"But the time is coming—indeed, it's here now—when true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and in truth. The Father is looking for those who will worship him that way. For God is Spirit, so those who worship him must worship in spirit and in truth.” John 4:23-24
What does it mean to worship God in spirit and in truth? How do we do it?
Like many of you, there have been so many times I picked up my Bible to spend time with God, and it’s All. I. Can. Do. To keep my mind from wandering.
“What’s on my to-do list for today?”
“Did I text Meredith back?”
“I need to get Zeke started on school…”
“I wonder what’s happening on Facebook…”
--and the list goes on and on and on.
But there I sit, trying to still my mind and focus on what the Father has for me today.
More times than I can count over the years, I have sat down, feeling like I didn’t get a single thing from what I just read. I might even selfishly think to myself, “Why do I read and dedicate this time if I’m not getting anything from it?”
We do it though, because that is what it’s like to worship God in truth.
Oh…It’s PREFERABLE for me to worship at church and have the Spirit hit me just right—cue tears and boogers—"God knew just what I needed! Someone even shared a word that connected perfectly to what I am going through! I do not want this time to end!”
I love when I sit down and read my Bible and feel like every single word connects perfectly to how and when I needed it! “I could probably read a whole book of the Bible today!”
And when I pray… and feel like I could spend hours talking to the Maker—maybe even days! “He hears my heart and shares His freely with me!”
I think that is what it means to worship in spirit. The spirit part is when we “feel” His nearness. We are on FIRE!
It’s easy to worship God on the mountain when we are experiencing His presence.
But what about when we are angry or when we are grieving? What about the seasons we are not “feeling” Him?
When we pray and see no results—God didn’t heal that person, or reconcile that relationship the way we hoped He would. Every prayer feels like it hits the ceiling and dissipates.
Today, I sang every word to those songs and even closed my eyes—but if I’m honest, I’m relieved when the message starts because trying to connect was more exhausting than running a relay race.
Or what about when I’m so devastated and let down in this season of life that the last thing I want to do is sit and read my Bible for even five minutes? Maybe I’m even frustrated that God wants me to spend time with Him in this way.
I think that’s the truth part. When we trudge on when we would rather be doing ANYTHING else. We do the work and put in the time, even though right now, we aren’t seeing any results.
We continue trying to connect to the songs—even though it’s hard.
We pray, we pour it out—even if it’s the same thing we prayed yesterday.
And we spend the time reading the words He wrote for us—even if we “feel” like it doesn’t matter or that it might be a waste of time.
All because we persevere in the truth, we build the foundations of a God-filled life. We cling to that one verse He gave us, or the one song, or the one thing He spoke to us in the valley. It becomes our life support in there, the mantra that keeps our feet marching to His heartbeat, maybe even paving the path for those who will walk behind us… because they are sure to come. Truth gives us the hope for our future—that things won’t always be this way.
If we could choose, I’m sure most of us would choose the mountain over the valley every time. The mountain gives us so much perspective as to why we had to go through what we did, and it gives us a vision for our future in Christ.
But the valley is where our faith is tested and refined in the fire. The valley is where our endurance grows to get us what we need for those mountaintop places.
If there were no valley—we would have no depth, no true appreciation for the mountains.
If there were no times of truth, our times of worship in the Spirit would be cheapened. I’m not sure we could have time in the Spirit without our time in the truth.
So push in, my dear brothers and sisters. When all you have is truth to cling to, He’s still there—closer than your breath. He’s teaching our heart things we could never dream they would need to know for the seasons ahead. He is still a good Father and worthy of all of our praise—even when we can’t see Him, hear Him, or feel Him.
Someday, I know we will be thankful for these valleys that shape us into the children He’s calling us to be.
