, the more we get out of it.