The Inconvenience of Worship

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I will be glad and rejoice in your unfailing love, for you have seen my troubles, and you care about the anguish of my soul. (Psalm 31:7, NLT)

Then Jehoshaphat stood in the assembly of Judah and Jerusalem in the Lord's temple. . .He said: Lord God of our ancestors, are You not the God who is in heaven, and do You not rule over all the kingdoms of the nations? Power and might are in Your hand, and no one can stand against You. (2 Chron. 20:5-6, Christian Standard Bible).

"Lord, I'm just not feelin' this today." When was the last time you said that while you were sitting in church?! I've been there, and I would bet the farm you have too. That's one of those things we find it hard to admit because it makes us look less holy. Perhaps for the real judgmental Christians, we are immediately placed in a backslidden state after making such an admission. No matter how big your Bible is, or how many times you attend church service, there are days that come to all of our lives when worship is decidedly inconvenient; not because we don't love God anymore, not because we don't care, but because ____ hurts. You fill in the blank. Whatever it is hurts, and it is now messing with my worship. But allow me to encourage you.

After a careful, slow read of the entire 20th chapter of 2 Chronicles you will first see how fear gripped king Jehoshaphat because of impending battle. Fear will mess with your worship. But today's text shows us that, given a very inconvenient situation, the king chose to pray and to worship. His prayer is full of worship! In spite of his human fear He still recognized God's power over all the nations. There's a lesson in there for all of us; Jehoshaphat took his focus off the problem and put it on God. God sees everything we go through (Prov. 15:3). Don't let anybody tell you your sincere worship is not getting through to God. He always honors true worship from a right heart. Yes, your worship may be a sacrifice, but that's the best time to worship God because in your worship experience, whether public or private, God will give you fresh perspective and fresh purpose to keep on walking.  I know. . .

Blessings on you. . .
Donna R. Patrick, Contributing Writer

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