Worship Start Day 1

DEVOTION 1 – O God, Our God

For over two years, we have started almost every worship gathering with the same confession:

O God, Our God, you are welcome in this place.
As we gather,

may my lips praise you

may my eyes see you

may my ears hear you

may my mind focus on you

may my heart be changed by you

This is a sacred moment; change me in it!

I do not remember exactly what led me to writing this corporate confession, but I am thankful we have it. Sunday mornings can be stressful. For me, it may be a technology problem, a challenging situation, or a last-minute sickness from a volunteer. For you, it may be a bad night's sleep, an argument during the car ride, or an outfit that doesn’t fit right.

Sundays can be hard. The enemy wants us to focus on the hard, not the holy.

Do you feel that?

So, a few years back, I wrote this confession for us to start each Sunday with in the hopes that it would help us center our minds, push away distractions, and be reminded that what we are doing truly is a sacred moment where God meets us.

The opening line is the most important: O God, Our God. The goal of this confession is to start where Jesus starts His model prayer—identifying God.

"Our Father in heaven, hallowed be your name." (Matthew 6:9)

We confess that the one and only God is our God (or, as Jesus says it, our Father). He is not simply for everyone else; He is for me. He is our salvation, our hope, our Redeemer, our strength, our Comforter, and our help.

As the chorus of the congregation states that opening line, we are reminded that everyone in that room is known, loved, and desired by God. Everyone in that room can make Him the Savior from their sin and the Lord of their life.

The God we gather to worship and hear from each Sunday is my God—the God I pray to, the God I seek, the God I follow. But He is not just mine. I hope that He is your God—the God you pray to, seek, and follow.

Here is a glimpse of who our God is:

Psalm 46:1
God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble.

O God, Our God, you are welcome in this place!