Written by: Lacey Klotz

"Therefore, I urge you, brothers and sisters, in view of God's mercy, to offer your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and pleasing to God—this is your true and proper worship." – Romans 12:1
 
Growing up, I remember always struggling with perfectionism. What started as a fear of letting those around me down, quickly became a standard at which my life had to be lived. I wanted to excel in everything I did – be it my sport, grades and school work, passion for singing and investment in my relationships. Basically, this desire and unrealistic expectation I had for myself became the forefront to every decision, action and thought that I had. My identity had become so wrapped up in what others thought about me and about not wanting to "mess up" that I was emotionally, physically and spiritually exhausted, more often than not. You see, I had been worshipping the God of perfectionism and the results had left me belittled, discouraged and feeling misunderstood. 
 
Fast forward to my sophomore year at Lipscomb, I had given my life to Christ and like a wrecking ball – The Spirit of God dismantled this unhealthy desire to be perfect with His love and truth, and graciously gave me a spirit of humility. Just as my heart had been longing to be filled and validated, Jesus bore it all on the cross so that I could forever be KNOWN and LOVED. And that fact changed me. It encouraged me and gave me hope. And it lit a fire in me that just as Jesus had sacrificed His life so I could have a future with God, I wanted to live my life for Him in complete surrender and worship.  
 
When you think of worship, what initially comes to mind? I think that especially in our culture, the act of worship can sometimes be placed in a box and thought to be simply singing Christian music. And although God loves when we connect to His heart through singing praises to Him, the truth is, that our hearts (and every fiber of our being) was made by God to worship God. The struggle we face, however, is when we begin to navigate life apart from God, in a fallen world with an enemy looking to kill, steal and destroy (John 10:10) and we are left giving our hearts over to lesser things like the God of perfectionism, money, fame, success – you name it. All of which will dissatisfy us, 100% of the time. Thank goodness we have Jesus to set us straight and show us the way, right?! 
 
So when we look at true worship, we see two things: first, that Jesus tells us that we must worship God in Spirit and in truth because that is the kind of worshippers God seeks (John 4:23-24), and second, that Paul instructs us to worship by giving our lives to God as a living sacrifice (Romans 12:1). I also love the way the message version puts these verses: 
 
"It's who you are and the way you live that count before God. Your worship must engage your spirit in the pursuit of truth. That's the kind of people the Father is out looking for: those who are simply and honestly themselves before him in their worship." – John 4:23-24 MSG
 
"So here's what I want you to do, God helping you: Take your everyday, ordinary life—your sleeping, eating, going-to-work, and walking-around life—and place it before God as an offering. Embracing what God does for you is the best thing you can do for him. Don't become so well-adjusted to your culture that you fit into it without even thinking. Instead, fix your attention on God. You'll be changed from the inside out. Readily recognize what he wants from you, and quickly respond to it. Unlike the culture around you, always dragging you down to its level of immaturity, God brings the best out of you, develops well-formed maturity in you." - Romans 12:1 MSG
 
Jesus tells us that worship is all about the intent of one's heart, and He demonstrates that worship can be done with the entirety of a life.  
 
If there is one thing that I can encourage you with it's that God cares about every aspect of your heart and life – your dreams, your shortcomings, your past and your future – and He desires for you to surrender your life and heart to Him. So, whether you are in the classroom, on the field or court, or hanging with your friends or family, God desires you to worship Him with the entirety of your life, with a thankful heart (Colossians 3:15) and in everything, remain in Him (John 15:4). 
 
Spend some time in prayer this week thanking God for who He is, what He has done and reflect on these questions: 

• What areas of my life and heart has God made me most alive in Him? 
• What areas of my life and heart need full surrendering to God? 
• What platforms has God given me to give back to Him in worship? 
• How can I encourage others that God has placed in my path to also live their lives in worship? 
• Spend some time praying through Romans 12:1 and John 4:23 – how can you live your daily life as worship to God?