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"Like a Warm Cup of Coffee" was brewed on May 20, 2008
Hmmm….lol. That’s quite a title, eh?
Why do I worship? Lots of reasons…where do I start?
-God is God and is worthy of worship
-Because I love Him, even though it’s an imperfect love
-More importantly, because He first loved me
-Because God deserves nothing less
-Because He is so good and just
The list really could be endless, but here’s a start.
:)
Christin´s last blog post … Blog Tour, part 2
We currently don’t have a have a family worship time. I wish we did. We’ve neglected making this a priority unfortunately. I can use excuses and say it’s because my daughter is too young (she’s 18 months) to understand, but really, my husband and I should have had family worship together long before our baby came along. Continuing this once children are in the picture sets examples for them as well as gets them open to Scripture at an early age. It allows young ones to see their Father as the spiritual leader, their Mother as his loving support, a family unit where bonds, support and love are unbreakable, all encompassed in the Mighty Grace and Love that is in Christ. What an amazing experience to share with those you love the most to sit at the feet of Jesus and learn from His Word. Thank you for such a thoughtful reminder that this must be a part of our lives.
Because I love Jesus. I want to adore Him out loud. God inhabits the praises of His people. In His presence is found fullness of joy. I find my “peace spot” when my heart is connected to Him in worship.
Brooke´s last blog post … Friday Funnies – I’m pulling my hair out!!!
Okay, I’m going to take the bait.
I’m going to have to assume that the post title is intended to be rife with sarcasm. However, I actually sort of agree with it…
But don’t be too quick to assume that I’m all apostate here. Actually, I love God with all my heart. It’s just that I’ve seen “family worship” worshipped more than God Himself; it becomes the end rather than the means.
So, I try to focus more on just loving Him myself. And on the few mornings that I actually get to do that on my own, and then my daughter wakes up to find me sitting with my Bible and tea and comes to sit with me then says, “Mama, read to me about Jesus”, THAT’S what I’m looking for: family worship that springs out of a stumbling, struggling attempt to follow Jesus personally and we get to help each other as we mutually stumble along to see Him for who He is.
Okay, that was a terribly written paragraph, and I must add this disclaimer: I don’t mention that episode to sound all holy with a perfect kid, cause that just ain’t the case. The reality is that it just so happened that on one of the two mornings out of several weeks that I did get an authentic “quiet” time, I was blessed to see that God is able to bring beauty and fruit out of my weak, fault-riddled pursuit of Him. To remind me why I named my blog “Becoming the kind of woman I want my daughter to be”.
I LONG to see my daughter pursue God herself, but I think that that will be better accomplished by attempting to be an example of that, rather than sitting her down to read the obligatory Bible story so we can check it off the list and feel good about ourselves. Good grief, that does sound condescending, but what I really mean is this: let’s just be authentic. Let’s just be real about it. If we are going to do family worship, just make sure it’s out of truly seeking Him rather than “keeping up with the Jones’”.
If I could do family worship where all of us sit around together reading Scripture and have it be natural, I would LOVE it. But for us, I think it’s just enough to keep our relationships open enough so that we can occasionally share the “God stuff” that’s going on in our individual hearts. That’s our kind of family worship. It’s imperfect, it’s not regular, but I’ll take what I can get. ;^)
Alisa´s last blog post … A Magical Day
We have family worship in our home 5 days a week and worship in church the other two. We spend about an hour on it each day. It is a huge blessing and we have been able to watch our kids grow through it. We use this time to teach our preschoolers that God is important and worthy enough to be praised and honored each day and not just on Sunday. We teach them stories from the bible and read them scripture. We pray with them and encourage them to pray on thier own. This time is the most special time in each of our days. We usually spend one on one time with each of our children every evening reading the bible and then once a week we do a family devotion alltogether. Our children are 3 months, 2, 3 and 4. So I assume that our routine may change when they each get a litle older but for now it works very well.
There will be a follow-up next Sunday…in the meantime, just keep thinking…
We always tried to do a family worship time when our children were small but never seemed to be consistent. The most special times were always when we focused on worship as a family during the holidays.
