Sunday, August 24, 2008

A Woman's Call To Worship/At The Well

It is my privilege to host At The Well from "Joyfully Living" this week, and I want to thank Chelsey so much for her trust in me to do so.

As a young child, I remember every Sunday in my hometown Baptist Church before any other word was spoken, that we would have a call to worship--A song to get us started, get us focused, remind us why we were there. I remember feeling so bummed when the song was over and we had to sit down and listen to announcements before we got to worship again.

I have carried some of that tradition with me into my worship life as a woman. If I don't start my day focused on the Lord, His BIGness and my smallness, then I'm pretty much a mess for the day. My attitude leaks into my words and actions. No matter if the morning is rush rush or lazy or somewhere in-between, I've gotta Gotta GOTTA have a conversation with Him.

One example I've given the kids is the following: When you wake up in the morning, your body is empty, right? Well, you have three choices: 1. Stay empty and don't eat...then feel weak later. 2. Fill up on donuts and chocolate milk...then feel sick later, or 3. Get your fill with a nutritious breakfast...and start the day feeling energetic and full of life.

The same is true of my spiritual life. His call for worship comes to me the moment I start my day. Good morning, Lord. Thank you for this day, for my very life. Before I get into any of the good or the bad, Father, I want to tell You I love You.Then I usually thank Him for the coffee I'm about to brew, because that is a HUGE praise for me. ;) With the first sip, if I've made the proper time, I dig into the Word and end in a time of surrender.

Nowa, somedays I need more "worship snacks" than others, but I can always tell I need one when I begin to feel full of myself or drained by my circumstances.

My goal is to praise Him and pray continually all day long, but sometimes, my attitude gets away, and then it will spiral downward quickly.
The call to worship comes whenever I need to turn my eyes to Him, for whatever the reason.
"He must become greater. I must become less."
John 3:30

Notice I haven't even mentioned music or songs yet? That's because I've learned that a life-changing, Jesus-centered worship has everything to do with my attitude, no matter if I'm singing songs with my mouth, or whether I'm living out my Lifesong in action. As a matter of fact, MOST of the time, my best worship experience in church happens when I've "come to church worshipping" instead of when I've "come to church to worship." Not all the time, but for me, most of the time.

I literally could go on and on for hours on this topic, so I'm glad we get to hang around at the well for awhile and do so. When I'm there, I'd like to chat with younger women and teens about what a living a life of worship looks like. After the attitude, comes action. When we've seen the Lord's majesty, it leaks over into the words we speak, the way we dress and carry ourselves, the way we love others. It spills out into every part of our lives, and hopefully the lives of everyone we come near. It changes the way we view our circumstances and others' too. Worship-filled and focused living is the cry of my heart.

Now it's your turn...type in your name and link below, and if the Spirit leads you to share, please, whatcha have to say on the subject? What advice do you have for the rest of us? And a bonus, but optional question: Do any songs come to your mind when you think of living a life of worship? I've got maybe a dozen or so...My favorite of all time is "Jesus, Be The Centre," but lately, this one has struck a chord within my heart. I couldn't believe it when I found it put to these beautiful graphics on GodTube. I hope you enjoy, and that it speaks worship into your heart as well.


Luke 9:23-24 (NIV)
Then he said to them all: "If anyone would come after me, he must deny himself and take up his cross daily and follow me. For whoever wants to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for me will save it.


In the Key of HE,

21 friends shared a comment:

Kim @ Homesteader's Heart said...

Very well put. I'm not sure if I could say anything different. You know one of my favorite songs? Amazing Grace. I remember when they would stop the music in church and everyone would just sing and the spirit would just move through the place. Growing up in church I remember the Old Hymns and they are still my favorite today. I love the simple Jesus Loves Me song because my heart just bursts when my 3 year old tries to sing along. It's always been my kids "first" worship song.I admit that we need to start our day off with worship to set the whole pace for the day.
Thank you for such a great post.
Blessings my friend.
Kim

Joyfull said...

Beautiful post! Great insight on preparing our hearts for the day by filling up with God's presence. Blessed my day!

lori said...

Laura Lee...THAT was awesome...I love how you tied in waking up "empty" and having a choice whether to fill up...

It took me awhile to learn that I had to Call MYSELF to worship each and every day...

I LOVE THAT!
I too loved this topic...I went on and on too;)

I'm so excited to see what kind of chat's the well brings on today!
Thanks for hosting!
peace and blessings!
lori

Tracy Berta-daughter to the King, wife, mother, speaker, writer said...

Great reminders, LauraLee!

I went on and on, too with this topic! I loved it! And, sometimes we take for granted that everyone "knows" what worship is and "how" to worship. What I am learning in my small group is that women sometimes feel "lost" when it comes to this "quiet time" thing. And, actually we are just coming to God to tell Him how much we love Him and surrendering all to Him.

