EXCELLENT WORSHIPER (a)

CHAPTER 07:   EDUCATE THE MIND

The church is the reason gifts and talents are given to us. Our gifts are to be used for the glory of God. Salvation is not about how great we are but how GRACE-FILLED our MAGNIFICENT GOD is!

We have little knowledge about salvation. That many of us thought that |somehow| we need to “earn” for our salvation. Our understanding of God’s grace was still in its “infancy”; our progress was held back by “doubt and unbelief”. This unhealthy thinking is a real problem for so many people. But with TIME, through reading the WORD and through building a relationship with God, our mind can become RENEWED.

I. RENEWING THE MIND

Hebrews 10:16

 ¹⁶ “This is the covenant that I will make with them     after those days, declares the Lord:  I will put my laws on their hearts,     and write them on their minds,”

It can take great discipline to become a singer- practice, warm-ups, etc... But renewing the mind has taken even GREATER DISCIPLINE! Learning to take EVERY thought requires stamina.

If keeping your thoughts in line with God’s Word is difficult to you, here are some suggestions:

• Listen to teaching tapes, cds, mp3’s, iPods, etc…
• Read the Word of God everyday.
• Carefully choose what to watch on television or listen to on the radio

If you put garbage in your mind you’ll get garbage out.

Feed your mind with Word of God. Don’t starve your mind for knowledge of His TRUTH, or your mind will find something else with which to fill it. Give your thoughts the right food- feed yourself the truth and your heart will mediate on God’s best for you.

It’s important too to do a heart check on yourself sometimes.

• Do you speak death or life? It depends on your heart.
• Do you gossip or do you ignore it? It depends on your heart.

The power of the tongue is an amazing thing, what you confess over your world is an amazing thing. It has such power. What you feast on will come through as an excellent worshiper or a weak one, feast on the WORD and let its transforming power frame tour world. Worship is a song of the heart- sooner or later its health will be revealed

The heart is the engine room of your life.

Proverbs 4:23

²³ Keep your heart with all vigilance, 
   for from it flow the springs of life. 

It’s amazing that people spend thousand of dollars, hours and hours a day, exercising their bodies, making themselves feel good and look good. Yet they refuse to spend nay time renewing their mind to strengthen their heart- engine room of life itself.

Psalm 139:13-14

 ¹³ For you formed my inward parts;     you knitted me together in my mother's womb. 

¹⁴ I praise you, for I am fearfully and wonderfully made.^[a]  Wonderful are your works;     my soul knows it very well.

It may take us years to actively say that we are wonderfully made and His works are wonderful! Years! Sand it was the process of renewing our mind that would enable us to change our thinking.

II. PRIDE

Are we taking responsibility of being choir or a worshiper? It’s a  sobering fact that the only being to get thrown out of heaven was a worship leader! Pride is a seed that can take root so easily..

Proverbs 29:23

²³ One's pride will bring him low,     but he who is lowly in spirit will obtain honor.

1 John 2:16-17

¹⁶ For all that is in the world—the desires of the flesh and the desires of the eyes and pride of life^[a]—is not from the Father but is from the world. ¹⁷ And the world is passing away along with its desires, but whoever does the will of God abides forever.
 

We must learn to keep our heart and head in check. One of the great dangers we can face is to become famous worshipers! But our job is to  make GOD FAMOUS IN OUR WORSHIP. Keeping that at the core of our hearts certainly puts everything back into perspective.

2 Corinthians 12:5-9

⁵ On behalf of this man I will boast, but on my own behalf I will not boast, except of my weaknesses— ⁶ though if I should wish to boast, I would not be a fool, for I would be speaking the truth; but I refrain from it, so that no one may think more of me than he sees in me or hears from me. ⁷ So to keep me from becoming conceited because of the surpassing greatness of the revelations,^[a] a thorn was given me in the flesh, a messenger of Satan to harass me, to keep me from becoming conceited. ⁸ Three times I pleaded with the Lord about this, that it should leave me. ⁹ But he said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.” Therefore I will boast all the more gladly of my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ may rest upon me.
 

