Worship Warrior Lifestyle. To some, what this phrase means may seem obvious. To others, it may sound like it should make sense, but you are wondering if I mean what you think I mean by saying this phrase. To the rest of you, you are completely confused. Well, here I am to explain to you what a Worship Warrior Lifestyle is. Are you ready?
Let's break these three words apart and discuss them according to God's Word, then bring them back together into one big, beautiful, harmonious phrase that describes how we as Christians should be living.
Worship. There's this amazing song that I discovered years ago called “Clear the Stage” by Jimmy Needham. The purpose of this song is to make it known that worship is not just singing your heart out to God. It's not just praying your heart out to Him either. It's also not only those two things combined. Throughout the entire song, the lyrics unfold the definition of true worship: "Clear the stage and set the sound and lights ablaze if that's the measure you must take to crush the idols. Jerk the pews and all the decorations too until the congregations few then have revival. Tell your friends that this is where the party ends until you're broken for your sins, you can't be social. Then seek the Lord and wait for what He has in store and know that great is your reward so just be hopeful. ‘Cause you can sing all you want to but worship is more than a song." There are a couple more relatable analogies that Jimmy Needham gives in the following verses, but you get the point. The point is that when we truly love God, we should recognize that anything that seeps into our heart or mind (way of thinking) that is not of God, is an idol. If we have idols other than God, then we are not truly worshiping Him. Let's look at the Bible. Paul says in 1 Corinthians 10:31 "So, whether you eat or drink, or whatever you do, do all to the glory of God." Then, we see in Romans 12:1"I appeal to you therefore, brothers, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to God, which is your spiritual worship." Let's think about that for a moment. What does a "living sacrifice" entail? Well, as we see in scripture, giving animals as sacrifice to God was common. Just as people would give animal sacrifice as an act of reverence and worship to God, Paul is saying in this particular verse that we should be giving ourselves, our bodies as a "living sacrifice". Meaning, the only response to God's mercy on us that makes complete sense is to give Him our lives as a sacrifice for Him to use however He chooses.
If we are to truly be worshiping God, we must recognize first that worship is not just one or two moments - it's all of the moments. It's not just a song - it's how we talk to people, how we teach our kids, how we put our own selfish desires away to help someone else, and what our heart's intentions are when we do kind things for people. It's everything. From the way we dress to the way we speak. From the way we spend time with God privately to the way we spend time with God corporately. Worship - true worship - is so so much more than surface level.
Warrior. This is the uncomfortable area that so many Christians and churches don't talk about properly and don't talk about enough. Let me first say, if you are a Christian and you don't live your life constantly on guard for the Devil's attacks, then are you actually, fully living for God? The Devil's only plan is to steal, kill, and destroy anyone who claims to be on God's side. (John 10:10) Whether that be a direct attack on you, a direct attack on your family which in turn affects you, or an attack on society as a whole, resulting in the alteration of your belief system - the Devil is out to get you. You and I both need to be aware of our surroundings. Ephesians 6:10-13 says "Finally, be strong in the Lord and in the strength of his might. Put on the whole armor of God, that you may be able to stand against the schemes of the devil. For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the cosmic powers over this present darkness, against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly places. Therefore take up the whole armor of God, that you may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand firm." We are in a war. There are only two sides in this war - God's side (the Kingdom of Light) and Satan's side (the Kingdom of Darkness). We cannot opt out of this war. We are automatically in this war from the moment we are born. Which side you end up on depends on whether or not you have been saved. If you have accepted God's merciful gift of salvation, then you are on God's side. Once in God's Kingdom, you are now one of His soldiers, and how hard you work to gather and strengthen more soldiers for the King is up to you. Are you going to suit up and work hard? In order to combat the opposing side, you must first put your armor on and hold your shield in front of you (guard your heart, study God's Word, talk to God daily and vulnerably). After you put your armor on and have your shield up, pay attention. Discern what is of God and what is of the Devil. If something does not line up with God's principles, then you know that it isn't from God. Discernment comes from the Holy Spirit and is clearly understood by you as you grow closer to God. Lastly, when the Devil attacks you, you attack him. James 4:7-8 says, "Submit yourselves therefore to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you. Draw near to God, and he will draw near to you. Cleanse your hands, you sinners, and purify your hearts, you double-minded." Attack him by resisting him. How do you do that? Refer to what Jesus did when Satan tempted Him (Luke 4). Each time Jesus was tempted, He quoted scripture. So how should we combat temptation? With scripture. After several attempts, the Devil eventually left Jesus for a while. Jesus kept His eyes on His Father. He saw what was most important and never allowed His heart to love anyone else like He loved His Father. That is how we too can resist the Devil. Using his very own enemy against him and then turning away and walking the other direction.
Lifestyle. I am not going to say anything new about this that you haven't heard yet in this post. Worshiping God and being His warrior in His Kingdom is every desire your heart has, every thought you have, every word you speak, and every action you do. It is a lifestyle. So let's live that lifestyle. No words can describe how fulfilling it is to live that lifestyle out.
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Jimmy Needham's song:
Thank you, Ms. Becky, for sharing your editing skills and very wise counsel with me. I love you!
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