The Power of Music and Worship

Worship is an amazing thing. The power of music is ingrained into our hearts and minds.
Dan Perkins spoke about what has been on his part the past year or so about worship and its importance and the role it plays. In the Furnace now.. (which is a 24 hour prayer room) there used to be only 7 bands who would play during normal hours of the day, but now there are going to be 77 a week. Every single 3 hour block of time will be filled with a band, worshiping the Lord 24 hours a day.

This is the year of worship at DLA. They want us to learn to worship like never before and worship like never before! (i'm down with that)

So Dan Perkins started out with this.
- "If someone preaches the same thing we get sick of it, but if we sing the same songs we don't get sick of
    them." (the way he explained this was pretty funny. Is that people complain when they hear the same thing over and over again when they go on these tours which are DLA groups going around the country to local churches and explaining the importance of prayer and worship and just loving God, and the worship team would joke that they could preach the exact thing word for word what he was saying cause they have heard it so many times and Dan was like.. Well you guys play the SAME songs over and over and no one is complaining haha.)

Anyway.. but totally true.. When we worship, we don't get sick of the music because it is an encounter every time.. It is not us just singing the same song.. I get SICK of Taylor Swift and Justin Bieber. Because they are just songs. But if you want me to listen to Overcome by Desperation Band or Won't Relent by Jesus Culture.. I won't get sick of it.
Why? Because the words are specific. They are being lifted up to my creator. He is worthy of praise always.
And as we know.. those songs are pretty repetitive but I think the best worship songs are!
I'm coming your way, I'm coming your way, I'm coming your way, I'm coming your way, I'm coming your way. haha See??? But every single time we say it there is POWER behind it! Every single time we sing it we are getting closer to coming His way!
(Sorry about that tangent.. this is going to be a long blog.. but it was destined to be because worship is such a large part of us.)

-Song has a memory factor. It takes us back to a place emotionally. (for a while ANY time Everlasting would come on by Hillsong United I would cry haha) It didn't really matter the setting it was just powerful and overwhelming to remember how overwhelmed you were the first time you heard it and to long to be back to that place every time and try to find Gods love and to know it will always be there! eek!

-Music plays a Huge role in EVERYONES lives ... and its for a Reason.

-Worship is one of the best opportunities to encounter God it seems like. People just are moved during the time of worhip.

Dan said something was was interesting.. well He said a lot that was interesting but I urge you who are reading this to maybe look at your lives and see if this is true.
-Don't get stuck in one kind of worship. (Don't be too relient on having a journal with you during your quiet times.. or needing to have a guitar.. or needing to have a specific song. We must be versitile with our worship, because if we aren't that is when we begin to create Idols.. < Right Brent Batson)

-It is in worship that we are changed. (Worship has the power to change us. When I was saved it was during youth. With music and worship as the base. Lifting our praises up to God for everything He is and has done. I think this is very true. Many times when we have those life changing encounters or when we have felt the Lord's presence the most is in the state of worship. That is so great. That we meet God in worship)

This is so Cool!!! :)
-The enemy has not been able to conquer worship!! (Think about it, prayer is boring for people and the enemy tries to tell us that it isn't important.. or getting in the words is boring.. the enemy can distract you from doing that.. but WE love to WORSHIP OUR LORD.)

-THE ONE THING THAT CHRISTIANS HAVE NOT TRIED TO CONFORM TO THE WORLD IS THROUGH WORSHIP. (The music is different, just the style..?? basically we just haven't let the world affect how we worship God in a musical sense maybe not an action sense.)

John 4:23-24 "Yet a time is coming and has now come when the true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and in truth, for they are the kind of worshipers the Father seeks. God is spirit, and his worshipers must worship in spirit and in truth."
Alrighty now be begin to see how we need to worship. In order for us to properly worship the Lord we NEED to find out who He is. We need to be authentic worshipers. Worshiping the Lord to exalt the glory of our King. If we aren't properly worshiping the Lord then that might as well be idolatry.

Philippians 2:9 "There for God exalted him to the highest place and gave him the name that is above every name, that at the name of Jesus every kknee shold bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father."

Jesus came for us to be able to worship again and be in the presence of the Lord. He redeemed us that way he would recieve all the glory of God. God was made to be worshiped and we were made to worship.
Every knee will bow and every tongue confess < We get to do this now WILLINGLY. These are the blessed. Those who worship willingly.

Okay now it gets a little bit convicting!
A.W. Towzer said this, "what comes to our mind when we think of God is the most important thing about us."
aha! now we think Well I know God is real and Jesus died for us and all that main stuff but we MUST be cautious that we are worshiping God for who He is and not for who we THINK He is.
That becomes Idolatry.
-We must study who He is, get in the word and find out for ourselves. Not relying on what others say He is.

-We were made to worship. (Just like Brent Batson said a while ago.. fish were made to swim and people were made to worship.. We ARE worshiping something. Even while you are sitting there doing nothing you are worshiping something. You are either worshiping God or worshiping the devil. Simple as that.
If you aren't gaining ground you are losing ground because the enemy is fighting that hard and our culture pulls us away from the Lord.)

