What comes to your mind when you think of worship? Often we only think of songs we sing on a Sunday morning as worship, but it's actually so much more! Through studying God's Word, we can see that worshipping God is not just going through the motions of "worship," but to really show God how much we love Him. The more we learn about God and know Him, the more our hearts will want to worship Him.
KNOWLEDGE: Gaining understanding of the truth
MEMORY VERSE: “Fear of the Lord is the foundation of wisdom. Knowledge of the Holy One results in good judgement." Proverbs 9:10 (NLT)
This Week’s Finish Line: Knowing God leads to a life of worship
This week we looked at several different verses and passages to learn what God has to say about a life of worship. we started with Isaiah 29:13 to learn what God wants from us in worship. God is not interested in our fake worship, or something we do just to make it look like we love God, but is much more interested in the state of our hearts. We also looked at Psalm 51:16-17 to see how David showed his heart of worship towards the Lord. Then, to show how we can model a lifetime of worship, we looked at Romans 12:1.
Family Questions:
- Read Isaiah 29:13, Psalm 51:16-17, and Romans 12:1 together. What sticks out to you from those verses?
- Was God pleased by the "worship" of the Israelites in Isaiah 29:13? Why or why not?
- How would it feel if someone told you that you were important to them one day a week, but then they completely ignored you the other days of the week? How does that relate to our relationship with God?
- Look at Psalm 51:16-17. What does it mean to offer God a "broken and contrite heart?"
Bring it Home Conversations & Activities:
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TEACHER: What is Worship?
At dinner this week, ask your kids how they can worship. Think and talk through what worship is in your personal lives. What are the things and moments that make you revere or adore God? Sometimes it could be music and singing to God, sometimes it could be nature and seeing beautiful things He has made, sometimes it could be playing games with people you love or sometimes it could be resting and being still.
FRIEND: Worshipping together
Decide with your kids on a time that you will worship God together in the way that they most connect. So maybe that is playing worship music and singing along in the car together. Maybe this is getting up early to watch the sun rise in a park or possibly playing sports or a game together. Remember it is important to make the connection that as we find joy and satisfaction in these things that what we are really doing is worshipping God.
COUNSELOR: Knowing God
During bedtime this week, discuss all the ways we can get to know God. By reading His word, memorizing scripture and talking to Him through prayer. Then talk about how much we appreciate and enjoy and love people the more we know them. The more you know and understand people the more comfortable and enjoyable it is to be around them. As we get to know God more we will begin to find more and more joy in Him and that will cause us to worship Him more as we do things we enjoy.
COACH: Identifying worship
As the week goes on continue to identify the things in your family’s life that is worshipful. Verbally praise God while doing things that may seem very normal to your kids so they connect that many things bring out adoration and reverence for God. Example: while eating good food at dinner praise God for things that taste buds and things that taste good, or while playing sports praise and thank God for bodies that work amazingly and that are healthy.
Prayer
Thank God for the amazing gift of being able to approach Him personally thru prayer. Ask Him to help you live a prayer-filled life not to get results but to grow closer in relationship to Him.
Looking Ahead
Next week is we will start a new character trait, looking at INTEGRITY. We will kick this trait off next week by studying the story of Gideon in Judges 7.