By Grace
4th April 2006, 03:30 PM
You know how, every now and then, you'll come across something that just really speaks to the core of your being?
I've been doing some research on the concept of worship, and came across this statement:
"What we call "memory" is actually our spirit gazing at the substance of our soul."
I was wondering what comments all of you might have on this statement. For me, it was one of those mind-bending statements that changes the way you see things just long enough to make you pause and get a glimpse of the way God might see things.
Here's the context of the statement, and how the author linked it to worship...
What we call "memory" is actually our spirit gazing at the substance of our soul. With few exceptions, those events which we remember the most have shaped us the most. Indeed, the reason our natural minds cannot forget certain incidents is because those experiences have literally become a part of our nature!
We are what the past has made us. Yet, we are commanded to not look back and to "forget . . . what lies behind" (Luke 9:62; Phil. 3:13; Heb. 11:15). With God, this is not impossible, for although the events of our lives are irreversible, our reactions to those events can still be changed. And as our reactions change, we change. In other words, although we cannot alter the past, we can put our past upon the "altar" as an act of worship. A worshiping heart truly allows God to restore the soul.
All of us receive a portion of both good and evil in this world. But for life to be good, God, who is the essence of life, must reach into our experiences and redeem us from our negative reactions. The channel through which the Lord extends Himself, even into our past, is our love and worship of Him.
"And we know that God causes all things to work together for good to those who love God" (Rom. 8:28). The key for the fulfillment of this verse is that we become lovers of God in our spirits. When we are given to loving Him, all that we have passed through in life is washed in that love. It is redeemed and becomes good within us.
Therefore, it is essential to both the salvation of our souls and our protection in warfare that we be worshipers. For the ark which safely carries us through adversity is worship.
I'd post the link, too, but it's in a pop-up window, and I don't know how to get the link. You can find the article by going to www.frangipane.org (http://www.frangipane.org), click on "Articles", search for "worship", then select the 1st article from 4-20-01.
The real value in the article comes a little later on, though:
We were created for God's pleasure. We were not created to live for ourselves but for Him. And while the Lord desires that we enjoy His gifts and His people, He would have us know we were created first for His pleasure. In these closing moments of this age, the Lord will have a people whose purpose for living is to please God with their lives. In them, God finds His own reward for creating man. They are His worshipers. They are on earth only to please God, and when He is pleased, they also are pleased. The Lord takes them farther and through more pain and conflicts than other men. Outwardly, they often seem "smitten of God, and afflicted" (Isa. 53:4). Yet to God, they are His beloved. When they are crushed, like the petals of a flower, they exude a worship, the fragrance of which is so beautiful and rare that angels weep in quiet awe at their surrender. They are the Lord's purpose for creation.
One would think that God would protect them, guarding them in such a way that they would not be marred. Instead, they are marred more than other men. Indeed, the Lord seems pleased to crush them, putting them to grief. For in the midst of their physical and emotional pain, their loyalty to Christ grows pure and perfect. And in the face of persecutions, their love and worship toward God become all-consuming.
I've been doing some research on the concept of worship, and came across this statement:
"What we call "memory" is actually our spirit gazing at the substance of our soul."
I was wondering what comments all of you might have on this statement. For me, it was one of those mind-bending statements that changes the way you see things just long enough to make you pause and get a glimpse of the way God might see things.
Here's the context of the statement, and how the author linked it to worship...
What we call "memory" is actually our spirit gazing at the substance of our soul. With few exceptions, those events which we remember the most have shaped us the most. Indeed, the reason our natural minds cannot forget certain incidents is because those experiences have literally become a part of our nature!
We are what the past has made us. Yet, we are commanded to not look back and to "forget . . . what lies behind" (Luke 9:62; Phil. 3:13; Heb. 11:15). With God, this is not impossible, for although the events of our lives are irreversible, our reactions to those events can still be changed. And as our reactions change, we change. In other words, although we cannot alter the past, we can put our past upon the "altar" as an act of worship. A worshiping heart truly allows God to restore the soul.
All of us receive a portion of both good and evil in this world. But for life to be good, God, who is the essence of life, must reach into our experiences and redeem us from our negative reactions. The channel through which the Lord extends Himself, even into our past, is our love and worship of Him.
"And we know that God causes all things to work together for good to those who love God" (Rom. 8:28). The key for the fulfillment of this verse is that we become lovers of God in our spirits. When we are given to loving Him, all that we have passed through in life is washed in that love. It is redeemed and becomes good within us.
Therefore, it is essential to both the salvation of our souls and our protection in warfare that we be worshipers. For the ark which safely carries us through adversity is worship.
I'd post the link, too, but it's in a pop-up window, and I don't know how to get the link. You can find the article by going to www.frangipane.org (http://www.frangipane.org), click on "Articles", search for "worship", then select the 1st article from 4-20-01.
The real value in the article comes a little later on, though:
We were created for God's pleasure. We were not created to live for ourselves but for Him. And while the Lord desires that we enjoy His gifts and His people, He would have us know we were created first for His pleasure. In these closing moments of this age, the Lord will have a people whose purpose for living is to please God with their lives. In them, God finds His own reward for creating man. They are His worshipers. They are on earth only to please God, and when He is pleased, they also are pleased. The Lord takes them farther and through more pain and conflicts than other men. Outwardly, they often seem "smitten of God, and afflicted" (Isa. 53:4). Yet to God, they are His beloved. When they are crushed, like the petals of a flower, they exude a worship, the fragrance of which is so beautiful and rare that angels weep in quiet awe at their surrender. They are the Lord's purpose for creation.
One would think that God would protect them, guarding them in such a way that they would not be marred. Instead, they are marred more than other men. Indeed, the Lord seems pleased to crush them, putting them to grief. For in the midst of their physical and emotional pain, their loyalty to Christ grows pure and perfect. And in the face of persecutions, their love and worship toward God become all-consuming.