Those who worship in spirit & truth are able to do
so regardless of their circumstances because it goes beyond feelings.
Is this to say that we should live as cold robots with no emotion?
Of course not! We were designed to have emotions. It's in our DNA how we respond to acts of love, acts of wrongdoing... Thankfulness, for instance is an action that is an emotional response. if we don't feel thankful, we're basically not.
Job's experience brought a lot of emotion! Was he thankful that God allowed everything and everyone to be stripped of him, living in physical pain and sickness? No! He was distraught! His heart was torn and broken. He was confused and hurt...
Yet he still KNEW that God is who He says He is. That was the basis of his relationship with The Lord. "God is God and I am not."
When we think of worship in the western world, we typically think of singing (which is totally biblical by the way - I love how people will use the "worship is more than singing songs, it's a lifestyle" catch phrase to explain why they don't "get into" singing worship... Again it's biblical. Look it up) and with singing there is usually some sort of emotion tied to it. Whether its the music or the lyrics, it is meant to evoke emotion to a point, in order to call to remembrance His goodness & His love or His majesty and therefore respond. But whether music is used or poetic lyricism, worship is a proclamation of God's attributes.
But what happens when we DON'T feel like it? Maybe we had a bad day... Maybe, like David, we lost a child or like Job, everything! Yet they worshipped The Lord. They stood firm on the goodness of God.
How that possible?
Because fortunately neither prayer nor worship require emotions, but faithfulness, because its what is right.
The emotions only effect our ability to make good decisions in right doing.
True worshippers worship Him because it is right.
Is this to say that we should live as cold robots with no emotion?
Of course not! We were designed to have emotions. It's in our DNA how we respond to acts of love, acts of wrongdoing... Thankfulness, for instance is an action that is an emotional response. if we don't feel thankful, we're basically not.
Job's experience brought a lot of emotion! Was he thankful that God allowed everything and everyone to be stripped of him, living in physical pain and sickness? No! He was distraught! His heart was torn and broken. He was confused and hurt...
Yet he still KNEW that God is who He says He is. That was the basis of his relationship with The Lord. "God is God and I am not."
When we think of worship in the western world, we typically think of singing (which is totally biblical by the way - I love how people will use the "worship is more than singing songs, it's a lifestyle" catch phrase to explain why they don't "get into" singing worship... Again it's biblical. Look it up) and with singing there is usually some sort of emotion tied to it. Whether its the music or the lyrics, it is meant to evoke emotion to a point, in order to call to remembrance His goodness & His love or His majesty and therefore respond. But whether music is used or poetic lyricism, worship is a proclamation of God's attributes.
But what happens when we DON'T feel like it? Maybe we had a bad day... Maybe, like David, we lost a child or like Job, everything! Yet they worshipped The Lord. They stood firm on the goodness of God.
How that possible?
Because fortunately neither prayer nor worship require emotions, but faithfulness, because its what is right.
The emotions only effect our ability to make good decisions in right doing.
True worshippers worship Him because it is right.
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