The Voice Of Worship
by Kevin Allen
April 19, 2026 · Centerpointe Apostolic Church (Murfreesboro, TN)
Kind: sermon
Scripture: Psalms 73, Psalms 73:1-13, Psalms 73:16-17, Psalms 73:23-24, Psalms 73:18, Psalms 16:8, 2 Corinthians 10:5, Proverbs 19:2, Deuteronomy 6:4-5, Matthew 22:37

Source: https://acts238.life/repository/sermons/kevin-allen--the-voice-of-worship
Published by Acts 2:38 Life from the sermon transcript on that page.
Free to copy and share with attribution.

------------------------------------------------------------
I'm going to talk about worship today. But in order to do that, I feel like it's important that I ask a few questions. And as you've heard me do this in times past, I always think the church is a great place to be honest. If we're ever going to be honest, why not be honest here and be in front of God. So, I want to I want to give you a few different categories. And if there's an area in which you maybe wrestled with this week that maybe your attitude wasn't the best here together amongst like precious faith people, let's just be honest by raising our hands. If any of this touches you, I'll have my hand up pretty much in every category as well. So you're not going to be alone in this. Just listen to a few of these. Anybody done a little extra whining this week? Yeah. Yeah. There you go. Anybody find yourself being a little bit cynical? Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. What about a little self-absorbed? Yeah. Ain't it easy how we can be that way? What about anybody in here willing to admit maybe maybe you mishandled your anger a little bit? Yeah. Yeah. That's a tough one. Anybody ever felt like maybe this week you were just a little bit judgmental? >> Yeah, that was always tough. Yeah. Or maybe maybe you felt just a little bit superior. Yeah. Yeah. And that usually happens when I'm driving through town in traffic like what color light do you need it to be to move?

All right. Maybe maybe you raised your hand, but how many of you are willing to admit that somebody beside you didn't raise their hand and they should have? It's good for the soul, right? I want I want to start with the truth. Okay, here's the truth. You ready for If you're a notetaker, here's a here's a here's a truth right off the bat that's important for you to write down. If you're a notetaker, get your phone out, whatever you're doing. Here's the truth. You ready? Everybody say everybody. >> Everybody >> needs God. >> Well, I could say amen right now. We had a good message. Everybody needs God. We do. We Have you noticed that we're really pitiful? If you're comfortable right now, just look at your neighbor and say, "You know what? You're pitiful." >> Yeah, we are. We're pitiful. We are pitiful, selfish little creatures. Sometimes we have bad attitudes. Sometimes we get in a whining mood. We become self-absorbed. Sometimes we don't always handle anger or judgment the right way. Sometimes we can feel like we know best and everybody else doesn't. We can do that. We can be very selffocused. That's why everybody needs God. You know why everybody needs God? Is we need something to worship that's bigger than us. >> We need something to focus our attention to that's bigger than we are. We got to get oursel off get our focus off oursel under something that is bigger than where we are.

I want to look at Psalm 73 today. And I'm going to spend most of the time there in Psalm 73. And we're going to read about somebody who had a bad attitude. Yeah. If you ever find yourself having a bad attitude day, I encourage you to go to Psalm 73. We're going to read the Psalms together and I want you to just listen closely as I read a few of these verses and just see if you can sense and feel what's going through the psalmist mind here. It says this verse number one, "Truly God is good to Israel. Even to such as are a clean heart, but as for me," boy, did you see that right there? What happened? It went to me. We went to focusing on me. But as for me, my feet were almost gone. My steps were well n slipped. For I was envious at the foolish when I saw the prosperity of the wicked. He looked around and said, there are bad people that has everything going for them. Life is going really, really well. Verse number four, for there are no bands in their death, but their strength is firm. Anybody looked around in your life and ever thought to yourself, "Why does it seem like everything works out for everybody else but me?" >> Anybody? >> Especially when you're like, "God, I've been trying to be obedient and kind and good. I've been obeying the Ten Commandments. I've been going to church on a regular basis, Lord.

