Men Who Worship

Recently my wife issued a challenge via social media for people to record themselves worshipping the Lord in everyday moments. The inspiration for this came from a moment she had with the Lord while washing dishes. She felt like the Lord challenged her to lead others into worship when she was away from the platform. So, she did just that. She recorded herself singing and worshipping the Lord in the middle of washing the dishes. She then posted it online and challenged others to do the same. As those challenges responded, they were to challenge others.

The response was almost immediate. People started recording themselves, worshipping God in the middle of their every day lives. There was a video posted of a nurse, singing and worshipping God while on the job changing hospital beds. Another person posted a video of herself singing while having her make-up done. Another person, who had a child in the hospital, went into the bathroom, started singing over her son and situation. One woman even recorded herself as she walked down the aisles of a Target store and worshipped.

With each video, more people were challenged and more people responded. But as I watched each video, I noticed something. The vast majority of the people posting and responding to the challenge were women. That’s not to say that no men responded. I am aware of only three men who responded, me being one of them. If I am being completely honest, this bothered me. Why is it that women are so ready to respond to a challenge like this, but men are hesitant? It wasn’t even like men weren’t challenged. I began to ask the Lord why this was so.

Now, I want to focus the rest of this blog speaking directly to men. I feel it is time for the men of the body to take a more proactive role when it comes to worship. Hear my heart. We, as men, need to move past our own comfort zone and move from men who attend worship and become men who worship.

The Lord reminded me that He calls us a royal priesthood (1 Peter 2:9). This designation is for all His children. However, I want to look at what this means specifically for men. The responsibility of a priest in the Bible was to help usher people into the presence of God. As a priest, it is our responsibility to bring the people around us into the presence of God. I feel like far too often men are simply satisfied with leading the people around us, even our families, into a church building. Being a priest is so much more then leading people into a building, but it is leading people, our families, into the very presence of God.

The Psalms tell us that we enter into His courts with praise (Psalm 100:4). If the responsibility of a priest is to bring people into the presence of God, then worship is the first way in which we do this. If you are a priest, then you are a worship leader. Men, we need to begin to lead those around us into His presence through worship.

I love being on our worship team. I love being able to help lead people into the presence of God through worship. Often times, as I stand on stage as a part of our team, I look at those who are standing down in the front, and the majority are women. I love their hearts for worship. I love that they are fearless when it comes to expressing their hearts before the Lord. But often times, my heart aches to see men stand down in the front in worship. I long to see men dance, and wave flags in worship. I believe that God is looking for men who worship.

It can come quite naturally for women to step out in worship. There is a nurturing sensitivity that is innate in women. This helps in their ability to connect to God in worship. For men, it can be difficult to express emotion or sensitivity. King David was a mighty warrior that killed Goliath. He was a man who killed lions and bears. But at his core, he was a man who worshipped. He possessed a sensitivity that enabled him to enter into worship. I don't think that anyone would say that David was any less of a man because he worshipped. What would it look like in your family, if you led them in worship? What would the church look like if it were filled with men who worshipped?

There was one man who responded to the worship challenge. He was actually the first man to respond to the challenge. He’s a member of our church. In his past he was part of the US Navy Special Forces. He is a man’s man. He’s not a worship leader, in the sense that he leads from a platform. He recorded himself, from his office at work, singing praises and worship to the Lord. It was a beautiful moment. It challenged me to do the same. As I mentioned, I am a part of our worship team, but I can easily hide behind my guitar. The thought of singing in front of people still scares me. The thought of recording it for others to see scares me more. But seeing him, in his office, worshipping God, moved me to do the same. I had just taken my car for an oil change, when I decided to hit the record button while in my car. This man was able to lead me into worship simply by worshipping God for himself.

I believe that when men get a full understanding that being worshippers is a part of our identity as priests, we will begin to move the people around us, and our families, into the presence of God.