And here is the craziest crazy of all. haha

** Satan wants to be worshiped, Just as God does, Satan uses music as well.
Alright people. The music we listen to that is not GLORIFYING THE LORD is GLORIFYING SATAN.
(Dan said that haha he doesn't think we should all go and burn all of our secular music in a giant bonfire, but just to be weary of the things we listen to.)
Sorry.. as much as little wayne gets me pumped sometimes I must get him out of my life.. (not like i have been listening to him recently at DLA hahaha but future reference.)
Same with.. who knows what else. Idk all of us have that artist.
Even Justin Bieber ladies! We need to be aware of how excited we get when his music comes on and how much we jump around and "worship" him because if we don't get that excited about the Lord then what does that say about us :(
I am guilty of this as well.. I mean we like to think that Justin Bieber and T. Swift are fine to listen to but it is more our heart motive.. how attached and excited do we get when we listen to them.

Here is a little theory haha from Dan Perkins and he was saying that it might not be correct at all but just ideas possibly.

So.. some back ground on Lucifer.
1. There were three main angles the bible talked about.. Michael, who would answer prayers, Gabriel, who would bring forth the word of God and Lucifer. Lucifer was created with tamborines and like flutes or something. He was in charge of Worship in the kingdom of God.
2. Lucifer had beauty and perfection(well close to perfection) He was like.. well why am I not being worshiped I am beautiful and awesome also. Then he was cast down from heaven and took 1/3 of the angels with him.

Okay.. so here is some crazy scripture that describes Satan and his wants and desires for people.

Isaiah 14:12-14 "How you have fallen from heaven, O morning star, son of the dawn! You have been cast down to the earth, you who once laid low the nations! You said in your heart, 'I will ascend to heaven; I will raise my throne above the stars of God; I will sit enthroned on the mount of assembly, on the utmost heights of the sacred mountain. I will ascend above the tops of the clouds; I will make myself like the Most High.' But you are brought down to the grave, to the depths of the pit."

(Again, satan wants to be worshiped like the Most High.. so he will make the people of this earth worship him.) Bad.

Ezekiel 28:12 read to .. 19 it is too long for me to type and you all will want to hurt me for writing so long.
Anyway but it talks about how satan was in Eden and everything worshiped him and then you got too full of yourself and I had to throw you down to earth. And God reduced him to ashes.

But this is the thing.. Dan's possible theory thing.. which isn't set in stone.. haha just ideas.
Lucifer was never replaced. There was never another Head cherub worshiper in Heaven.. (or at least Dan couldn't really find evidence in the bible.)
So this is what might have happend..
Lucifer was like oh yeah?? Well who will replace me?! Who can lead worship.. I am beautiful and perfect and no one can replace me. And God was like.. you know what!!
I am going to take DUST. BREATHE ON IT. MAKE IT COME ALIVE.. and they WILL WORSHIP ME FOREVER AND BETTER THAN YOU EVER DID!
Newsflash.. that dust is US! Children of God! servants to our king!!!
And if we don't worship God then EVEN THE ROCKS WILL CRY OUT AND HE WILL BE WORSHIPED.
bammmm.
think about how much the enemy is ticked off by that! Us. little dumb humans.. who were made from dust.. hah have taken over the duty to worship our LORD and savior forever and ever.

Here are some versus to help clarify our role of worship!
Psalm 47:6 "sing praises to God, sing praises; sing praises to our King, sing praises."
Psalm 95:1 "Come, let us sing for joy to the Lord; Let us shout aloud to the Rock of our salvation. Let us come before him with thanksgiving and extol him with music and song."
Colossians 3:16 "Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly as you teach and admonish one another with all wisdom, and you sing psalms, hymns, and spritual songs with gratitude in your hearts to God."
Revelation 15:3-4 "and sang the song of Moses the servant of God and the song of the Lamb: 'Great and marvelous are your deeds, Lord God Almighty. Just and true are your ways, King of the ages. Who will not fear you, O Lord, and bring glory to your name? For you alone are holy. All nations will come and worship before you, for your righteous acts have been revealed.'"

Wow.. Moses!! A human!! wrote a song that they are singing in heaven! haha It makes you want to write songs right? maybe we will be lucky enough to be singing songs in heaven that woship leaders wrote!? who knows! haha

Point is! We were CREATED to worship. (Just like Brent has said as well.)
Jesus is worthy of my song even if that is my embarrassment!
We should dance and sing and jump and lose all inhibitions for him! For he is worthy!
It was hilarious.. yesterday Dan was like it doesn't matter if you can sing or not or keep rhythm!! Just freaking hit something!! hahaha
Bang on the tables.. clap really really slow!!
MAKE SOME NOISE!!! wooooo!!!
tell the enemy this every time you wake up .. everytime you are singing songs of praise.
"I am glorifying God today and there is nothing you can do about it."
There is nothing the enemy hates more.

So grab a trash can, sing your lungs out even if it sounds awful cause we are lifting up the praise of the Lord Almighty who was and is and is to come!!!

It is our job to worship the Lord. Let us do it in everything we do to the best of our abilities!
Worship like you have never worshiped beforee!! for the Glory of our KING!
Thats all..
-Mali