The Heart of Worship
“The heart of religion is worship” — Fr. Mike Schmitz
At times, worship can seem like an unimportant part of the faith. Either, it appears to be too reminiscent of the ancient worship of the Greek or Roman gods or it feels too impractical or ineffective. We may tell ourselves that our worship of God is pointless because He does not necessarily need it to exist. Instead, we believe that we must pray more or try harder to show our faithfulness to Him. Or, we may become so caught up in the philosophies of the faith that we forget that at the heart of Christianity is the fact that “God made [us] to know Him, to love Him, and to serve Him in this world, and to be happy with Him forever in the next” (Baltimore Catechism I.6).
Additionally, throughout life — in our past failures, present sufferings, or future worries — we may lose this heart of worship as we become too overwhelmed by our own weaknesses. Likewise, when we are confronted with an opportunity to love our neighbor, we may shrink from the chance to worship God and instead focus on our own comfort. Nonetheless, we ought to remember that, no matter where we find ourselves, at the center of our lives should be a heart of worship.
The word “worship” essentially describes the condition (“-ship”) of being worthy (“wor-”). And, “worthy” indicates that something is “significant, valuable, appreciated, or deserving.” It can also connote a sense of value or a price paid. All of these terms can be attributed to God. As our Creator, He should be the most significant, valuable, and appreciated aspect of our lives. He is deserving of our praise and thanksgiving for all that He has done for us. It is primarily through the price that He, through His Son Jesus Christ, paid for us that His value is manifested. For, apart from Him, we can do nothing (John 15:5). Therefore, in every situation, we ought to remember to worship God, not only for what He has done for us, but also for who He is
No matter what we have done, God is worthy of worship. The Bible is full of stories of the brokenness of humanity. Both the Old and the New Testament give numerous examples of God’s creation turning from worshiping Him to adoring themselves. Whether it be Adam and Eve’s eating the forbidden fruit, the Israelites worshipping the golden calf, or countless prophets and disciples running away from God’s calling, all reveal the negative consequences of turning toward ourselves instead of directing our lives toward God.
Thankfully, in the Gospels and in the lives of the saints, there are plenty of other witnesses to the positive effects that worshiping God in every circumstance can have. In our own lives, we may come to doubt God’s goodness or we may be overcome by our failures. However, the realities of the Bible and the Church’s history can give us reassurance that, no matter what we have done — if we are repentant — God can forgive us and provide us with His grace to continually worship Him better.
Too, in the midst of whatever is happening in our lives, God is worthy of worship. This may be easier when things are going well and we are comfortable. However, when we are surrounded by many blessings, even then we can get caught up in enjoying them too much, instead of giving thanks and praise to the One from whom all blessings flow. Even more, when we pass through dark valleys in life it can be extremely hard to find the strength and motivation to worship God. We may rather fall into believing that God is punishing, testing, or abandoning us. Although this may be true in some cases (though it is always for a greater purpose of drawing us closer to Him), many times our sufferings are the result of our temporal, human frailties and our unbridled free wills. In any case — be it in blessing or in suffering, or due to our own actions or an outside force — God has not changed; He is still worthy of our thanks and praise.
In some sense, worshiping God is not only the proper thing to do, but it can also embolden our autonomy in allowing us to redirect our attention toward something greater than us and to draw us out of our sufferings (as noted in “Taking Control of Your Suffering: Finding Meaning in Versus Giving Meaning to Your Crosses” and “In Atonement for Our Sins and Those of the Whole World: Offering Suffering as Reparation for the Misuse of Free Will”). Through worshiping God in our moments of difficulty, we can rather take on the hope that all things work for the good of those who love God (Romans 8:28; as highlighted in “Omnia Cooperantur in Bonum: On Faith, Hope, and Trust”).
We can also worship God through loving our neighbor. However, when we turn away from serving the less fortunate or when we turn from loving our enemies, we instead worship ourselves. In these cases, we focus on our own comfort and self-image more than that of our neighbor, who too was created in God’s image and likeness. Nonetheless, it is actually in these scenarios where we can choose to worship God. Jesus Christ clearly came to be with the poor, the weak, the infirm, etc. Therefore, by caring for those with whom Jesus associated, we can not only help to bring about their own wellbeing, but we can also worship the image of God inside of each person (as described in “Our Brother’s Keeper”). Similarly, instead of being rash, prideful, or callous toward our enemies — be they in our families, workplace, churches, or social circles — if we worship the image of God inside of them and choose to be charitable toward them despite their failings, we can in turn give thanks and praise to God. Whatever the case, when we decide to shift from focusing on ourselves toward loving others — through our thoughts, words, and deeds — we are choosing to worship God.
At times in our lives, we can forget the importance of worshiping our Creator. Possibly due to what we have done in the past, what is currently happening to us, or what we fear the future will hold, we focus more on ourselves instead of directing our attention toward God. Additionally, in our times of comfort and abundance, we can become distracted by the things of the world. Nonetheless, at the heart of our lives should always be the worship of God. No matter where we find ourselves, God is worthy of our thanks and praise. He desires to be with us and for us to trust Him in our failures, sufferings, and anxiety. He deserves our best in all that He asks of us, wherever He is calling us in our given situations. Too, worshiping God is actually good for us because it draws us out of ourselves and toward our Creator who intimately knows and infinitely loves us. So, with the psalmist, let us try more often to say, “I will bless the LORD at all times; his praise shall be always in my mouth” (Psalm 34:2).
