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Be Careful What You Choose | Louie Giglio: Wired for a Life of Worship, Conclusion

by Louie Giglio

There's one more reason worship should really matter to you--whatever you worship, you become.

You can worship whatever you want, but there'll always be a last twist to the story.  Whatever you worship, you become obsessed with.  Whatever you become obsessed with, you imitate.  And whatever you imitate, you become.

In other words, whatever you value most will ultimately determine who you are.

If you worship money, you 'll become greedy at the core of your heart.  If you worship some sinful habit, that same sin will grip your soul and poison your character to death.  If you worship stuff, your life will become material, void of eternal significance.  If you give all your praise to the god ofyou, you'll become a disappointing little god both to yourself and to all those who trust in you.

Listen to the psalm writer: "Not to us, O Lord, not to us but to your name be the glory, because of your love and faithfulness."  Then comes this observation: "Our God is in heaven; he does whatever pleases him" (Psalm 115:1,3 NIV).

Then, by contrast, he describes the idols men make and chose:

But their idols are silver and gold, made by the hands of men.  They have mouths, but cannot speak, eyes, but they cannot see; they have ears, but cannot hear, noses, but they cannot smell; they have hands, but cannot feel, feet, but they cannot walk; nor can they utter a sound with their throats. (vv.4-7, NIV)

Not too high of a socre for the man-made gods.  But here's the clincher:

Those who make them will be like them, and so will all who trust in them. (v. 8, NIV)

Simply put: We become what we worship.  IF you don't like who you're becoming, take a quick inventory of the things on the throne of your heart.  If you want to become more and more like Jesus, keep your worship focused squarely on Him.

Excerpted from Wired for a Life of Worship © 2006 by Louie Giglio.  Used by permission of Multnomah Publishers, a division of Random House, Inc.  Excerpt may not be reproduced without the prior written consent of Multnomah Publishers.

Wired: For a Life of Worship  is a student version of the newly revised The Air I Breathe. Wired for a Life of Worship Leader's Guide is also available.

The War for Your Worship | Louie Giglio: Wired for a Life of Worship, Part 4

by Louie Giglio

Worship also matters because every day there's a battle for your worship.

There's a war raging for our worship, and it's been raging since before there was time.

Even before the earth was formed, one of God's highest angels bolted from His presence, refusing to join the ranks of the true worshipers, refusing to exalt God above all.  The account records that in a flash Satan fell like lightning from heaven.  Exalting himself more than God, Satan was banned from His presence (Luke 10:18).

Yet, having been in God's presence, Satan knows God is central and worthy of all praise.  He's heard the anthem.  He's seen the glory.

But because of pride, he couldn't bow.  Spurred on by self, he leads a band of fallen brothers, spreading his mutiny to as many as he can.

That's where we come in.

How does Satan advance his rebellion against God today?  By contesting His supremacy throughout the earth, leading a traitor race to exchange "the truth of God for a lfe," and to worship and serve "the creature rather than the Creator, who is blessed forever" (Romans 1:25).  Satan can't stop worship from happening, but he'll deceive anyone who lets him, leading them to empty wells and puny gods.

Let's check back in with Paul.  Remember his message to the men of Athens?  Remember his audience?  The council Paul addressed that day was called the Areopagus, named after Ares, the Greek god of war.  Isn't it interesting that this is the setting God chose for Paul to give this address on the real meaning of life?  God's word of truth landed in the very arena where opinions battled.

In the same way, the very fallen angel who challenged Him will challenge what God is saying to you.  That challenge is called temptation.  Deception.  Falsehood.  Lies.  Theft.

Do you know what God desires most from you?  It's the one thing no other person on earth can give Him--your affection.  Although a thousand other people can do the work, give the bucks, fill the gap...no one else can give God the unique affection that onoy you and He can share.

But just as much as God longs for your love, there's an enemy who seeks to steal it.

At this point, you may be saying,  "I didn't start this war of worship--and I don't care to be in it.  I just want to live my life, make my own choices, and do my own thing.

