childlike worship

"Ascribe to the Lord the glory due His name;

bring an offering and come before Him!

Worship the Lord in the splendor of holiness,

Oh give thanks to the Lord, for He is good,

His love endures forever."

1 Chronicles 16: 29, 34

The day started quickly. The feeling of laziness hung over me like a cloud. I battled the desire to turn on the TV, throw a box of cereal at my kids and tell them to wake me if someone was bleeding or choking. In spite of my humanity, I chose my daily pair of sweat pants, threw my hair in a ponytail and shuffled into the kitchen. It was somewhere between the bathroom and the kitchen that the Holy Spirit spoke to my heart, "Tiffany, take time to worship, for it is in worship your soul will be refreshed." 

Over a gourmet breakfast of Kix and Rice Krispies, the kids and I talked about worship and adoration. We read about it and spent time singing our favorite worship songs together. Tears filled my eyes as my little boy waited patiently for his turn to choose the song and said proudly, "I want to sing Jesus Loves Me because I know it's true!" I wept through the simple childlike song as I listened to the young voices of my children raising their offering of worship to a Holy God. 

As the day unfolded, we talked about worship in our daily tasks. I explained how I adore Daddy and therefore I do little things to bless his heart. Loving God is the same way. "You mean, I can color a picture or ride my bike to adore God?" asked my excited five year old. "Absolutely!" So, that is exactly what we did. We pulled out the crayons and worshiped through colored wax on white paper. 

That evening, after supper, we turned all the lights off with the exception of the glittering Christmas tree lights. J lit a candle, shared his favorite Christmas song and we all sang it together as a family. Then, he lit my candle and I did the same. We went around the table, lighting the candles and worshipping Him in gladness. We then (the kids and I) shared about the pictures we colored and how we worshipped God in other ways that day. 

As I sit and type by the glow of the Christmas tree, my children sleeping, my dog curled up at my feet, tears again fill my eyes. God Himself, taking on the agony of earth to reconcile a lost and broken world to a Holy and Perfect God, grips my heart to tears. The sound of a child's sweet voice singing "Jesus loves me, this I know, for the Bible tells me so. Little ones to Him belong, they are weak, but HE is strong! Yes, Jesus loves me, YES, Jesus loves me, YES Jesus loves me--the Bible tells me so!" What a better time to celebrate the love of our Savior than Christmas. I don't know about you, but leaving the glory of heaven for the dust of earth, trading the fellowship of angels for the wishy washy back stabbing  fellowship of mankind all because He loved us enough to bridge the gap between holiness and humanity spells love like nothing else. 

Worship Him. Thank Him. Adore Him. Weep before Him. Love Him. Let His love penetrate your heart completely. Celebrate Christmas for what it really is. 

Blessings to you and Merry Christmas!

<><tce