Dusty idea today is we need to train our minds to focus on God during worship. On his worthiness to receive worship, not our worthiness to receive blessings.
I think worship is an act toward God that requires quite a bit of concentration to stay focused on. Some Christians know they're suppose to worship but don't quite know what it is. It's singing to God right? It's listening to the preacher right? It's taking of the Lord's supper right? It's thanking God for all his blessings, finite and eternal. It's all these things if the proper frame of mind is reached.
Worship defined - realizing that something or someone is greater and worth more and by consequence to be feared, obeyed and adored. Allowing a greater power to master you.
First we need to understand who and what we are worshipping. We are worshipping a spirit, God is a spirit and he is the most powerful thing that any of our senses can detect. We can't see anything more majestic or powerful than God, including anything you can see in a microscope or a telescope. We can't hear anything more intimidating than God's works. Next time a thunderstorm comes your way take time to listen, watch the lightening, hear the wind and see the rainbow.
How does our worship stack up compared to what the Bible says God is accustomed to? In Revelations 4 we have a picture of what John saw. Picture God sitting on a throne, with a rainbow with the appearance of emerald around it. Twenty-four other thrones surrounding this throne with crowned kings wearing white. From the throne there are lightning flashes, thunder and rumblings. Also before the throne seven torches of fire, and a sea of glass like crystal. God is pictured with four living creatures, one on each side of his throne that never stop saying "Holy, holy, holy, is the Lord God Almighty, who was and is and is to come!". Everytime these creatures give glory and honor and thanks to God, the twenty-four seated elders fall down and worship him giving God their alliegance by casting their crowns before God. They also say, "Worthy are you, our Lord and God, to receive glory and honor and power, for you created all things, and by your will they existed and were created."
Don't know about you but a half-hearted worship thinking about whats for lunch, about the ball game last night, about who we might ask out for a date, about that mistake the song leader may have made isn't in the least comparable to what God is accustomed to. Work, relatives and any other distractions we allow to take away from the worship of God lets us lose focus on the eternal.
During worship to God we need to know that we are giving God our full attention and are fully praising him in spirit and in truth. Is it human nature to let our minds wander? I think it is, but that is just one of the things of the flesh we will need to tame to be pleasing to God.
