Worships God Regularly And Joyfully

Worships God Regularly And Joyfully

A HERO’S TALE

King Hezekiah had huge challenges ahead of him.

When he took the throne of Judah, the land was in spiritual turmoil and filled with idolatry. So he went on a mission to rid the entire country of pagan worship.

But there was another major problem: even the people who weren’t idolaters had forgotten how to worship the one true God properly. So Hezekiah decided to help them, too.

With diligence and passion, Hezekiah cleansed God’s temple in Jerusalem; appointed priests (those who made sacrifices for the sins of the people) and Levites (those who took care of the temple) to perform their God-given duties; and restored the sacrificial system, sacred festivals, and tithing (giving a tenth of one’s income to God). It was all part of worshiping God.

Then Hezekiah invited all his subjects (and even the few remaining citizens of the fallen northern kingdom that Assyria had not taken captive) to a great Passover celebration in Jerusalem. For two weeks, the people prayed, sang praise songs, sacrificed thousands of animals, and ate delicious food —all to remember God’s love and kindness toward them. It was a rockin’ party!

DECODING THE MESSAGE

Hezekiah understood the importance of worshiping God. Worship is simply giving God the honor and praise he deserves. Because of who God is (holy, all-powerful, just, loving, etc.) and what he has done for us (providing salvation from sins through Jesus), he is worthy of all our worship.

So how do we worship God? We should sing and pray to him and read his Word. We should worship together regularly with other believers at church (see Hebrews 10:24-25). Hopefully, you and your family faithfully attend a church that teaches (1) that faith in Jesus is the only way to heaven, and (2) that the Bible is inspired by God and without error.

As you do these things, keep in mind that we don’t impress God or earn bonus points with him when we worship. God doesn’t need to feel better about himself or have others tell him how great he is, because he’s already perfect!

God doesn’t need our worship. But he wants our worship because he is worthy of it and because it shows our hearts are submitted to him.

So worship God regularly and joyfully, just like Hezekiah did. God deserves it all!

BATTLE PLAN

Ask your parents about starting a daily family worship time at home. It could be reading God’s Word together at the breakfast table, praying and singing praise songs before bedtime, or memorizing Scripture together. Whatever you do, make sure the focus is to glorify God!