Good Monday morning to all. You are reading section 12 today and should be through section 14 by our meeting on Wednesday. I will list a summary below with some questions to think on.
In the first seven (7) chapters we discussed “Why we are here on earth.” The bottom line is this: because God has a purpose for us. We discovered that the only way we can find our purpose in life is by consulting the Inventor and Director of our lives who is God Himself. Since God has spoken to us through His Word--then it is there (in His Word) that we must turn in order to discover our purpose.
Beginning in section 8 we find our first purpose: Worship. God planned us for His pleasure and we were created to bring joy to His heart by our worship.
This leads to several interesting questions: What is worship? Where and how does a person worship? What does this phrase mean: “Worship is a lifestyle?”
We also discover several more specific ways that we can worship God: by trusting Him; by giving Him thanks and praise; and by surrendering to Him.
Before I close, I want to leave you with one thought from today’s reading that should challenge your spiritual life. This section explains that God considers you as His friend. Friends have to decide how close they want to get with each other. God really wants to be close to you. The question becomes: How close do I want to be with God? “The truth is—you are as close to God as you choose to be” (pg. 98.) Meditate on this.
Here are some questions for you to answer:
1. How is living your whole life (key thought) for God’s pleasure different from the way most people understand worship?
2. What is worship and who can do it?
3. What does the phrase “Worship is a lifestyle” mean?
4. How is a friendship with God similar to any other friendship, and how is it different?
5. Share something you learned from a time when God seemed distant.
6. Which is easier for you public or private worship? In which do you feel closer to God?
7. When is it appropriate to express anger to God?
8. What fears surface when you think of surrendering your complete life to Christ?
Ephesians 2:8-9
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I would like to answer question number 1 because this one was a doozy for me. It really made me think about things because you are living your ENTIRE life for Jesus Christ. You can't just worship God only on Sundays or on some Wednesdays, you have to worship God Every single day, minute by minute, etc. I believe I realized this, and alot of my friends think that I am a goody tooshoes sort of person for it. Why, I have no clue, but by them doing that, it made me not worship God all the time. Now I see that that was a mistake to be intimidated by them, because God is definately so much more intimidating. I would be worse off being turned away by God than by my friends. anyway...... Most people think that worshiping God is getting down on your knees and praying alot, singing until you can't sing anymore, and only going to church on Sunday Mornings, just to appease society. Worshiping God is an everyday thing, not just a time on sunday when you can repent for all the bad things that you did that week. I have learned that it is good and obedient to worship God no matter what kind of a situation you are in, or no matter how many people laugh or scoff at you for doing what's right. Sadly I have lost alot of close friends by believing this, and putting God first before peer pressure. I know though that it is all worth it in the end.
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