That, however, is not an option.  Our lives are on loan from God, a sacred trust of opportunities and decisions. And every one of our choices is made on a battlefield with heavenly ramifications.

Even Jesus faced the same fate.

Before going public with His ministry, Jesus was led by God's Spirit into a wilderness challenge.  At thirty years old, Jesus was preparing for all that was ahead by fasting for forty days and nights.  He was learning how to depend on His Father, clinging to Him for life itself.

As His fast was coming to a close, Jesus was physically drained but spriritually sharp.  The enemy, no doubt seeing that Jesus looked weary, closed in with three potent temptations.

You remember the first: "If You're so hungry, turn these rocks into bread."

And the second: "If You're the Son of God, leap from the height of the temple.  Surely Your Father will catch You long before You hit the ground."

But notice the last temptation.  With this one Satan tried to hijack Christ's worship.

The offer: all the world's kingdoms if Jesus would bow down and worship him.  What on earth was Satan thinking?  To ask the Son of God to bow down and worship a foolish exile of heaven, someone doomed to die, someone banished to an eternal future void of the beauty of the angel's sounds--talk about being deceived!

Jesus' reply was clear.  "It has already been written: Worship the Lord your God and serve Him only" (Matthew 4:1-11).

Your worship matters to God.  If it didn't, Satan wouldn't care about trying to steal it from God...and from you.

Excerpted from Wired for a Life of Worship © 2006 by Louie Giglio.  Used by permission of Multnomah Publishers, a division of Random House, Inc.  Excerpt may not be reproduced without the prior written consent of Multnomah Publishers.

Part 1

Wired: For a Life of Worship  is a student version of the newly revised The Air I Breathe. Wired for a Life of Worship Leader's Guide is also available.

Don't Waste Your Worship | Louie Giglio: Wired for a Life of Worship, Part 3

by Louie Giglio

Worship should matter to you because you are and always will be a worshiper.  It's what you do.  You can't help it.  You can't stop it.  You can't live without it.  But you can choose where you invest it.  You can choose to make your worship count for today and for eternity.

We're created to worship.  That's why you and I are going to spend our lives declaring the worth of something.  As a result, we've got to make sure the thing we declare to be of greatest value is really worthy in the long run.

For me, I've got to keep making sure that what matters most--matters most to me.

The same is true of you.  It's imperative that you find an object worthy of your affection.  It's essential that you find a God worthy of your life's devotion.

You only have one life.  And you only have one life of worship.  You have one brief opportunity in time to declare your allegience, to unleash your affection, to exalt something or someone above all else. 

Don't waste your worship on some little god, squandering your birthright on idols made only with human imagination.  Guard your worship...and carefully evaluate all potential takers.

To choose well doesn't mean that we can't appreciate things of beauty and style.  It's certainly not wrong to deeply love another.  Nor is it a sin to really be into playing soccer or to get stoked over a trip to your favorite destination.

But when we elevate any of these things to the highest place in our hearts, we've gone too far.

For great is the Lord and most worthy of praise.  He is to be feared above all gods.  For all the gods of the nations are idols, but the Lord made the heavens.  Splendor and majesty are before Him; strength and glory are in His sanctuary.

Part 1 | Part 2

Wired: For a Life of Worship  is a student version of the newly revised The Air I Breathe. Wired for a Life of Worship Leader's Guide is also available.

Why Worship Matters | Louie Giglio: Wired For a Life of Worship, Part 2

by Louie Giglio

When the subject is worship, the stakes are high--because worship is what God is all about.

Worship should matter to you simply because it matters to God.  And worship matters to God because He knows He's worthy.  I know that doesn't sound too persuasive in our me-centered culture, but it's true.  Worship doesn't begin with us.  Worship begins and ends with God.  And God is worthy of all praise, from all people, for all time.

God is the center of everything that exists. Above all the little gods of earth, He alone is the Creator.  Sustainer.  Originator.  Life Giver.  Beauty Maker.

That's why every glimpse into God's presence throughout the pages of His Word affirms that God dwells in endless praise. 

