Day 1: An Outward Expression of an Inward Delight

by Keith Golightly

Scripture

“An hour is coming, and now is, when the true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and truth; for such people the Father seeks to be His worshipers. God is spirit, and those who worship Him must worship in spirit and truth.” —John 4:23-24 (NASB)

Application

Worship in its most simple definition is paying attention to God. When a King enters his kingdom or even his throne room, all eyes and ears of the people are on him as an expression of honor and respect. As carriers of the presence of King Jesus, our hearts and minds are always aware of Him and sensitive to His presence. 

We all worship something, whether we realize it or not. Our hearts are like sonar radars that constantly scan for things to give itself to. Worship is never an on or off switch that suddenly switches on when we find ourselves in a worship service; nor does it switch off when we leave church. Our worship is constantly on - it’s just a matter of what or who our worship is directed to in any given moment of our lives. What is the object of your worship? To answer this, ask yourself this question.. What is the one thing I think about most in my day? Whatever that thing is, that is the ultimate object of your worship. This is why Jesus commands us to love Him with our minds (Matthew 22:37) because when we do, our thought lives are founded on Him, and therefore our worship.  

Have you ever noticed that when you get excited about something, you need to tell someone about it? This is because we are creatures that love to delight in things. We love sharing what we delight in with others that may delight in the same thing(s). Nothing is more frustrating than when someone is not excited about what you’re excited about. Our natural inclination of taking delight in something is expressing it. In fact, the expression of delight is the completion of that delight. When we delight in Jesus, the result of that delight is outward expression. In other words, worship is the outward expression of our inward delight in Jesus. Outward expression without inward delight is hypocrisy, while inward delight without outward expression is incomplete. Delight and expression go hand-in-hand; you can’t truly have one without the other. God designed us to enjoy Him, and the best way to tell God you enjoy Him is to worship Him. By doing so, you are giving your soul the opportunity to complete its utmost delight and fulfill its grand and divine purpose.        

Reflection

Read

Prayer

“Father, may you be my heart’s ultimate delight. Help me, Lord, to place You in Your rightful place in my heart so that You can change me from the inside out. I want the outward expression of my worship to match the inward delight that I have in You. I don’t want my worship to entertain hypocrisy or risk being incomplete. Holy Spirit, help me to genuinely worship You in spirit and truth, so that Your throne may be exalted and You receive the worth and praise that is due to Your name. I pray this in the worthy name of King Jesus, Amen.”