At St. Maries Foursquare church, our desire is to create a body of worshippers. We strive to create a safe atmosphere for the congregation to touch the heart of God. Each service is dedicated to the Lord and we ask for His will to be done.
Our goal for each worship service is to lead every person in the congregation to an intimate time with the Lord. The worship team is only in place to lead us in the guiding of the Holy Spirit. Their job is to open the door to God’s presence, and to usher us, as a congregation, into His courts. We want you to leave each service having touched the Lord at a new, personal level. We don’t want you to leave the service the same person as when you came in.
Definition of praise and worship:
Worship is our expression or reaction of our faithfulness and love to the Lord as we go through life. Worship is a lifestyle we chose to live; the choices we choose to make and the words we choose to say. Worship happens when we look past what our flesh would want, and press deeper into our Creator. (Acts 13:22) There are many forms of worship, and genuine worship starts in our heart. (2 Chor 6:8) When we choose to love someone with Christ’s love, when we help someone in need, when we talk about the marvelous works of the Lord, when we speak out His promises to us, when we chose to look to Him for comfort instead of the world, we’ve worshipped the Lord. When we submit to Him and obey His commands, and when we’ve sought to bless the heart of the Lord, we’ve worshipped Him. (1 Kings 14:8, Psalm 108:1)
We are called to worship Him in the hard times and the valleys (Acts 16:25) and rejoice during the good times and on the mountain tops (2 Sam 6:14-15). There are times that we can’t help but worship because we are so overwhelmed with His beauty, strength and majesty. There are also times when we are going through something that might drag us down, and worship might be harder to initiate. Worshiping the Lord is a decision we make daily in our pursuit to glorify Him with our life.
Worship is a state we come into as we sit in the Lord’s presence. It happens deep in the heart as it communes with God. It is a reverence and an awe of the true and living God.
Forms of Worship:
During our services, we are eager for each member of the body to meet with God in a personal way. There are many different forms of worship found in scripture, and we encourage each person to use their gifts and to pursue God with all of their heart, mind, soul and body. The most common forms of worship found in our services are:
Standing – We stand out of a respect for our King. As we stand it shows that we want to honor the Lord.
Kneeling- When one kneels, it is an act of submission and reverence. It is an act of placing oneself lower than the one who is being knelt to.
Bowing Dow- bowing is similar to kneeling; only it takes your whole body to participate and honor the Lord. Bowing includes becoming prostrate on the ground before the Lord.
Dancing- Sometimes, as we worship, we are so moved by the Lord that we want to show it physically. Dancing is an outward expression on what is happening inward.
Lifting Hands- There are many biblical reasons or lifting our hands; to humble ourselves, to seek after God, in warfare and to show our heart wants to glorify Him.
Clapping Hands- We clap to rejoice in the promises God has made to us. This is also another form of worship that can show what is going on in our hearts.
Silence- Sometimes the presence of God causes us to sit in silence before Him. God is so vast and profound that we are sometimes lost for words and can only express what is going on in our heart through being silent and in awe of Him.
Singing- Singing is the most common form of worship that we incorporate into our service. As we sing we are lifting our voices in an audible time of thanksgiving.
Presence of God:
God’s presence is vast and profound and we are privileged each moment we get to spend soaking in it. God promises in Heb 13:5 that He will never leave us nor forsake us. His presence is always with us, everywhere we go. The Holy Spirit lives in us, and there will never be a moment when God is not with us. “You will seek me and find me when you seek me with all your heart. (Jer 29:13)
God is every where at all times. We cannot hide from Him. (Ps. 139:7) We do not have to be in a certain place at a certain time in order to worship and meet with God.
God will reveal, or manifest himself to us during certain times. He makes himself known to us in our hearts and minds. He will expose His heart to His people. God wants us to seek after Him and to become more familiar with His ways.