As you receive of God’s love, you can begin to think that you deserve His love and therefore deserve love from everyone too! If you can negate that prideful hurdle, you will release yourself to a great life of service in the Kingdom. Not thinking too highly of yourself, preparing others and listening to advice or correction are always that will help you to resist the ugly temptation  of pride.

If worship is ever more about our talent, than about being an excellent worshiper of the living God, then we are I serious trouble.

III. IT’S A NEW SEASON

Isaiah 43:19-21

¹⁹ Behold, I am doing a new thing;
   now it springs forth, do you not perceive it?
I will make a way in the wilderness
   and rivers in the desert.
²⁰ The wild beasts will honor me,
   the jackals and the ostriches,
for I give water in the wilderness,
   rivers in the desert,
to give drink to my chosen people,
 ²¹ the people whom I formed for myself
that they might declare my praise.
     

I believe that you and I, as God’s people, have only seen a glimpse of the relationship with God that is yet to come in the future. God has whetted our appetite for His glory. The church throughout the earth is taking her rightful place as the beautiful bride of Christ and we are seeing an increase of God’s presence like we have never experienced before, all over the world, people are becoming radical in their pursuit of Christ. We are o the edge of something powerful.

This is a generation of worshipers rising that know the awesome power of His presence and will again bring forth a new song. There will continue to be even younger worshipers who will bring the church to deeper worship. we will be awed at the depth of character that is about to come forward from our young people,. We will be amazed at their prophetic words. Expect it, as expectation is the breeding ground of the miraculous.

Dare to stick it out, dare to take your place in the magnificent moment in history, for who knows what is just around the corner? The water is rising, the spiritual tide id rising and we are about to experience  mighty crash, like a tidal wave, as our desire to serve Him, consumes us. If you want it, it’s already there. We are on the brink of something miraculous, so I’m encouraging everyone in the church to get ready. BE BIG PEOPLE. It takes guts to be an excellent worshiper. To be radical for Christ.

If you have a revelation about the power of praise and worship and we are living as worshipers, you can lead others into the courts of heaven, we must do more than hope somebody will worship, WE HAVE TO LEAD PEOPLE. We must take them by the hand and say “I know that it’s tough out there but let me take you to the answer for your life.”

Individuals who become excellent worshipers will find that they will lead others to worship too. Worshiping parents will lead their children into the presence of God,. Worshiping neighbors will lead neighbors, worshiping employee will lead their employers into His presence. Excellent worship is contagious.

IV. TALENT VS. FAITHFULNESS

Psalm 97:10

 ¹⁰ O you who love the LORD, hate evil!     He preserves the lives of his saints;     he delivers them from the hand of the wicked.

Faithfulness is not a popular word in today’s world, but it is a virtue that brings great blessing when applied over any area of our lives. There is a blessing when we are faithful to His love. Talent has almost nothing to do with whether or not there is blessing. Your skills and your talents are God-given, and while gifts and talents are sought after commodities but the worlds, they are low on God’s list of “must-haves” to qualify you for living an effective, purpose-driven Christ ho-honoring life.

2 Chronicles 16:9

⁹ For the eyes of the LORD run to and fro throughout the whole earth, to give strong support to those whose heart is blameless^[a] toward him. You have done foolishly in this, for from now on you will have wars.”

We must continually remember that the reason we do what we do is to WORSHIP the LORD and REACH souls for His kingdom. If we see the church as avenue for our gifts, an opportunity , an outlet, a way for people to experience what we have, or a way to success, then we’re in the wrong glace. Church is not a vehicle for us to present our talents ad catapult us unto Christian stardom!

The church is all ABOUT GOD and people and I would rather have the man or the woman of god than the gift. The man and the woman of GOD come first. There are so many gifted people. It’s not really a problem to find someone who is talented, talented people are everywhere. We want to see women and men of God who are FIRED UP with the CAUSE OF CHRIST, and when they play or sing or lead, people are drawn to their knees because of their passion for Christ.