I even gave a little money in the offering. I showed up at life class. I held the door for somebody." Anybody find yourself qualifying all the reasons why God ought to be good to you? Especially when it looks like everybody else around you has things going for them. You look out there and you're like, what's wrong with these people? They're they got everything that they're doing is wrong. You know, it's just frustrating. Verse number five, they are not in trouble as other men. Neither are they plagued like other men. They don't seem to have the problems I face. They don't seem to go through the struggles I face. It seems like everything they touch turns to gold. The frustration of comparison. Anybody know what I'm talking about today? >> Amen. >> Yes. We all deal with it. We get frustrated the yoga parent wearing high-end clothed buying ab flattened Jaguar driving lipo suction. Beautiful people. Always wearing Lululemon. I'm sorry. I went in that store. Those tags were wrong. Their XL was a schmeium at best. Anybody else get frustrated about these kind of things? >> Yeah. Come on. I'm looking for some participation today. I'll be up here forever if you don't engage. >> Anybody know what I know you know what I'm talking about. >> How you have been doing your best. You've been keeping a list of all the rights that you've done and you look around at everybody else's wrongs and it seems like they're prospering and you're failing and you're going backwards and you're not happy about it.

And you're looking at God saying, "God, this isn't right. >> Why are you blessing their life and not blessing my life? Have I not given you reason to be good to me, God? Oh my, oh my." Verse number six. Therefore, pride can passeth them about as a chain. Violence covered them as a garment. Their eyes stand out with fadness. They have more than a heart could wish. They are corrupt and they speak wickedly concerning the oppression. They speak lawfully. They set their mouths against the heavens and their tongue lock walketh through the earth. They're smug and they're arrogant. They look like they got it all figured out. Everything goes their way. Every time they roll the dice, it comes up on sevens. Those kind of people. Verse number 10. Therefore, his people return hither and the waters are full of cup of rung out on them. Not only are they on their own path, and everything they touch seems to be doing really well, other people are seeing what they're doing and they're buying in to their foolishness. And God, it seems like they're prospering as well. How is this right, God? Don't you just hate when people's flaws and defects go unpunished? Doesn't it bother you down deep inside we cry out for some justice in our life that things should be right? Verse number 11. And they say, "How do God know? Is there knowledge in the most high?" The psalmist is basically saying they openly mock God.

They act as if that what they do has no fault or wrong at all. God, how can you let this go unpunished? Verse 13. Verily, I have cleansed my heart in vain and washed my hands in innocence. It's bad enough these bad guys are doing well, but I've been really good and it doesn't seem to be getting me anywhere. Why do I keep doing these things? I've been moral. I follow the rules. I go to church. I read the Bible. I avoid all the sins. But where's my payoff? Where what has it done for me? Where has it gotten me? It doesn't seem like it's pushed me any further forward. Verse number 16. When I thought to know this, it was too painful for me. I tried to figure out why life is so unfair. I asked God, where are you in the middle of all of this? I seem to be missing you. Then comes the hinge on which the whole psalm swings from death to life. In verse number 17, until everybody say until. >> Until I went into the sanctuary of God, then I understood therein. Until I entered into the house of worship. until I got the focus off of me. As you remember in verse number two, he said, "Ask for me." There's a problem in our life whenever we start with me. I'm never going to get to where I need to be when I start with me. When I start up by how I feel or what I see, I'm always in trouble when I start my sentence by saying I instead of starting it with God.

That's why it's important that we realize that the psalmist narrative changed when he entered into the sanctuary. when he got into a place of worship and all of a sudden he was no longer focused on himself, some perspective came into his life. That's why it's important that we not only need God, but we have a God that we can worship in our life. Because far often we find ourselves being focused on our problems and our struggles instead of realizing that we have a God who has been good to us, who has been faithful to us, who has been merciful to us. When I take the focus off of my problems and my desires and my agenda and my comparisons and my petty jealousy and my preoccupation and I put my focus on God, all of a sudden I realize things aren't so bad. >> That's why worship's important. It gets the focus off of me and onto the one who has the ability and is well able to take care of me and all of my problems and all my troubles. when I bow down to worship and then even though nothing has changed yet everything has changed when I start to focus on God. Have you noticed that? Oh, I'm quite sure the vast majority of us in this room know exactly what I'm talking about. We've had bad days. Bad days happen. It's just part of living life. Troubles come. Man born of woman is going to face troubles according to the word of God.

We face those things in our life. But I I've learned to not focus on my trouble. My trouble of staying focused on only brings me down. >> Doesn't help my situation to sit there and linger on it and just sit on it and dwell on it and stress on it and get all anxious about what's going on. That doesn't solve the problem. And there are things that often times come our way that are beyond our ability to handle in the moment. That's why it's important that I turn my focus to God. That I start worshiping when it doesn't make sense. >> I feel like I'm going have to preach a little harder. Y'all not quite there yet. When I saw the reality is what the psalmist says. When I got my perspective right, then I got sanity. I realized verse number 20. Nevertheless, I am continually with thee. Thou hast holding me by my right hand. Thou shalt guide me with counsel and afterwards receive me to glory. When he started to realize, hey, maybe it isn't perfect, but you're with me. God, you're with me. I'm not by myself in this moment. I I'm not left alone. I'm not left to my own thoughts. If I will learn to stop focusing on my problem and realize, God, you have been standing beside me the entire time. It causes me to focus to the problem to the God who's big enough to handle my problem.

