AUGUEST THEME – “Seeing Revival From God’s Perspective”
Join us in prayer and celebration as Belmont Baptist Church celebrates our Year of Jubilee, marking fifty years of God’s amazing faithfulness and looking forward with grateful hearts to all He has yet to do.
BEATS FROM YOUR PASTOR’S HEART
IT’S EASIER TO GO TO CHURCH THAN TO GO TO WORSHIP
Psalm 95:6, “O come, let us worship and bow down: let us kneel before the LORD our maker.”
It is possible to be faithful to church and still fail to worship. We can get dressed, drive to the building, sit in our usual place, sing every song, listen to the sermon, shake a few hands, and go home—without ever truly turning our hearts toward God. You can be in God’s house and still miss God’s presence. Going to church requires our presence, but going to worship requires our surrender. Church attendance can become routine because we know when to stand, when to sit, when to sing, and when to listen. But worship can never be merely routine because worship is an encounter between the heart of man and the holiness of God. Attendance brings you into the building; surrender brings you before the throne. The question is not simply, “Did I go to church?” The deeper question is, “Did I worship while I was there?” We can faithfully occupy the same pew Sunday after Sunday without allowing God to occupy the throne of our hearts. God is not measuring how long you sat in the pew, but how completely you surrendered while you were there.
IT IS EASIER TO BRING YOUR BODY THAN TO BRING YOUR HEART
Jesus said in Matthew 15:8, “This people draweth nigh unto me with their mouth, and honoureth me with their lips; but their heart is far from me.” Our body can be in the pew while our heart is somewhere else. The greatest distance in a worship service may be the few inches between a moving mouth and an unmoved heart. We can sing while thinking about lunch. We can pray while thinking about tomorrow. We can listen to preaching while thinking about someone across the room. We can say “Amen” while resisting the very truth to which we are saying amen. It is possible for our lips to participate in worship while our hearts remain completely absent. God is not impressed merely because we showed up. He desires that our heart show up with us. David said, “I will praise thee, O LORD, with my whole heart” (Psalm 9:1). God does not want the leftovers of our attention after everything else has occupied our minds. God deserves more than our attendance—He deserves our attention. True worship begins when I deliberately gather the scattered pieces of my heart and say, “Lord, for these moments, You have my full attention.” I lay aside yesterday, tomorrow, lunch, work, problems, people, distractions, and worries and deliberately turn my heart toward Him. Sometimes the greatest sacrifice of worship is simply giving God our undivided attention.
IT IS EASIER TO WATCH WORSHIP THAN TO WORSHIP
One of the dangers of modern church is that worship can slowly become something we observe. The choir sings. The musicians play. The worship leader leads. The preacher preaches. Everyone on the platform seems to be doing something—and everyone in the pew can slowly become an audience. The church was never intended to have performers on a platform and spectators in the pews; we are all standing before an Audience of One. Psalm 95:6 does not say, “Come and watch others worship.” It says, “O come, let us worship.” Worship is not something the choir does for us or the preacher creates for us. Worship is the response of every redeemed heart to the worthiness of God. There are no spectators before the throne—only worshippers. No one can worship God for you. Someone can sing beside you, pray for you, preach to you, encourage you, and even weep with you, but they cannot surrender your heart to God. Your spouse cannot worship for you. Your pastor cannot worship for you. Your family cannot worship for you. Worship is one appointment with God that nobody else can keep for you. Worship becomes real when we stop evaluating everyone else and begin examining ourselves. Instead of asking, “How did the choir sound?” “How long is the preacher going?” “Why are they singing that song?” or “Why is that person doing that?” we begin asking, “Lord, what is happening in my heart?” A critical spirit watches everybody else; a worshipping heart sees only Jesus.
IT IS EASIER TO SEEK AN EXPERIENCE THAN TO SEEK GOD
We sometimes judge worship by how it made us feel. “The music was wonderful.” “The choir blessed me.” “The sermon encouraged me.” “I really enjoyed the service.” There is nothing wrong with being blessed, encouraged, or emotionally moved, but none of those things necessarily means we worshipped. You can feel something in church without ever surrendering anything to God. Worship is not primarily about what I received; worship is about what God deserves. We have not gathered merely to get a blessing, receive encouragement, hear our favorite song, or have our needs met. Revelation 4:11 says, “Thou art worthy, O Lord, to receive glory and honour and power.” Worship begins when I stop asking, “What am I getting?” and start declaring, “Lord, You are worthy!” That changes the question completely. Worship is not asking, “Did this service please me?” Worship asks, “Did my heart please Him?” We did not gather around our preferences; we gathered around His worthiness. The success of worship is not determined by whether I was pleased with the service, but whether God was pleased with me.