There is a remarkable difference between gifted musician and an anointed one. It is quite easy To discern when someone auditions for the choir simply for the opportunity or when they come to be part of the glorious presence of God. LOYALTY AND FAITHFULNESS are precious commodities when it comes to being an excellent worshiper.

Excellent worshipers need to be steadfast, firm, fixed, constant, reliable, and immovable. Not removable- but Immovable. Someone who stands o the strength of the WORD OF GOD.

V. RISE TO THE CHALLENGE OF EXCELLENT WORSHIP

There are many singers and musicians who wanted to lead worship fall short of the potential because they wouldn’t rise to the level of excellence in their lives that brings the blessings of God. For  a fine the favor of God seems to cover all sorts of lousy things in our lives, but eventually we must take responsibly for our choices if we want God to treat us with more opportunities. The decision to become the person that Jesus Christ purposed and intended for us to be is ours to make, people can encourage  and motivate us, and build us up, but in the end, we must make an individual decision to keep our hearts loyal only to Him.

I challenge you to  become an excellent worshiper both publicly and privately, whether you are in a position of leadership or not, someone is looking to you as an example. Someone, somewhere, will notice if you are committed to worshipping God or not. Don’t give them a musical example. People don’t need to follow your talent. GIVE THEM A LIFE TO FOLLOW, A LIFE THAT RADIATED GOD’S GLORY, LIVE A RADICAL LIFE FOR CHRIST. Be a radical worshiper who is sold out for the kingdom of God and not for your own agenda or motives.

God’s people, the company of worshipers who can sold out to Jesus Christ, are called to be leader on the earth, be radical in your service to God and in your expression of love and devotion to Him, if you are radical, people around you will want to be radical too. It just takes one excellent worshipper to break rank to give everyone else permission to do the same. Be the one to break rank and reach for the excellence of God’s presence. Don’t wait for someone else, you lead the pursuit for GOD.

I never want to get the place where our worship team is simply “great at what they do”. That would be awful. Radical effort is required if we want His Name to be lifted up magnificently, throughout every sphere of influence possible. We can’t lift His Name by “trying” to be “cool”. to bring excellence to the house of God is wonderful, but we must check our “motivation”. Don’t fall into the trap of worshipping the worship. Worship the King and bring excellence because you love him.

We have a most divine promise that when God is lifted up, He draws all men unto His glorious self.

Psalm 91:1

My Refuge and My Fortress

 ¹ He who dwells in the shelter of the Most High     will abide in the shadow of the Almighty.

If you feel like you are running continually empty then you need to respond to His instruction, obey the Spirit of God and get in Hid presence. Joy and strength are found in His dwelling place, in His presence. We are never meant to live this supernatural call with purely natural ability. We will never make it on our own strength. But, If we take God at His Word, live in His presence, live a life of love ad respond to His voice, then we will live our entire lifetime growing in the knowledge of Christ, remaining fresh and strong in the Word and living in life that people will want to follow.

Acts 17:28

²⁸ for
   “‘In him we live and move and have our being’;^[a]   as even some of your own poets have said,

   “‘For we are indeed his offspring.’^[b]

We keep our hearts or course by truly loving and seeking Him above all else.

Jeremiah 17:7

 ⁷ “Blessed is the man who trusts in the LORD,     whose trust is the LORD. 

VI. A TRANSPARENT HEART

Jeremiah 17:9

 ⁹ The heart is deceitful above all things,     and desperately sick;     who can understand it?

We’ve instructed to trust in the Lord with all our heart and not to lean on our own understanding. We’re to acknowledge the Lord in all our ways and He will direct our path. I challenge you to develop a tenacious trust in God. Some worshipers find it easier to open their hearts and express genuine love and devotion to the Lord than others. Sometimes past hurts, regrets, disappointments or simply  a fear of being a let down prevents a heart form being completely transparent.