Kristine McGuire´s last blog post … Pursuing the Paranormal
Because I am overcome with joy, gratitude and love for my Savior. He is worthy!!
Ya that title brought me in. I thought “What in the world Sarah Mae???”
ok Even though we are told to worship Him, the feelings to do so just aren’t always there. The enemy will bring us into condemnation to try and block us from worship. But when I read 2 Chronicles 20 I saw how much safety and power there is over God’s people when they are worshiping. Now when reading my Bible and praying seems blocked, I sign loudly! The enemy flees immediately. The longer I sing the more I feel His presence surrounding me and I’d rather be in that plane than here in self pity mode trying to carry my own yoke. It’s in that sweet time of worship that I am communing on an intimate level with Him and I feast on Him. My girls and I select different worship slide shows at YouTube and post them on GGMagazine. We sit down in front of the computer and click through them and worship together. It’s great when the slide shows have the words on them. ;O)
Sisterlisa´s last blog post … Heart of Christ in Matthew 18
This is a mysterious post – not allowing us to know how you really feel about “family worship”.
I worship because I feel that when I have a heart filled with praise and in tune with my Heavenly Father – life in general is better.
However, we do not have a “worship time”. One reason, because we aren’t consistent in making it a priority and honestly we don’t know how. However, I don’t really think it is a big issue because it is our desire to worship in all things, with Christ as the center of our lives and the decisions we make (although we fail often – we are trying). I think it is more important to see worship demonstrated through obedience than by regular scheduled programming.
All that to say – Yes it would be nice to have a family worship time like your picture represents, but for our family that would be another burden, not a joy.
Jesica´s last blog post … Talk Radio Makes Me Want to Vomit.
I agree with what Alisa said. You need to be authentic and not legalistic about it. I think many Christians have become very legalistic about many things. And yet Jesus did not like legalism! I honestly believe there will be those who have family worship to fit into a stereotypical image of a “Christian” family. Worship should be throughout the day and not just a specific time of the day or on a Sunday at Church. It is not just singing praise to God. It is giving our whole lives to the Lord and living before Him in a holy way. God doesn’t look at which families have this worship time or not, he looks at the bigger picture and the heart. Yes, have family worship if you want but only for the glory of God and not because you feel you have to or want to meet an ideal of the “perfect” Christian family.
Love Collette xxxx
COLLETTE HOWIE´s last blog post …
I use to think worship was just singing praises to my Father; it is that, but so much more.
My greatest times of worship have been lifting my hands and heart to my Father; in the midst of great trials.
My most precious times of worship, have been when I am hurting the most; my gaping wound, is great; therefore my need for HIM is that much greater.
Worship is adoration, humble devotion, obedience.
We worship when we are obedient to what the Spirit is telling us to do, even when our flesh is screaming the opposite.
Worship is also, denying my selfish desires, and laying them on the altar, in order to be conformed into His image. Romans 12:1-2
True worship, is beautiful. Fake worship, is a drag, and putrid!
I have some very sweet memories of our family worship time, and some very “oh – so – very boring” memories… when we just “went through the motions”.
So, that sparks this thought…
Worship is a drag, if we are just going through the motions and haven’t directed our heart towards Him.
BUT… the second we look “UP”, it becomes a living, breathing, tangible, beautiful time of fellowship with my Abba Father.
Traci´s last blog post … 10 Favorite Posts, Re-Visited
I can’t believe you really believe what you wrote in the title. Was that just to get our attention? :)
…..because my heart is in love…and I cannot help but be obsessed with the one I love. When my heart is throbbing, what else can I do?
….and then those days, moments, when I do not “feel love”, when my heart is not warm or throbbing, but cold, stony or crunchy, if I but raise my thoughts in worship, but it reading a verse, or hearing the words of a song, water seeps in through the cracks in the stone, softens and washes away the debris.
……this secret love affair, I always carry in my heart….. Sometimes acknowledged, sometimes ignored….yet always there.