And what should that do in me? Cause me to start worshiping. You want to mess with the enemy in the middle of your hardest day, just take a praise break. When the boss comes you in and hands you the pink slip on the way out the door. JUST START SHOUTING, "GOD, YOU ARE GOOD. I don't know what's coming, BUT I KNOW YOU GOT SOMETHING GOOD IN STORE FOR ME. I'M NOT GOING TO ALLOW ALL OF MY happiness to be dictated by a piece of pink paper. BUT MY JOY RESTS IN THE HOLY GHOST, IN THE FACT THAT MY GOD HAS ALL THINGS under his CONTROL AND POWER. I MAY NOT UNDERSTAND. I MAY NOT KNOW WHAT'S GOING TO HAPPEN, BUT MY GOD IS WELL ABLE to take care of anything that comes my way." Why would I worry about tomorrow when I know WHO HOLDS MY TOMORROW? OH, THERE'S SOME JOY IN THERE THAT OUGHT TO CAUSE YOU TO STAND UP AND WORSHIP GOD IN THE MIDDLE OF YOUR DARKEST TODAY THAT GOD, I'M STILL HERE. I'M STILL DRAWING BREATH. I CAN STILL FEEL YOUR PRESENCE ALL AROUND ME. YOU ARE A GOOD AND FAITHFUL GOD. YES. YES. WE HAVE TO WORSHIP. THAT'S HOW WE GET THROUGH. >> >> THE ENEMY CAN'T STOP YOUR WORSHIP. >> He can't stop you. >> Oh, there may be a lot of frustrations and things may not be the way you want them to, but I'm still drawing breath, which means, Brother Freeman, I can still worship.

>> And if it didn't do nothing else but make him mad, I'm going to worship. YOU THOUGHT YOU HAD ME, DEVIL. BUT I'M BACK IN THE HOUSE OF GOD AGAIN. OH, you thought you were going TO LABEL ME, BUT I'M A CHILD OF THE KING. I wish somebody start living up to the title God placed on you instead of what the enemy's placed on you. >> Worship him and who he is and what he already HAS DONE FOR YOU. HAS HE FILLED you with his spirit? Has he filled you with his spirit? >> That same SPIRIT THAT GOT HIM UP OUT OF THE GRAVE. IT'S INSIDE OF YOU. IT'LL GET YOU OUT OF WHATEVER PROBLEM. OH, I wish I wasn't having to cheerlead the apostolic church. I wish somebody was a little excited about the fact I got the Holy Ghost. I SPOKE IN TONGUES. I'VE BEEN BAPTIZED IN Jesus name. Oh yes. Oh yes. OH YES. I KNOW WHAT HE'S DONE FOR ME. I KNOW WHERE HE'S BROUGHT ME FROM. ENEMY, you can't take it from me. Oh, to get the focus off of me and onto him where my praise belongs. Psalm 73:18. Surely thou just set them in slippery places. Oh, look God. They don't have you. They may have stuff. >> They may have things, but Lord, they don't have you. >> That's right. >> Do you think about that? >> I know they got the new car, right? They got the promotion.

They got the house. They got the degree. They got the whatever. But I got Jesus. I got Jesus. So, let them keep their car. Let them keep that promotion. >> Maybe I didn't need it anyway. Maybe God knew if I got that, I'd quit worshiping him. >> Maybe he realized that if he gave you the things that you said you were asking for, it would ruin you. >> I've said this before many times at this church. I've prayed, "God, make me a millionaire. I'd be really good at it, Scott. I feel confident in it. Yes. You feel that, too? Spirit lay on him, too. Pay your ties. But he hasn't done that yet. And I could argue with it. I could get mad about it. I could get church hurt. I could be frustrated. You I could buy into all that narrative. But the reality is, he's been good to me. >> Hey, I'm still breathing air. I'm still moving. Hey, my shoulder don't even hurt that bad right now. He's a good God. >> He's blessed my life abundantly. My children are all in the house of God worshiping today. He's blessed me. What price tag do you pay? Look, we could always find a reason why we could be upset, but we could also find a reason why we could worship. >> So, what are you choosing today? What are you looking for? Are you looking for an excuse as to why God isn't good?