Notice the angel host of Revelation, never ceasing to say, "Holy, holy, holy is the Lord God, the Almighty, who was and who is and who is to come" (Revelation 4:8).  Never do they stop.  Day and night they proclaim. Always affirming His infinite worth.

And "the heavens are telling of the glory of God; and their expanse is declaring the work of His hands" (Psalm 19:1).  Why?  Because that's what they were created to do, day fter day--to tell God (and anyone else who's paying attention) that He is huge.  All-powerful.  Glorious.  Limitless.  Beyond our wildest imagination.

And you know what's really wild?  This massive God, who hsa never known any shortage of worship, wants to be worshiped...by you.  Right now.

It's not that He needs any more worship to be worthy.  No, God can't be more worthy than He already is and always has been.  It's not that God needs our worship--but that He wants it.  He wants it because He deserves it.  And He commands it because to do so is the most loving thing He can possibly do.

God knows who He is.  He knows what He's worth.  And He knows the best thing He can give us is Himself.

Excerpted from Wired for a Life of Worship © 2006 by Louie Giglio.  Used by permission of Multnomah Publishers, a division of Random House, Inc.  Excerpt may not be reproduced without the prior written consent of Multnomah Publishers.

Part 1

Wired: For a Life of Worship  is a student version of the newly revised The Air I Breathe. Wired for a Life of Worship Leader's Guide is also available.

Louie Giglio : Wired for a Life of Worship, Part 1

by Louie Giglio.

You, my friend…are a worshiper!

There, I said it.

Everyday, all day long, everywhere you go, you worship. It’s what you do. It’s who you are.

So if by chance you have only a few seconds to check out this book, that’s what it’s all about. We all are worshipers, created to bring pleasure and glory to the God who made us.

I don’t know whether or not you consider yourself a “worshiping” kind of person, but you cannot help but worship—-something.

It’s what you were made to do.

Should you for some reason choose not to give God what He desires, you’ll still worship something—exchanging the Creator for something He has created.

Whatever’s Worth Most

Think of it this way: Worship is simply about value. The simplest definition I can give is this: Worship is our response to what we value most.

That’s why worship is that thing we all do. It’s what we’re all about on any given day. Because, worship is about saying, “This person, this thing, this experience (this whatever) is what matters most to me…it’s the thing I put first in my life.”

That “thing” might be a relationship. A dream. Friends. Status. Stuff. A name.  Some kind of pleasure. Whatever name you put on it, this thing or person is what you’ve concluded in your heart is worth most to you. And whatever is worth most to you is—you guessed it—what you worship.

Worship tells us what we value most. As a result, worship determines our actions, becoming the driving force for all we do.

And we’re not just talking about the religious crowd. Christians. The churchgoer among us. Or the youth group attender. We’re talking about everybody on planet earth…a multitude of souls proclaiming with every breath what is worthy of their affection, their attention, their allegiance. Proclaiming with every step what it is they worship.

Some of us attend the church on the corner, professing to worship the Living God above all. Others who rarely step inside the church doors would say worship isn’t a part of their lives because they aren’t “religious.” But everybody has an altar. And every altar has a throne.

So how do you know where and what you worship?

It’s easy. You simply follow the trail of your time, your affection, your energy, your money, and your loyalty. At the end of that trail you’ll find a throne; and whatever, or whomever, is on that throne is what’s of highest value to you. On that throne is what you worship.

Sure, not too many of us walk around saying, “I worship my stuff. I worship my X-Box. I worship this pleasure. I worship her. I worship my body. I worship me!”

But the trail never lies. We may say we value this thing or that thing more than any other, but the volume of our actions speaks louder than our words.

In the end, our worship is more about what we do than what we say.

Excerpted from Wired for a Life of Worship © 2006 by Louie Giglio.  Used by permission of Multnomah Publishers, a division of Random House, Inc.  Excerpt may not be reproduced without the prior written consent of Multnomah Publishers.

Wired: For a Life of Worship  is a student version of the newly revised The Air I Breathe. Wired for a Life of Worship Leader's Guide is also available.