Yesterday, after our Bible time (reading Philippians) Faith revealed that she was unsure about what worship really is. Somehow she had gotten the idea that worship always involved some special feeling and maybe even changing circumstances. She has been sitting with us in church for over four years now and has had weekly opportunities to observe the corporate worship of our church body as well as how Paul and I worship. But we had not really taken the time to explicitly teach our children about what worship is.

I guess we just thought that watching others worship, along with learning the Bible at home and at church, would naturally result in the understanding of and practice of worship. It didn't! She was so relieved to hear that worship isn't a feeling but an action, a response to God, a belief. Often feelings do accompany our worship, but they do not define what worship is.

So now I want to include instruction about worship in our training of our girls. This won't be a formal "worship lesson," but I hope to address worship as we do life, maybe taking some extra time on Saturday to help her prepare to worship God on Sunday.

But worship isn't just singing songs at church. It's living a life that glorifies God and lifts up Jesus in all things. It's praying. It's studying, memorizing, and meditating on God's Word. It's being kind to family members and friends. It's being a good neighbor. It's making choices about what we watch and listen to that honor God rather than just doing what everyone else does. It's doing things we don't care for without complaining or arguing. It's being joyful. It's loving God and others. As Louie Giglio says, "Worship is a way of life."

I want to live a life of worship, and I want to teach my children to do the same. Because, whether I recognize it or not, my life is all about Jesus!