Thanks for such a great topic to chat about at the well!

Blessings!

Natalie Witcher said...

I appreciate that line..."come to church as a worshiper and not come to church to worship"

Very good.

Natalie Witcher said...

Oh, and I'd still take donuts and coffee, but I force myself to eat a good breakfast! :)

Laury said...

Laura, thank you for this song. It really ministered to my heart today and brought me right to the throne.

You know how I've been struggling lately. I appreciate your prayers so very much. Thank you for this call to worship. I needed to hear it badly.

Laurie Ann said...

What a great post! I will definitely be reflecting on this today. Loved the breakfast analogy. You did a great job with this topic! It really ministered to me.

Sunny Shell said...

Well said sister Laura, well said!

Worship is more than a song, it is the attitude of our hearts towards God and all that He IS! AMEN!

Bless you and thank you for this WONDERFUL topic today...to bring us back to the heart of worship...which is the giving of our entire lives.

Much love in Christ,
Sunny

Patty Wysong said...

Laura, that is so well said! And it's exactly what I needed to hear. Right now. Being a person who often forgets breakfast until wrestled down and sat upon by my stomach, this really sunk in--deep!

Thanks, sweetie.

Denise said...

This was beautiful, bless you.

LAURIE said...

Thank you for leading us AT THE WELL today. You hit on some of the same things I did when it comes to having our "nourishment" in the morning. Worship begins when we have an "appetite" for Him. -Blessings, Laurie

Sheila said...

LauraLee thank you for that! Last week I began a break from blogging (minus a couple posts that just poured out of me) and I continue this week, though I had planned to post and join in at the Well today. But then I got this nasty cold/virus that has my head spinning, so I've just been laying down all day in between directing my boys into somewhat of a productive day with a down momma :)

Anyway, I just came in here to read my email, remembered The Well, came runnin' over to your place, and was very encouraged. I won't be posting, but I will say here that I agree our worship is all day and is not limited to song. So often though when I'm caught up in worship during a song I say, "Lord, I want my life to sound that way to you ALL THE TIME!"

I want my "Lifesong" to be a beautiful worshipful sound in His ear daily!

Even when I have a nasty cold! :)

Thanks for the encouragement!
Sheila

Test said...

I thank youtube for providing me with great worship music. I think of Kari Jobe...all her music. I also listen to old hymns and some of my favorite are: In Christ Alone, How Deep the Father's Love for Us...those always are good ways to refocus and stay worshipping throughout my busy day!

june said...

Hi, I loved your comments today
at the well. I am new to blogging
and I wish I knew how to address
this to you one on one, but here
goes. How for down do I have to go
to turn the sound of you blog of
so I can listen to the new song you have posted for us to listen
to.

I am looking for friends, so please
come and look at my blog and would
appreciate any ideas or comments.

Come visit but please leave your
paws (comments)

June (littledune)

Marsha said...

Hi Laura Lee. I'm not officially participating in this meme, but I was intrigued by today's questions when I read them on Denise's blog. I decided that today I would share my thoughts.

Thank you for touching my heart strings!

Blessings,
Marsha

Blessed Among Women said...

This was so good! I find that if I don't start the day out praying to God or worshipping Him, I am a mess. I let my emotions get to me and my attitude stinks. Thank you! I love this song: You are my all in all.

Rebecca said...

"The call to worship comes whenever I need to turn my eyes to Him, for whatever the reason."

I love this thought! The call comes to us when we NEED it throughout the day. God's Spirit calling to us, reminding us to look to God.

I'll be listening for it today. When discouragement creeps in, I will respond to the call and look away from my situation to my Father in an act of worship. Thanks for the wonderful teaching. I look forward to what else I can hear from you At the Well.

~ Rebecca

Josh said...

So much wisdom in this post. I especially like how you mentioned that the best church services you have are ones where you “go in worshiping” rather than “go in to worship.”

Your morning worship routine inspires me, Laura. I always try to make it a point to thank God for the day before I even roll out of bed. It is evident that you speak with God on a regular basis, because your writings are so anointed. There is no other way that you could speak such Godly wisdom to us all if you didn’t have a strong relationship with God. Thank you for inspiring and encouraging all of us to grow stronger in our relationship with our Heavenly Father.

One of my favorite worship songs is one that doesn’t get sung much in church. It’s called “You Are So Good To Me” by Third Day. I love singing that song to God!

Josh said...

Oh, and I hope you don't mind me adding my two cents even though I'm a guy. LOL. It was just such a good post, and I had to say something. :)

Ashley Wells said...

I loved this post! I have loved being a part of At the Well! Thanks!

-Ashley
http://puttinggodfirstplace.blogspot.com/