I believe we worship when we know the One who is deserving of all worship. The act of Family worship is giving God the glory He deserves by teaching our children to fear Him in our own homes. Too many times we believe our job as parents is to “reinforce” what our kids are learning at church, when it’s just the opposite. Children learn how to worship beginning in the home. It might look different for each family, depending on circumstances. I lead ours because my husband is away at sea. And ours is 10 minutes or less because we have a 2 and a 4 year old. But they are learning hymns, scripture and catechisms and I am incredibly blessed by our time spent in the presence of God. It doesn’t always feel worshipful and we often come to God with the wrong attitude, but we do it nonetheless. Imperfect humans always worship imperfectly and family worship is no exception. But does that mean that we shouldn’t try? True worship of the Living God is never wasted.
Family worship has been something that we have desired and implemented in our family. Not because we want to be like other Christians (… I mean how many other “Christians” do family worship anyway), and not out of pride, but out of a desire to put Christ at the center of our family life, to lift him high in our own minds and one day in our children’s minds, to have a focused time of training our children, and to be a light to a dark world. Our desire is for our family to be a worshipful family and that takes being intentional.
Desiring Virtue´s last blog post … Budgeting for Beggars
Hi…I am very puzzled by the title of the picture. What exactly did you intend by the title?
Hmmm… interesting. :)
I like the point someone made (above) about family worship sometimes being worshipped. Our pastor phrases that as worship getting in the way of *worship*. Make sense? :) Anyway. We are far from legalistic about our family worship. We prioritize it most of the time. But sometimes, there are other activities that go on (fellowship groups, church choir, even having friends over for dinner, etc) that run right into bedtime – so we skip it. No biggie. God isn’t keeping a tally on us.
But like I said, we prioritize it most days. It’s just part of our evening routine. We only have one child on earth, and he is 17 months, and he looooooves family worship time. He loves sitting on the couch between Mommy and Daddy, settling in for the night with God’s Word. Daddy reads Scripture (we’re going through 1 Samuel currently), and then we sing a few hymns/psalms, and then we pray. Our son loves it, participates in his own small way, and expects it. He will grow up with this being normal. And as our family changes through time, our family worship very well may look different. But we hope it always remains a wonderful time of fellowship, honoring to the Lord, and a training tool for the kids as well as ourselves.
So WHY do we do it… it is a good habit to start/end the day with a type of formal worship. All of our lives are an act of worship, and yet God requires special forms of worship at different times. We each have our own personal time of learning and worship; then we have family worship; and then weekly we have a covenant renewal worship service in the corporate sense. All of these aspects are desired by God, honoring to Him, teaching us & our children, and an example to the Church and watching world.
Very much looking forward to your follow-up post. :)
I look forward to your follow up. Seems you got lots of others thinking. Love your super unique personality.
Smiles, Ang
Ooh, ooh! I have a guess on the title… Worship is “wasting” our time on our Royal KING of kings! Sometimes we are so caught up on productivity, squeezing so much “stuff” into a day. What a delight to sit at his feet and “waste” time. It is the most beautiful thing and we receive so much in return for the perceived sacrifice of “our” precious time.
We love God, so we worship Him both out of adoration and obedience, to humble ourselves before our King. To honor Him and come closer to our Lord and Savior.
We have some family worship time at home but not daily, usually 3 times a week. We also have a weekly Prayer and Praise night where a few families get together to sing, share and worship together. Our church is also family-integrated so we worship together, all ages, without segregation according to age. We try to train our kids from infants that it’s good to join in during prayer with the adults, etc. We do have “kids’ lessons” but we, both our family and our church, share a mutual respect towards the importance of children seeing what worship as an adult looks like too. Yes, it can be loud and a little distracting when a small child disrupts the sermon but it usually is short lived and it’s worth it when that same small child asks a question about a sermon, lifts someone’s name in prayer and sees the impact of the Lord in the lives around him.
Traci´s last blog post … Hoppin’ Down a Bunny Trail…
Jana – you’re catching on girl… ;)
Angelia – thank you – the follow-up will be next Sunday :)
Oh, how I love what Jana said, and now I am “getting” what you are meaning. I love that God made me a Mary….and pray that the Marthas in my life will love me like he made me. :)
Melissa Doddridge´s last blog post … Don’t Wanna Go One More Day…..
Thought this might be fun to add to the discussion mix … http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fLXmKJTGl7Y … 10 min video about how we can be religious sociopaths.