by Esther Thomas
I had this experience a couple of weeks ago… I had a terrible sleep for some reason and had to get up at 5am the next day for a full day in clinic seeing patients (I am definitely not a morning person!). When my alarm went off, I did not want to get up, I thought of every excuse possible as to how I could get out of the day and just go back to bed. I was cranky and annoyed, and physically felt bleh. I didn’t want to be in this headspace because the reality is that I love being in clinic and seeing my patients. So, I decided to put my headphones in and listen to some worship music while I got ready. I couldn’t sing along as my hubby was sleeping, but I just listened and reflected on the words. About an hour passed and I walked down and jumped on my train and kept listening to worship while I read a devotional. All of a sudden, I felt a shift. My mindset went from being negative and whingy, to experiencing an overwhelming sense of gratitude. I started noticing what a beautiful day it was and felt a sense of joy in my spirit. I then physically felt better, I had more “pep in my step” and didn’t just want to go back to bed. I ended up having a great day. The spiritual aspect of focusing my mind on God as I listened to worship music, changed my physical reality.
There’s a passage in 2 Chronicles 20:20-24 “20 Early the next morning the army of Judah went out into the wilderness of Tekoa. On the way Jehoshaphat stopped and said, “Listen to me, all you people of Judah and Jerusalem! Believe in the Lord your God, and you will be able to stand firm. Believe in his prophets, and you will succeed. 21 After consulting the people, the king appointed singers to walk ahead of the army, singing to the Lord and praising him for his holy splendour. This is what they sang: “Give thanks to the Lord; his faithful love endures forever!”22 At the very moment they began to sing and give praise, the Lord caused the armies of Ammon, Moab, and Mount Seir to start fighting among themselves. 23 The armies of Moab and Ammon turned against their allies from Mount Seir and killed every one of them. After they had destroyed the army of Seir, they began attacking each other. 24 So when the army of Judah arrived at the lookout point in the wilderness, all they saw were dead bodies lying on the ground as far as they could see. Not a single one of the enemy had escaped.”
They then went on to call this place “the valley of blessing”.
This may seem like a bit of a brutal story in today’s society, but it’s a perfect example of the power of worship. As the people worshipped the Lord and gave thanks to Him, God went before them and caused a great victory to happen. Their spiritual posture towards God, affected their physical reality.
Sometimes it’s easy to forget the power of worship. We can easily go through the motions of singing a song or praying a prayer, as it’s “what we do” as Christians, or in church… But we can often forget that we are singing and praying to the creator of the universe, the Great I Am, the miracle working God, the one who invites us daily into His presence, the one who is interceding for us, and who is able to do exceedingly abundantly more than we could ask or imagine. As we bring praise to God through song or prayer, He goes before us, he fight’s our battles, he changes our hearts, minds, and bodies, and he brings blessing.
In the words of Billy Graham: “When we worship, the invisible God is at work doing invisible and powerful things. We get realigned, refreshed and refueled; we find unspeakable joy and indescribable peace. We discover the breakthrough strength of God, which enables us to walk in the truth, live in His presence and see Him fight our battles for us. It is how we can put the beauty of the Gospel on display, receive His many blessings and at the same time be a blessing to the world.”
I encourage you, why not start today or tomorrow off with some worship and see how you feel? Invite God into your day and watch what He can do.
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