Christmas is several days away and at this point we are in one of two situations: relaxed and ready, or in total panic and not enjoying the season at all. I’ve found myself in the latter category more times than I care to admit. I know that shopping and Santa can be great fun, but if we’re overwhelmed and stressed by it all, we can quickly lose sight of what we are actually celebrating—the birth of Jesus and what that means for us individually. So this year, in the midst of gifts and parties, I want us to remember who we really are—true worshipers.
It was about five years into my walk with the Lord when this scripture caught my attention: “Yet a time is coming and has now come when the true worshipers will worship the Father in the Spirit and in truth, for they are the kind of worshipers the Father seeks.” John 4:23 (NIV). I wanted to get to the bottom of this because with all my heart I wanted to be who the father was seeking. But how is it possible to worship in spirit and in truth when you can’t touch or feel either of these things? So I began to seek the Lord regarding the meaning.
I asked Him what He meant by “a time is coming and has now come?” This sounded contradictory to me. He showed me that the time was coming because the Cross was looming ahead. And the time had now come because the Messiah was on the scene! He continued by revealing to me that when we accept Jesus as our savior, our spirit becomes brand new – 2 Cor. 5:17 “Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old has passed away; behold, the new has come.” (ESV) That answered worshiping the Lord in spirit. And when we accept Jesus, we embrace the only truth that matters—God’s plan of redemption for all mankind. So now we are worshiping the Lord in spirit and in truth. Simply put, a true worshiper is a believer in Christ, and this is who the Father is looking for.
After the fall and the separation of God and mankind, He went to great lengths to restore us back into right relationship with Him. As a matter of fact, it took 4,000 years to come to pass. So God’s greatest desire is to find those who will choose His Son and step into this amazing plan to be filled with the Holy Spirit thereby allowing us to walk hand in hand with the Father—just like in the beginning.
I spent years trying to be a true worshiper and hoping that if I did everything right and followed all the rules, I could possibly be who the Father was looking for. I wasted many hours and days concerned with whether or not I was really making the cut. Mostly because I knew my own heart and of course nobody knew my mistakes more than me. When all the while I was already who I desired to be—a Jesus girl—and this is who the Father is looking for. I didn’t have to be perfect and neither do you.
So if you’re struggling with the stresses and pressures that can come with the Christmas season, take a deep breath and remember who you are—a true worshiper of Jesus who can go directly to the father for your every need and desire. You don’t have to work for it. By God’s grace, everything that is encompassed in the Cross belongs to you: peace, rest, comfort, healing, provision and joy (to name a few). And this is the true reason for the season. Merry Christmas!