Because everybody else has what you don't have? That's easy, right? That's the easy way out, Randy. That's the coward's way. It takes courage to say, "God, you've been good to me. >> God, you've been good. You've blessed me abundantly. Let me just stop for a minute and think about all the ways that you've blessed me. God, I still got a foot that works. I got two feet that works. My hands are working. I'm breathing on my own. >> I ain't moving until we engage the Maybe you don't have the best car, but did you have a car to get here today? Maybe you don't have the best house, but did you sleep with a roof over YOUR HEAD LAST NIGHT? MAYBE YOU DON'T HAVE FILET minan in the freezer, BUT DID YOU EAT SOMETHING TODAY? HEY, HAS GOD BEEN GOOD TO YOU? YES. YES. YES. YES. YES, HE HAS. SO, STOP BUYING INTO WHAT YOU DON'T HAVE AND START GRABBING A HOLD OF WHAT YOU DO. YOU HAVE THE KING OF KINGS AND LORD OF LORDS ON your side. >> We worship God because he's worthy of being worshiped. and not because we get something out of it. >> Oh, we misunderstand the assignment. He is worthy >> regardless of whether I feel like it or not. >> He is worthy. >> Yes, >> he's worthy. >> In fact, worship requires me getting my eyes off myself and focus on him because he's bigger than me.

You and I have a need of transcendence. I've said this already. We need God. >> No one in here breathing air right now doesn't need God. We all need God. We all need to be attached to something that is bigger and higher and better than us that's beyond what we can comprehend or think. Thank goodness we have that with him. I'm glad I have a God that I can't comprehend completely. I'm glad I can't fully understand him. I'm glad that he has ways of figuring things out that are beyond what I can do because I'm limited. Maybe you're not, but I am. I'll go ahead and say it like I said before. I'm pitiful. >> I'm pitiful. Y'all pray for me. But you're pitiful, too. I'll pray for you. I need a God bigger than me. I got to have him. I got to have him. I can't do a day without him. I can't do one minute WITHOUT HIM. I MUST HAVE HIM IN MY LIFE. THEREFORE, WHY WOULD I NOT WORSHIP MY GOD WHO IS BIGGER THAN ME? We worship solely because he's worth it and not to get something out of it. But when we worship and we worship him because he's good, but he is faithful and he is true. When we worship, we find our hearts becoming filled with joy. Did you know I said this in my ministry class this morning as I was teaching? It is impossible to worship God and focus on you.

>> Can't do it. You can't. If you're truly worshiping, you can't think about you. So, no wonder he wants us to worship because the only way I can engage with him is to get my mind off of me. >> But my mind's always on me. So, I have to consciously decide, am I going to think about me or am I going to think about him? >> Am I going to think about my problems or the God who's able to handle my problems? >> Am I going to think about my failures or the God who's able to take care of my failures? >> Where you at? >> Where you at? Don't get caught up in you. Because I promise you, you're going to be disappointed with you. >> If it's all on you, honey, it's over. >> You may get a day or two. You may even get you may even get a year. But I promise you, at some point, you will find your limitations. And if I learn anything about being 50, I got a lot of them. I get more and more limitations every day that passes. That's why I got to have a God who doesn't have any limitations. He's not limited like I'm limited. He's not held back by restrictions like I am. No, no, no. My God is able to handle everything. When we worship, we realize THAT ALL THINGS ARE POSSIBLE with our God. >> When I worship, my spirit is surrendered before him.

When I worship, I am humbled before my God. Why? Because no flesh can glory in his presence. >> When I truly worship him and I take the focus off of me, brother Span, his presence will come to where I'm at because my flesh is not being gloried. No flesh will glory in his presence. So if you're making it about you, he's never gonna be at the party. >> Oh, you didn't hear me. >> If you make it about you, he's never going to be at the party. But if you make it about him, >> I promise you, he'll show up every time. If you focus on him, I promise he'll be the first one to show up on time. On time. On the other hand, when I don't worship, I become anxious about tomorrow. >> I envy people who have what I don't have. When I don't worship, I get this sense of entitlement. And it destroys gratitude quicker than anything. I become negative and judgmental towards other people and their issues, their faults, and their failures. I get discouraged. I get defeated. I face setbacks. The truth is that you and I were made to worship. And we need it like we need air to breathe. >> Cuz without it, we become even more pitiful. We can't stand it when we get focused on me and what I don't have and how everybody else has the other things. All I can see is what I don't have in front of me.

