dry up, blow up, or grow up

“But the time is coming and is already here when true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and in truth. The Father is looking for anyone who will worship him that way. For God is Spirit, so those who worship him must worship in spirit and in truth.” John 4:23-24

Spirit: the nonphysical part of a person that is the seat of emotions and character, the soul, the part of a person regarded as a person's true self, capable of surviving physical death or separation

Worship: the feeling or expression of reverence and adoration

My Abba,

I want to be a true worshiper. Please show me how to more fully express my reverence and adoration for you today.

To me, worshiping in spirit and truth seems wild and grounded. Ethereal and tethered to truth. Mysterious and factual. Engaging emotions and mind. Supernatural but based in reality. Meditating on what is glorious but real. The healthy marriage of heart and mind. The real me connecting with the real you.

I know I can worship you (express my reverence and adoration for you) through serving, loving others, yielding to your will, writing, teaching, and countless other ways. Everything can become an act of worship when I am empowered by your Spirit, seeking to glorify you. But it seems when I worship you through music, the non-physical part of me is more fully engaged.

My emotions, my soul, my true self, the eternal me is drawn into your presence. You leave me breathless, joyfully overwhelmed. More permeable to your truth. Less earthbound. So, for me, music that draws my heart to you is a crucial part of my worship.

I remember what a friend once said, "If you only worship in truth, you're going to dry up. If you only worship in spirit, you're going to blow up. But if you worship in spirit and truth, you're going to grow up."

I want to grow up. Please deepen my experience of your presence today. I want to worship you in spirit and truth.

I love you,

Mollie

My child,

You have seen many forms of worship. Some of my children worship the Father, Son and Holy Scriptures. I don't want you to worship truth. I want my truth to strengthen your desire to worship me.

In other settings, you have seen how worshiping in spirit alone, without an anchor set steadfastly in the truth, allows an undercurrent of fallacy to carry people out to sea.

If you don’t embrace the truth about a person and just "love" the façade of another, you do not truly love that person. This is akin to "loving" a fictitious character in a book or film. Infatuation with an engaging fantasy is not true love and cannot be a basis for authentic worship.

A love relationship needs a healthy dose of reality. To be lover and beloved is to truly know and be known. The more you know me, the more your love for me will grow. Our bond will not flourish without emotions. But the emotions have to be based on what is real.

I don't want you to admire me from a distance. When we engage at a heart level, you don't just respect me from across the room. I designed you for a relationship with me that runs deeper than an intellectual assent to my deity, character and power.

I want intimate, genuine connection with you. Don't try to dress yourself up for me. I am not interested in the masquerade. I love the way I made you. I want to connect with the beloved one I created, not some pretense fueled by the person you think you should be.

Ask the Holy Spirit to engage your spirit and mind in true adoration. In the Trinity, we endlessly celebrate each other. We want to draw you into that celebration.

I love you,

Abba

photo: sudthangtum