Read Romans 12:2

Being a worship leader, the act of worship is one of my favorite subjects to discuss when it comes to the Bible and what it has to say. My love for music and the art of musical worship has been in my heart for a while but worship is more than the songs we sing and more than the chords or keys we hear. The act of worship should transform us. 

I recently heard Taya Gaukrodger, worship leader and writer for Hillsong United, say,

“The first time worship is ever mentioned in the Bible is when Abraham turns to his servant and says ‘you wait here, Isaac and I are going up to worship’…it had nothing to do with song or music, it had to do with obedience to the voice of God and sacrifice regardless…that is what worship should be regardless of the 20 minutes we have on a Sunday”.

This is one of my favorite statements because it points to not only the obedience of Abraham’s life but points out that, because of Abraham’s love for the Lord, he was transformed and praised His name. Then as He followed the voice of God in obedience, He was transformed even more.

Just like Abraham’s life was transformed through worship, Paul tells us that the true act of worship is to “not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of our minds” … renewing our minds.

How does one do that?!

Simply by spending time with the Lord, whether it be in song or the Word, in company or solitary, while talking or being still. When we spend time with Jesus, our perspectives change, we begin to see things as Jesus sees them, we begin to notice the light in it all and it begins to transform our lives. 

The songs we sing on a Sunday morning, whether contemporary or traditional hymns, are born from God’s Word and, because He breathed the words that we read in the Bible (2 Tim 3:16) , we can breathe in and out the words of the songs we sing in the hope that it transforms our hearts and enlightens our thinking.

The act of worship is simply being yourself, striving to live like Jesus, engrossed in His words and allowing the growth from who we once were to the people He intended us to be to take place. 

Personally, musical worship has always been a place where the Lord and I connect most. Through a verse I lead or sing, I get to go before Him, I get to praise His name, I get to pray over you, our church family, I get to surrender it all to Him. After that time of worship through song, I always walk away with a new perspective, a new challenge and am transformed because what is breathing in and out are His words and His heart.

The question is, do you live your life continually being renewed because of God’s Word? Are you constantly being transformed by knowing His Truth? 

If you can’t answer yes to either of those, I challenge you to sit with this notion of transformation worship. What do you do day in and day out that causes your life to be changed because of who Jesus is? 

Kelly Lawson