You know, someone shows up and they got that very car that you had just been praying the Lord bless you with and the very color and all the options. They put it out there. It's in the parking lot. You walk by and you're like, "Oh, I'm so happy for you. >> >> The Lord has been good to you. You got to check that because you know what? You find there's a little joy when you see a door ding. You're like, "Oh, look at that." Got to heart check that. But what if Centerpoint became a place where instead of us judging each other for what we don't have, we looked at each other and we generally were like, I am so thankful that God has given you. God's good to me. I'm so glad to see that God is being good to you, too. >> What would that do for us? Instead of being like, I'm so happy for you. We were like, you know what? I'm so happy. Like that what a blessing. What a great God we serve. He blesses me and I see he's blessing you. We serve an amazing God. Instead of comparing ourselves among ourselves cuz I don't feel like that's wise. Feel like it says that somewhere in here. Don't you listen to me. You will worship intentionally or not because everybody worships. If you're not sure where you worship, I can answer that question for you really quickly. Let me see your calendar and your bank account because where you spend your time and your money is where you worship.

>> It's a real telltale sign. A lot of people a lot of people don't realize that they're worshiping something because we think about worship way too narrowly. When you hear the word of God, they think about singing songs and attending church services. But worship is something you can do when you wake up. >> You can worship when you take a shower. >> You can worship while you eat your breakfast, while you go do your work, while you laugh with friends, while you look at the sunset. Worship is a way of life. >> So if the only worship you get is when you come into the sanctuary, you are missing so much about worship life. We are to live in such a way that everything we do worships God. >> Everything we do. And the only way we can do that is that we have to constantly not be focusing on us and focusing on him. >> To look around. I know you know this. How many of you from time to time have fleeting moments of worship when you see that God's presence is there? You see him in nature. You see him in a moment. You see him in an instance. You see you're just driving. Whatever. Anybody know what I'm talking about? >> Those are worship moments. Look, you didn't have to have the praise team. You didn't have to have the full band behind you. Did you know that those these things are not prerequisites for worship?

That's why I stopped us while ago before I started preaching and said, "I don't want any music. I just want our voices." Because the only thing required for worship is you and God. >> That's it. You and God. And the focus can't be on you. It has to be on him. >> And when you do that, you worship. It's a way of life. What do we do when we worship? First of all, you direct your mind towards God. I immerse my attention and thoughts about God and then I express my love to him. It involves my voice and my mind. And it also involves my heart. I draw into intimacy with God. My mind, my voice, my heart. And that's why I wanted to spend the next couple of minutes finishing talking about this important point. When I worship, I have to direct my mind to God. I have to. It's the only way I can worship is I have to engage in something that's bigger than me. I've already talked about that. You ever find your mind wandering in worship? You ever find your mind wandering in our message? How many of you missed the question? Yeah, we've all done that. It was a few months ago. I talked about it during the one of our Wednesday night series. I was talking about how that I'm guilty as everybody about having being checked out in a moment of worship. I'm not going to ask anybody to raise their hands, but how many of you at least in a moment in the last couple of Sundays found yourself being checked out?

Maybe it's because your kid lost their mind. Maybe it's because your spouse lost their mind. Maybe you lost your mind. Or you thought of the thing you didn't do. Isn't it amazing how good our memories are in worship service? How the to-do list things are always right there. It's like, "Ah, yeah, I got to." Yeah. There's always something that's vying for our attention trying to distract us. Why? Because it the enemy knows. I don't want him focusing on him. The human, this is a human thing. People have the ability to go on autopilot. Let me ask you a question. Those of you who've been driving at least 5 years or more, at least 5 years or more driving, how many of you have ever thought about how you get to work sometimes? Yeah. Have you ever just woke up one day and like you've been driving for a while and you're like, "Wow, I don't even know how I got here." >> Isn't that scary? And I'm driving on the road with you crazy people. Yeah. I cannot tell you. I mean, because it just so many that I lost count. How many times I have driven here and when I got here didn't know why I was here and then get mad when I realized where I was supposed to go and it was on the other side of town. It's like when I turn out of 115 Brent Gale and take my right hand turn, my left hand turn on 96.

I just come here. Michael, there been times I've been riding my chassis. She's like, "Where are you going?" Like, "I don't I don't even know. I'm going to the church." Praise God. Pastors always going to church. I know sometimes I don't want to go here. Okay. I got other things to do. My whole point for bringing it up is we are really good about going on autopilot. >> Which I don't know is bad or good and driving, but what about worship? >> Let me speak to the church for just a minute. Okay. There's enough of us in this room who have been coming for long enough to know the routines, what goes on, and we can raise our hands with the best of them. We can do our little one with the best of them. Yeah, we can even we can even be so far gone that we know when to say amen. >> See, I'm just kidding. I don't even know who that was. I'm just picking on somebody right there. Don't send me any emails. We can do that. We can do that. You ain't paying attention. Somebody says amen. You're like, "Amen." You don't even know what you amen. You don't even know what's going on. We got to be careful about this. got to let our mind come back to God. To immerse ourel in it to worship God with my mind is something that is only supposed to happen during church service is a wrong and a wrong idea.

