Thursday, December 14, 2006

Divine Romance

Worship is a response. It is what we do because of our condition. Like waving back when someone waves at you, or cheering when your team wins. Like crying over heartache or laughing at a joke, we respond.

Psalm 16:11 says,
You will make known to me the path of life; in Your presence is fullness of joy; in Your right hand there are pleasures forever.

Do we get it? Jesus died on the cross to give us the opportunity to be reconnected with God. The Gospel is that God drew us closer to Himself.

In His presence is fullness of joy. It's not in anything the world offers. We are the rescued ones! We are those that were held prisoner. God has broken down the walls and saved us! Hallelujah.

Our response is simple; Love. God broke through and rescued us. He offers that rescue to the entire world and in response we recognize the great gift we have been given; God. That we may know and connect with God is the good news. Satisfaction comes from just one source and it's Him. Let's drink deep!

This is from a song by Phil Wickham, and it's maybe the best picture of that relationship I've ever heard.

A deep, deep flood
an ocean flows from you
of deep, deep love
is filling up the room

Your innocent blood
has washed my guilty life
in your presence God
I'm completely satisfied

For you, I sing I dance
Rejoice in this divine romance
lift my heart and my hands
to show my love, to show my love

Thursday, November 16, 2006

Why the title?

Bowed low is the name of this blog and it is taken from Exodus 34.

"So Moses chiselsed out two stone tablets like the first ones and went up Mount Sinai early in the morning...The the Lord came down in the cloud and stood there with him and proclaimed his name, the Lord."

God came down and revealed himself to Moses!

He then "passed in front of Moses, proclaiming, 'The Lord, the Lord, the compassionate and gracious God, slow to anger, abounding in love and faithfulness, maintaining love to thousands, and forgiving wickedness, rebellion and sin. Yet he does not leave the guilty unpunished; he punishes the children and their children for the sin of the fathers to the third and fourth generation."

So God came down from heaven, revealed Himself to Moses and told him of His nature and His character. What is Moses' response?

Verse 8 says "Moses bowed low to the ground at once and worshiped."

Throughout scripture, the response of people at seeing the face of God and understanding His character is worship and surrender.

We can not see the face of God and remain the same person!

Our lives are transformed by an encounter with God, and we have an opportunity to see him every moment of every day.

Let's bow low in response.

What is Worship

Worship begins and ends with God. He is first and foremost in creation, in salvation, in our growth and should be in our worship as well. God is the most loving being in the history of all things and the most loving act He has given or does give is Himself.

God allows us to know Him. He is the ultimate source of satisfaction and joy and apart from Him we can not become the people we were meant to become. We can not understand purpose or hope or real happiness. So the love of God is not found in the blessings He gives us or by increasing our comfortability. God's most loving act is to give Himself to us. Worship is simply living in a reasonable response to that; that God gives Himself up to death so that we can know Him. That response happens in song, dance, through art, video, prayer, giving, fasting, evangelism, community, experiencing God's creation and a multitude of other things.

Let's be people who live in a reasonable response to who God is and what He's done for us.