Worship Wednesday

He Is… WORTHY

“Great is the Lord and most worthy of praise; His greatness no one can fathom. One generation commends your works to another; they tell of your mighty acts. They speak of the glorious spender of your majesty - and I will meditate on your wonderful works.” Psalm 145:3-5

Thinking about God as our creator this week, I was moved as I observed nature around me. And one word came to mind - WORTHY. How incredibly worthy is our God? Even when I look at my son and consider the tremendous amount of detail that went into creating this little human - his beautiful face, his curious personality, his desire to play and have fun - all these came from his Creator. Genesis 1:27 tells us that God made us in His own image. When God created the land and the sea, the night and the dark, the animals and the plants, He said, “It was good.” But when he created man, He said “It was very good.”

This week Levi challenged us to get outside and explore God’s creation, see where we find Him. Today I found Him in my son as I sat at the table just observing him entertaining himself. But when I step outside the doors of my home, I see Him in many other ways - the movement of the clouds as they crept across the Chugach range, the formation of mountains and their incredible differences, the leaves on the ground in my backyard that remind me of seasons changing - all these point directly to a brilliant and creative Designer. This call to reflect on God’s creation stirs up a recognition inside of us that goes “Oh, wow! Look at God’s creativity, His attention to detail, how He thought out that process so flawlessly.” We stand in awe of the one who did it all because He Is… WORTHY.

Sometimes I feel like it’s too easy for us to throw around commonly used phrases in our Christian circles like “He is good”, “He is sovereign”, “He is worthy”. And I wonder if we really even know what we are saying about our God? And are we just saying it? Or are we DECLARING it? In my curiosity, I decided to look up the definition of the word worthy. Here’s what I found: worthy - having or showing the qualities or abilities that merit recognition in a specific way.

There are infinitely many reasons God is WORTHY - nature, family and community, science, blessings of provision and good health, redemption of events in our past. But this value we assign to something being worthy is all relative. For me, the current season of life I’m in brings me to a place of recognizing God’s worthiness. When I was in college and experienced times where I ran away from the call God had on my life, it was God’s relentless pursuit and redeeming love and grace that caused me to recognize that He was worthy of my devotion, my life, my praise. Since I’ve moved to Alaska, my observations of the glorious creation around me and the incredible community God’s given us leads me to believe that He Is… WORTHY.

What things in your life, in our world, bring you to this place? A place where you recognize that He Is… WORTHY? And more importantly, what is your response when you experience this revelation? Is there a response?

Psalm 145 is a beautiful description of God’s many characteristics. I could easily write a “He Is…” series just about this psalm! In this passage, you will find not only descriptions of who David declares God is, but also actions he is compelled to take due to his recognition of who God is. He says, “Great is the Lord! He is most worthy of praise!” But he also says “I will exalt you, my God and King, I will praise your name forever and ever.” There’s a declaration, and there’s a response. The crazy thing about David’s story here is that if you read just two chapters back in Psalm 143, you see him pleading with God to protect him, to save him from his enemies that are chasing him. He actually declares who God is in the form of asking for help! Psalm 143:12 “In your unfailing love, silence all my enemies and destroy all my foes, for I am your servant.” It seems to me that David mastered praising God in both his high and low points of life.

This belief of God being worthy stems from a personal, upfront, tangible encounter with Him. And it’s different for each of us. But reaching this place of recognition should also lead us to another place - worship and adoration. So much of worship revolves around our response. God designed us to respond to His worthiness with a heart of praise, giving Him glory. Isaiah 43:21 says: “The people whom I formed for myself, that they might declare my praise.” 

What is it in your life that compels your heart to believe that He Is… WORTHY?

“You are worthy, Oh Lord our God, to receive glory and honor and power. For you created all things, and they exist because you created what you pleased.” Revelation 4:11