It's not just about worship songs. It's the direction of my thoughts continually. The psalmist said in 168, I have set the Lord always. Everybody say always. >> Always before me because he is at my right hand. I shall not be moved. That statement is amazingly profound. He didn't say I think about God sometimes. He said I sit. Did you know? Did you notice the direction? I have set the Lord always before me. Because if I don't make a decision to put him there, something else by default will take the spot. Have you noticed that? If I don't intentionally engage my mind with God, something else will always take its spot and it takes it really quickly. Continually, intentionally, deliberately. That means when fear tries to dominate my thinking, I reset my mind back to God. When I found myself getting anxious, I stop that. I reset my mind back to God when I feel offended or tempted or discouraged when these things try to take me over. I reset my mind towards God. This is exactly what Paul said in 2 Corinthians 10:5 talking to the church at Corinth. He said, "Casting down imaginations and every high thing exalted itself against the knowledge of God and bringing into captivity every thought to the obedience of Christ." That means I have the ability. I got instructions there that when the wavered thoughts come in my mind, let's be honest, we have wavered thoughts. Every one of us do crazy things.

that just pop in our head. When that crazy pops up, just grab it. >> Bring it back into obedience. Ask yourself, filter it through. Is this good? Is this true? Is this right? Is this lovely? We have a filter in the scripture. If it doesn't meet the filter, then throw it away. >> You may not can keep it from coming into your mind, but you can keep from dwelling on it. >> You can bring it back. You can say, "You're not going to occupy my thoughts and my minds. I'm going to go back to worshiping God." Break out in song if you need to. Do what you can to keep your mind FOCUSED ON HIM. THAT'S WORSHIP. THAT'S WORSHIP. It'll get you through. When you worship with the mind, it's not passive. It's active. It's choosing what stays in my head. It's arresting my wrong thoughts. It's redirecting my focus. It's settling on the Lord and making sure he's always before me. And my mind keeps returning to him if my life stops being easily moved when I can focus on God. So, what do you think about? What do you spend your time thinking about? I'm asking you to reflect for just a minute. What do you spend your day thinking about? Because what you think about shapes who you are. That's a good note. What you think about shapes who you are. So what are you thinking about? Are you thinking about your friends?

Thinking about the word of God? Are you thinking about seedless grapes? Honest mechanics? Parking spots in front of the crispy cream front door? Remembering where you parked? forgiveness, hope, gentle dentist, sins you didn't commit, preachers who can say what they need to in 20 minutes, sermons that never stop. See, every moment is a chance to worship God. >> Every moment is a chance to worship God because his goodness is always around you. There is always without fail something to praise God for. >> That's why it's important that we keep that reality there that we need to be immersed in the reality of who he is. That's why we open our mind to scriptures. That's why reading and knowing scriptures is so important. You need to have some verses memorized. You need to recall those things to your mind. You need to bring them back there so that you have something to dwell on, a foundation that you can hang on, an anchor that is there. Some people who hang on to churches become worship junkies around here. What I mean by that is they only love to come in and just experience the presence of God with everybody else. But when they leave this sanctuary, they go right back out and do all the things they've always ever done and they come back in again. They need another worship junkie experience. Now, please know my heart when I say that, okay? Please listen to me for just a minute.

There's nothing wrong with coming in and being lost in the presence of God. I love it. I love it. But if that's the sum total of you experiencing his presence, you're missing something. we have great church around here all the time, >> but it can be detrimental to those who don't work on a personal relationship with God because you just go from church service to church service. But I want to tell you, there's too many hours that pass from church service to church service. >> Too much time passes by. And if that's the only time you're going to be in the presence of God, I promise you, you're missing you're missing a key element in your life. You are not living a life of worship. It doesn't require you being in this room. I'm thankful for that. I'm thankful it doesn't require this building for me to be lost in worship. It doesn't even require you for me to be lost in worship. It just requires me focusing on him. Requirement met. When I focus on God, I'm lost in his word. Some people they get caught up in that emotional experience. But Proverbs says in 19:2 also the soul be without knowledge. It is not good. You have knowledge. You need knowledge. You need to understand that it's more than just being in church. Church is important. and you need church in your life. But if you only worship here, you're missing it. >> Fundamental text in the Old Testament was Deuteronomy 6:4 and 5.