Suppose someone came to your house every week. They entered your home, sat in your living room, admired your decorations, enjoyed the music, ate your food, talked with your family, laughed with your friends, and then left without ever speaking to you. After several weeks you might finally ask, “Why do you keep coming to my house if you never came to see me?” It is possible to enjoy everything in the house while ignoring the person whose house it is. Could the Lord sometimes ask us the same question? We come to His house. We enjoy His music. We fellowship with His people. We hear His Word. We receive His blessings. We enjoy the atmosphere. We shake hands with His children. Then we walk out without ever consciously fixing our hearts upon Him. We can become so occupied with the things of God that we completely miss God Himself. What a tragedy! We did not miss Sunday School. We did not miss the singing. We did not miss the announcements. We did not miss the sermon. We did not miss lunch afterward. But somehow, in the middle of everything, we missed Him. The tragedy is not that we missed church—the tragedy is that we went to church and missed God.
Before you walk through the doors of the church, prepare your heart. Worship should begin before the first note is played. On the way to church pray, “Lord, I am not merely going to church today. I am coming to worship You. Prepare my heart. Remove my distractions. Speak to me. I am listening.” The quality of our worship on Sunday is often determined by the preparation of our hearts before Sunday. When the first song begins, worship. When someone prays, worship. When the offering is received, worship. When Scripture is read, worship. When the choir sings, worship. When the Word is preached, worship. When conviction comes, respond. When God speaks, surrender. Worship is not a twenty-minute portion of the service; worship is the surrendered response of my heart to God throughout the entire service.
Jesus said in John 4:23, “The true worshippers shall worship the Father in spirit and in truth: for the Father seeketh such to worship him.” Think about that carefully. Almighty God is seeking something when we gather. He is seeking worshippers. God is not searching the sanctuary for occupied seats; He is searching it for surrendered hearts. You can attend church without worshipping, but when you truly worship, church will never again be merely somewhere you go. It becomes the gathering place where the people of God intentionally turn their hearts toward God, behold His glory, hear His voice, receive His Word, and surrender to His will. Never be satisfied to leave saying, “I went to church today,” when you could leave saying, “I met with God today.”
ONE FINAL QUESTION
So this Sunday, when the last song has been sung, the final “Amen” has been spoken, and you walk back through those doors, do not merely ask yourself, “Was that a good service?”Ask something much deeper: “Did I worship?” Did I give Him my attention? Did I give Him my praise? Did I give Him my obedience? Did I give Him my surrender? Did I give Him my whole heart? Because ultimately, worship is not measured by what happened around me—it is revealed by what happened within me.
WARFARE PRAYER
Father, forgive me for the times I have gone to church without truly coming to worship. Forgive me for bringing You my body while allowing my heart and mind to wander somewhere else. Deliver me from routine, distraction, criticism, selfish preferences, and spiritual complacency. When I enter Your house, remind me that I have come for You. Quiet my heart, focus my mind, humble my spirit, open my ears, and make me sensitive to Your presence. May I worship You in spirit and in truth, and may I never become satisfied with merely attending church when You are inviting me into Your presence. Lord, deliver me from being comfortable around the things of God without being consumed with God Himself. In Jesus’ name, Amen.
DAILY CHALLENGE
Before your next church service, pray one deliberate prayer before you ever enter the building: “Lord, today I refuse to merely attend. I have come to worship You.” Then give Him your attention when you sing, your agreement when you pray, your obedience when His Word is preached, and your surrender when He speaks. Don’t merely occupy a seat in God’s house—offer Him the throne of your heart.
WEDNESDAY’S PRAYER NEEDS
Darlene Kelley – Our Cousin – Cancer
Darlene Thaxton
Ginny Ford
Deanne Boynton
Anna Belle Taylor – Irregular Heartbeat – Jackson’s Special Friend
Rob Davis – cancer
Kim McClain’s Mother