Word for the day by Christian Education Forum

-

 WORSHIP - which gives perfection to personhood

Romans 8:31-39
V35“Who shall separate us from the love of Christ?”

Worship or Aradhana, per Google, is defined as the feeling or expression of reverence and adoration for God. To that, I would also add worship can be an action, a reaction, and even sometimes no action.
Let’s look at what the Word of God tells us in Romans chapter 8 verses 31 to 39. This portion is well known by all. There are multiple declarations by St. Paul reminding us of the firm foundation that we stand on.
            - If God is for us, who can be against us?
          - God’s unchanging love for His people led to the greatest act of love
            - We are justified by God
            -  Jesus intercedes for us
             - Who shall separate us from the love of Christ?
We are more than conquerors

I always wondered to myself, with all the promises and the eternal love that I am continually showered with, how may I, a tiny speck on God’s marvelous creation, worship my Creator. We see in Luke 19:40, “I tell you that if these should keep silent, the stones would immediately cry out,” 1st Chronicles 16:33 “ Then the trees of the forest will sing for joy before the LORD …” and so many more ways creation worships its Creator. How may I worship my Lord, with my life?
Worship in Prayer (Prarthanayil Aradhana)
As we all know, Prayer is the highest form of worship. The act of praying allows us to walk with Him, hear Him, talk to Him, be with Him, taste Him in every walk of our lives. As a mom, there’s nothing more that gives me happiness when my children choose to spend time with me, choose to share their experiences, fears, and joys with me. This is the same in any relationship. What better way for us to worship our Lord than to be in prayer and communion with Him. 

Worship with your Wisdom (Budhi Ulla Aradhana) 
We are told in the story of the 10 virgins, that, all ten virgins started with the same facts and information but only five were wise enough to be prepared. This implies more towards the inward preparation of one’s heart. Are we equipped to handle any curveball that life throws at us? Are we worshipping our Lord using His given wisdom and making the right choices?

Worship in Firm Faith (Urrapulla Aradhana)
We see in Hebrews 11:21; that by Faith Father Jacob, when he was dying, blessed each of Joseph’s sons, and worshiped as he leaned on the top of his staff.” Does our faith have a foundation so firm that it does the talking and the walking? 

Worship through Self Reformation (Rupanthrathinte Aradhana) 
We all believe to be under the conviction of the Holy Spirit but are we truly converted. Do we fall in the category of an inward church, which is always self-reflective, constantly seeking to know the Lord and submitting to changes? Our Church – The Mar Thoma Church is known to be a church of Reformation. Are we allowing ourselves to be converted, changed, broken, and reformed as willed by our Lord? 
Worshipping will then reveal the worshipper as a New Being in Christ, who is brought to perfection in character. We only need to offer ourselves in worship and our Lord will refine us to what He intended us to be.
Can we join St. Paul and declare; “For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord.” 
Let’s submit ourselves and worship our Lord in Prayer, with Wisdom, in Firm Faith, and through Self Reformation.
. 

Prayer

Loving Father. We praise you; We adore You; We Glorify You. Father provide us the wisdom, courage, and discernment; so that our every action may exalt Your Wondrous Ways, our every reaction may Glorify Your Holy Name, and even in our silences and stillness we testify Your Greatness. Amen


Thought for the Day

 I leave you all with a quote by Beth Moore, “This is our time on the history line of God. This is it. What will we do with the one deep exhale of God on this earth? For we are but a vapor and we have to make it count. We’re on. Direct us, Lord, and get us on our feet.”

Mrs. Reena Joseph-Adarsh (Nisha)
Mar Thoma Congregation, Minneapolis, MN

Popular posts from this blog

Word for the day by Christian Education Forum

-
  Constant, patient and welcoming love of God   St. Luke 15: 11-32  V.21: And the son said to him, ‘Father, I have sinned against heaven and in your sight, and am no longer worthy to be called your son.’ The parable of the ‘Prodigal son’ is one of the most frequently quoted parables that Jesus told His disciples. The parable contains the rich mine of human virtues and emotions. This parable is lived and re-lived in progressing civilizations from time immemorial and continuing. It brings out in vivid detail the pathetic depth of human sinfulness and the glorious heights of God’s forgiveness.      As a story of human nature, fathers are generally merciful to their children in any circumstance. They are very protective and are eager to provide for and secure the lives of their offspring. Jesus is telling this parable to underscore the superlative love of God to His children. The nature of such love is reiterated by Jesus in Matthew 7:11. Humankind who are evil by nature, give good gifts t
Read more

Word for the day by Christian Education Forum

-
PRIESTHOOD: THE ANOINTED MINISTRY Exodus 40:12-16 Bring Aaron and his sons to the entrance to the Tent of Meeting... wash them with water. Then dress Aaron in the sacred garments, anoint him and consecrate him so he may serve me as priest (Exodus 40: 12-13). Priesthood among the people of God was a divine command and initiation. God wanted some people to be separated for the special ministry among his people. God appointed Aaron and his descendants to take up this kind of ministry among the people of God. Priests are always separated and appointed as channels that connect God with his people. All throughout the history of Israel, priests played an important role in connecting people with God and to lead and guide them in the statutes of God. But there are incidents in the Bible where the priests failed in their duties and that led the people to go away from God. So the priests have a special and significant ministry to perform in this world among his people. Two important things
Read more

Word for the day by Christian Education Forum

-
Revelation for Liberation Acts 27:18-26 Sherine Thomas Long Island MTC, NY 20  When neither sun nor stars appeared for many days, and no small tempest raged, all hope of our being saved was at last abandoned. “After winter comes the summer.  After night comes the dawn.  And after every storm, there comes clear open skies” so said a Scottish clergyman from the 1600s. It’s been said, that hope can sometimes be the most dangerous weapon.  However, it’s sometimes the hardest weapon to carry when you’re living with the loss of a loved one, something that almost feels like a terrible nightmare that’ll never go away.  It’s a weapon difficult to carry when day in and day out no one seems to hear or see those tears that are shed or silent cries that are made during a heartfelt prayer. It’s a weapon difficult to carry as you see your loved one lying on that hospital bed.  It’s a weapon difficult to carry as you search and seek out answers to tell a child as to why they’ve been a
Read more