Here, oh Israel, the Lord our God is one Lord. Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, with all thy soul, and with all thy might. But when Jesus was questioned about this very text, he altered it just a little bit. But he said in Matthew 22:37 that Jesus said unto them, "Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, with all thy soul, and with all thy." You got to let your mind be immersed in the reality of the goodness of God. So where are you at in your worship? I get bothered. I get bothered by the reality that I talked about a while ago that we all worship something. Every one of us do. Now, most of you, many of you who've been around me any time know I love sports. I like sports. And if you've really been around me, you know specifically that I love college football. And I have teams that I root for, but if I'm being transparent with you, I just like watch college football. It could be the Carrots versus the tomatoes, and if we're playing football, I want to watch it. And several years ago, I was at a football game with some people in this room and I was watching a team that I was pretty passionate about because we have teams we get passionate about. And my team scored and I was just going crazy. Jeff, I was going I was losing my mind >> and there ain't a number none of them on that none of them on that football field ever done anything for me.

They didn't even know my name. They just happened to be playing for the team that I was rooting for. And God spoke to me in that stadium, as loud as it was, he spoke to me and said, "Why don't you worship me like that?" >> And it wrecked me. And I was so convicted in that moment because I was giving myself away to 11 goofballs with a piece of leather in their hand. and their managed to go across some imaginary line. When the King of Kings and Lord of Lords died on Calvar's Hill to take my place with no guarantee that I would ever even acknowledge it and I won't lose myself in worship. I'm sorry, guys. It changed me from that day forward that I determined that I'm not going to shout louder for some goofy football team than I'll shout for my God who's done everything for me. >> >> So, let me ask you this question. When's the last time? And I want you to really absorb my question. When's the last time you were lost in worship? When's the last time? Was it when you were youth at church camp? Like I love you guys. I love it when y'all go to camps. I love it when you go to NAC because you get there and you guys just check out. Y'all are sweaty hot mess. Nobody cares about their hair or their shoes and y'all just shout and y'all do everything.

And then the next few weeks y'all come back here and y'all just crazy up here. Reckless in love with Jesus. >> But then we start to calm down over time, right? When's the last time, mom and dad, aunt and uncle, grandma, grandpa, that you were just lost in the presence of God? Just lost. What I mean by that is you were not aware of time or who's around you or what's going on. You were just basking in the glow of the almighty God. When's the last time that you were just lost in worship? Because there's something about, you know, When I drive home and I pull in my street, there's these two little English pointers that are watching and the moment they see that truck turn the corner of the road, they check out. Now, what's funny is the boy dog Trip, he has he makes a whole lap around the house. Every time you can just set a clock to it. He sees the truck. He makes a lap all the way around the house. But Lulu, the girl dog, she just twirls. She twirl. I can't do it that much. I fall over. She twirls and twirls and twirls and twirls and twirls and twirls because it's the best thing that the master's home. I mean, they act like And what's crazy about it is I can leave for 5 minutes and go to the gas station and come back and they see me again.

I heard one guy say it this way. You can tell who loves you more, your dog or your wife. Lock them both in the trunk and come back in 5 minutes and see who's happy to see you. I don't recommend that. When's the last time you were just so caught up in being in his presence? So, let I'm getting ready to end. Okay, I'm going to bring this to a close. I got to bring this to a point because I feel like you need to understand something. I want to warn you about something I believe is affecting people in the church. We got to be careful how much volume we give our own voice in our lives. Over half a century ago, Dr. Alfredus encountered one of the most curious cases of his career. A renowned opera singer suddenly lost his ability to hit certain notes. Even though the notes were well within his range, specialists assumed that it was a vocal problem. But Tomus suspected something different. Using a sonometer, he discovered that the singer was producing 140 dB of sound waves at just three and a half feet. That's louder than a military jet taken off from an aircraft carrier. The diagnosis shocked everyone. The opera singer had been deafened by his own voice. And the voice can only reproduce what it can hear. because he had sang so loudly so long he had deafened his ability to hear causes. So I'm afraid is this same thing is taking place in our world and our culture today where we live in the culture of me.

