School of Worship Month 1

As you all know, I have been at YWAM Denver since the beginning of this month as a student in the School of Worship. It is a 3 month training program for worshipers to gain a deeper understanding of who God is and who we are as worshipers.

The school includes practical musical applications like band rehearsals, songwriting, and recording opportunities, but its primary focus is on what the life of a worshiper truly looks like. Here are a few examples of some concepts I am learning about:

While weekly corporate worship is important for us as a body, worship involves so much more than attending a church gathering. It involves music and art, usually, but it also involves all that we are. I know it's been said a thousand times before, but we literally do have the opportunity to worship God every minute of every day, no matter what we are doing. Working, driving a car, exercising - even the seemingly mundane glorifies God.

We can give Him glory through all of these things through thanksgiving. Choosing gratefulness for the blessings God gives us shifts our perspective from what is wrong to what is right. In a world focused on material gain, this is a constant struggle for modern Christians, but as I have chosen to practice thanksgiving in my life, I have found so much more peace and joy despite my circumstances.

Another cool concept I have learned is that God is faithful to His Name. Often, we focus on God's faithfulness as we worship Him, and we are comforted in times of strife because of His faithfulness. But, ultimately, God is not faithful to us because of who we are; He is faithful to His own Name, which He gave to us when we accepted Christ into our lives.

The way the teacher explained this concept is how a wife takes on her husband's name when they get married. In a similar fashion, Christians take on a new name when we give our lives over to Jesus. (Which, incidentally, was the inspiration for a song I wrote for this school. I hope to be able to share it with you all soon!)

This changes our attitudes and approaches to everything! If God promises us something, yes, we can trust in His faithfulness to fulfill that promise, but it is not by our doing. It has nothing to do with what great servants we are, but everything to do with how good He is.

Let's be honest, this concept is painfully humbling. While God does in fact have great plans for every one of His children, the temptation is to forget that He chooses us for His work and purposes. Even for those called to big assignments, ultimately these assignments must be given back to God for His glory. Being the vessel for God's work is a great honor, but it is paramount to remind ourselves that in the beginning, He called us.

These are just a few of the concepts we have been learning in School of Worship, and I hope that it helped illuminate something new for you as well. I am excited to see what more God wants to reveal in the next couple of months and will keep you posted!