WIN – ALAIN USHERING MINISTRY 7TH ANNIVERSARY MESSAGE FROM THE PASTOR
Romans 12:1 (NIV)
Therefore, I urge you, brothers, in view of God's mercy, to offer your bodies as living sacrifices, holy and pleasing to God--this is your spiritual act of worship.
Romans 12:1 (NKJV)
1 I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that you present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable to God, which is your reasonable service.
My family and I would like to greet the WIN- Al Ain Ushering Ministry a happy 7th anniversary. I congratulate Sis. Beth and all the brethren who has been serving the Lord untiringly and unreservingly through this important and vital ministry within this church. Without them, the people coming in would find it difficult to be ushered into the Holy Presence of God. We praise God for workers such as them. May the Lord bless and reward them openly as they do the work unseen by men but seen by the Heavenly Father in secret. Be blessed indeed all you Ushers!
As we draw near to a close of this year’s theme of “BUILDING THE NEXT GENERATION CHURCH,” we now have our monthly theme of “WORSHIP” for November as one of the essential doctrines in laying down the strong foundation for future believers. We declare WIN – Al Ain as one of the worshipping churches here in the UAE and it will continue to be so until the coming of the
We almost always think of worship as something that has to do with songs and music, and the people involved in the FRONTLINE such as the Worship Team and Choir who along with the minister or pastor are very visible upfront. They are the ones who receive much appreciation. But almost always the Ushering Ministry is often neglected and unappreciated since they work silently at the back. They are , in fact, a great part of our worship lifestyle.
The Bible is very clear that to worship God requires serving Him. Music and Song is not the only thing that the Lord requires. God requires along with our expressed inward worship is our outward service towards Him. We worship God in spirit, soul and body! We haven’t really worship Him if we do not, in one way or another, serve the body of Christ with actions that are clear and in direct obedience to His word. Romans 12:1 commands us to offer our bodies as worship (NIV) and service (KJV).
Perhaps this message is not only intended for the Ushers but for the Worship team to reflect. As singers and dancers we always think that we are already worshipping through our music and dance. Perhaps, honestly, we are doing this to serve ourselves and our flesh. The attention we are getting is perhaps our reward and not the Joy of the Lord. We may have become mere Christian “entertainers” and not servants! We may be willing to attend Church services as long as we can sing and play before a crowd. If somehow we are not allowed to do so, we will not be willing to come at all. We may have become performers and not servant-worshippers!
Here are some verses in the Bible that you can feed on SO that you will never say to yourself after serving God and the brethren that “I HAVE NOT WORSHIP THE LORD TODAY.”
Worship and Service in the Bible is one and the same!
NEW TESTAMENT
Matthew 4:10 Then saith Jesus unto him, Get thee hence, Satan: for it is written, Thou shalt worship the Lord thy God, and him only shalt thou serve.
Luke 4:8 And Jesus answered and said unto him, Get thee behind me, Satan: for it is written, Thou shalt worship the Lord thy God, and him only shalt thou serve.
OLD TESTAMENT
Deuteronomy 4:19 And lest thou lift up thine eyes unto heaven, and when thou seest the sun, and the moon, and the stars, [even] all the host of heaven, shouldest be driven to worship them, and serve them, which the LORD thy God hath divided unto all nations under the whole heaven.
Deuteronomy 8:19 And it shall be, if thou do at all forget the LORD thy God, and walk after other gods, and serve them, and worship them, I testify against you this day that ye shall surely perish.
Deuteronomy 11:16 Take heed to yourselves, that your heart be not deceived, and ye turn aside, and serve other gods, and worship them;
Deuteronomy 30:17 But if thine heart turn away, so that thou wilt not hear, but shalt be drawn away, and worship other gods, and serve them;
1 Kings 9:6 [But] if ye shall at all turn from following me, ye or your children, and will not keep my commandments [and] my statutes which I have set before you, but go and serve other gods, and worship them:
2 Chronicles 7:19 But if ye turn away, and forsake my statutes and my commandments, which I have set before you, and shall go and serve other gods, and worship them;
Jeremiah 13:10 This evil people, which refuse to hear my words, which walk in the imagination of their heart, and walk after other gods, to serve them, and to worship them, shall even be as this girdle, which is good for nothing.
Jeremiah 25:6 And go not after other gods to serve them, and to worship them, and provoke me not to anger with the works of your hands; and I will do you no hurt.
Daniel 3:12 There are certain Jews whom thou hast set over the affairs of the province of Babylon, Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego; these men, O king, have not regarded thee: they serve not thy gods, nor worship the golden image which thou hast set up.
Daniel 3:14 Nebuchadnezzar spake and said unto them, [Is it] true, O Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, do not ye serve my gods, nor worship the golden image which I have set up?
Daniel 3:18 But if not, be it known unto thee, O king, that we will not serve thy gods, nor worship the golden image which thou hast set up.
Daniel 3:28 [Then] Nebuchadnezzar spake, and said, Blessed [be] the God of Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, who hath sent his angel, and delivered his servants that trusted in him, and have changed the king's word, and yielded their bodies, that they might not serve nor worship any god, except their own God.
To the Ushering Ministry, Continue to be faithful to the Lord and His work, but don’t forget to express your worship through corporate singing and dancing. Martha the servant is just as important as Mary the worshipper. One cannot be without the other. They are both serving the worshipping the Lord in their own way. Putting them together paints a true picture of a true worshipping church that the Lord delights upon. After we have serve God through the church, worship the Lord at His feet in loving adoration.
Together with the Ushering Ministry, let us all worship Jesus in Spirit and in Truth!
God bless us all!
Pastor Edward
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