Be true to yourself. Do what you feel. Do what you want to. It's about you. Have it your way. I mean we can have anything pretty much anything that we can dream up. we can have in one day delivery from Amazon. I'm not even trying to be funny with I'm just making a point like we don't we don't struggle. We don't suffer. We don't I mean I know there's various economic situations in this room and all kind of stories we could talk about, but listen to me. Every one of us compared to the world standards are rich in this room. >> And we have a culture and a society that says it's about you. It's about you. It's about you. And we keep singing that song and we are deafening oursel and we can't hear the voice of God who's saying, "Come up higher. Come up where I'm at. Stop being so low. Stop being so captivated by all the things you think are important and let me show you who I am." I'm going to tell you, there's some places I've been in God that I have only arrived there through worship. On the other side of me worshiping because I finally got past myself and my desires and my focus and all that stuff, I found a God on the other side who's who was able to say, "Now that I have your attention, let me talk to you." It wasn't about me and it wasn't about my wants and it wasn't about my desires.

It was about me standing in front of a God who has holds the whole world in his hands and he began to show me things he desired to do through me. But it was only obtainable when I worshiped my way there. We got to be careful that we don't have too much negative selft talk that we don't listen to the voice of criticism or conformity or condemnation or become a victim. The enemy is called the accuser of the brethren. He's also called the father of lies. And if you listen to his voice too long, it would deafen you to the voice of God. And if you can't hear his voice, you can't sing his song. And if you can't sing his song, then your life gets off track. And all of that robs your worship. And worship is what God desires. And worship is how we overcome. So let me give you a prescription. as the musicians come. You got to learn to discern the still small voice cuz he speaks. He's always speaking. You're just not always listening. >> He's always speaking. I'm going to use this old analogy. This isn't new with me. This old preacher analogy in this room right now. There are radio waves. If you have a little handheld radio, you put the antenna up and you tune the frequency in and you'll pick up radio waves. You can't see them, but they're there. I could take a radio and prove that to you.

And you, everybody, for the most part in this room knows exactly what I'm talking about. It's the same principle with God. He is always speaking. We're just not always tuned in. We're focused on me. So, I'm here to encourage you today. You need the voice of worship in your life. You need the voice of worship. You need the ability to push past how you feel. Cuz if you only worship when you feel it, you're missing it. >> I don't know what they're going to play. I didn't ask them to do anything. But here's what I know. I know because I prayed and God has moved in my heart to bring this message to you today. I know that there's someone in this room that needs to worship their way out of a situation. Stop thinking about it and worship your way out of it. >> Now, I hope they sing a worship song and they may have some of them slow ballads up here that's going to require you to worship pretty hard. No pressure on them, no pressure on you. But it shouldn't be conditional on what they play. >> Shouldn't matter. So, I don't know who I'm speaking to today, but I'm getting ready to have a closing prayer. But whoever I am reaching for, whoever it is that God speaks to, has been speaking to in this message today, I'm encouraging you, take the step. Take the step. Don't leave the same way you came.

And the only way that becomes a reality for you is for you to worship. We can't control the narratives around us most of the time. And what I mean by that is I can't control you and you can't control me. But what I can control is me. So, I choose today to worship. I choose to stop focusing on all the things that are not working right and all the things that I don't have and how things haven't gone according to the way I want them to go. I choose to engage a God who knows best what I need. And I wonder if there's anybody that maybe will join me today in worshiping the King of Kings and Lord of Lords. Will you stand? Jesus, I'm so thankful to know you. to feel you, to experience you in my life. How good you are, Lord, to me every day that I get to feel you close and get to feel you near. Lord, I know there are some days I don't give you near enough attention. There's days, God, when I focus on all the things that I wish I had or why things aren't going the way I feel like they should. But one thing that has never changed is you. You are the same yesterday, today, and forever. and you are as good as you have ever been. And you are as good as you ever will be. You are good, Lord. I pray today that there would be a courage and a boldness come over us to be willing to step out and worship you when it doesn't make sense.

God, when things aren't going the way we want them to, when we have a diagnosis or I have a broken relationship or I have a financial struggle or a job situation or whatever, Lord, we can fill the narrative in. But I'm going to worship you in spite of those things, God. Because regardless, you are worthy of praise and glory and honor because you are good and faithful day after day, day after day, day after day. So in the mighty name of Jesus, I plead your blood over this entire congregation right now. I rebuke every hindrance and distraction from this place. Let it be gone in the name of Jesus. And I pray that there will be a freedom of worship and praise break forth across this congregation right now. Lord, let us be lost in your presence today in Jesus' name. In Jesus name. Now, I wonder if there's anybody who's willing to be a little brave today and say, you know, I'm going to be a worshipper for the next few minutes. I'm looking for some worshippers today. I'm looking for some worshippers. And maybe you don't feel like it, but I'm going to worship anyway. Come on. Come on. It's just family. Come on, START IT RIGHT NOW. JESUS, I LOVE YOU.