When we are in the presence of the Lord, we become transparent and honest and our hearts and souls cry out for Him. Our hearts prayer should be like this-

Psalm 51:8-10

⁸ Let me hear joy and gladness;
   let the bones that you have broken rejoice.
⁹ Hide your face from my sins,
   and blot out all my iniquities.
¹⁰ Create in me a clean heart, O God,
   and renew a right^[a] spirit within me.

Psalm 51:13

 ¹³ Then I will teach transgressors your ways,     and sinners will return to you.

When Isaiah caught sight of God, he was moved to confess his sin-

Isaiah 6

Isaiah's Vision of the Lord

 ¹ In the year that King Uzziah died I saw the Lord sitting upon a throne, high and lifted up; and the train^[a] of his robe filled the temple. ² Above him stood the seraphim. Each had six wings: with two he covered his face, and with two he covered his feet, and with two he flew. ³ And one called to another and said:

   “Holy, holy, holy is the LORD of hosts;  the whole earth is full of his glory!”^[b]

 ⁴ And the foundations of the thresholds shook at the voice of him who called, and the house was filled with smoke. ⁵ And I said: “Woe is me! For I am lost; for I am a man of unclean lips, and I dwell in the midst of a people of unclean lips; for my eyes have seen the King, the LORD of hosts!”

 ⁶ Then one of the seraphim flew to me, having in his hand a burning coal that he had taken with tongs from the altar. ⁷ And he touched my mouth and said: “Behold, this has touched your lips; your guilt is taken away, and your sin atoned for.”

Isaiah's Commission from the Lord

 ⁸ And I heard the voice of the Lord saying, “Whom shall I send, and who will go for us?” Then I said, “Here I am! Send me.” ⁹ And he said, “Go, and say to this people:

   “‘Keep on hearing,^[c] but do not understand; 
keep on seeing,^d] but do not perceive.’ 

¹⁰ Make the heart of this people dull,^[e]     and their ears heavy,     and blind their eyes;  lest they see with their eyes,     and hear with their ears,  and understand with their hearts,     and turn and be healed.” 

¹¹ Then I said, “How long, O Lord?”  And he said:  “Until cities lie waste     without inhabitant,  and houses without people,     and the land is a desolate waste, ¹² and the LORD removes people far away,     and the forsaken places are many in the midst of the land. ¹³ And though a tenth remain in it,     it will be burned^[f] again, 
like a terebinth or an oak, 
   whose stump remains 
   when it is felled.”  The holy seed^[g] is its stump.

When our humanness is confronted but the magnificence and holiness of God, we become very aware of our need for God’s grace and His cleansing power in our lives. If we have forgiveness, anger,, jealousy or bitterness we only need to ask God to forgive us and He will powerfully remove it form our hearts,

Romans 12:1

A Living Sacrifice

 ¹ I appeal to you therefore, brothers,^[a] by the mercies of God, to present your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to God, which is your spiritual worship.^[b]

This passage teaches us how to live this life of worship and love. As we worship God, the holy Spirit gently exposes what is in our hearts. He will reel back  all of the unclean layers, all the protective barriers we have placed there, and make our hearts clean and pure again, it is amazing to see that happen in worship!

You may not want the layers of your heart to be exposed maybe that’s scary thought for you. But God is faithful and loving God, and He wants to peel off any callused layers on your heart so that you can be restored, he will not humiliate you or hurt you, but He longs for you to be restores to a place of whole in Him. From that place of wholeness, you can all that He has planned for you to become. So pursue with passion the presence of God and let Him, rather than the people around you work on your heart,

Psalm 112:7-8

⁷ He is not afraid of bad news;     his heart is firm, trusting in the LORD. ⁸ His heart is steady; he will not be afraid,     until he looks in triumph on his adversaries.

Jesus laid the foundation of life before us when He said-

Matthew 22:37-38

³⁷ And he said to him, “You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind. ³⁸ This is the great and first commandment.

The song of the heart that loves the Lord is the song that will resound in heaven.