Worship Is Not The Warm-up Act

Worship is not the bit before the real thing starts. It is one of the ways the fight is actually won.

Look at the man in Mark 5. He was tormented, living among the tombs, and nobody could hold him. Mark 5:6 says, "But when he saw Jesus afar off, he ran and worshipped him." He did not run away. Even in that state, something in him ran toward Jesus.

Ephesians 6:12 tells you what you are actually up against: "For we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high places." That is why arguing with your circumstances never seems to land. You are aiming at the wrong thing.

When you worship, you are stating who is in charge. Not hoping, stating. And you are saying it on the basis of a victory Jesus already won, not one you are trying to secure.

That is why the enemy cannot stand it. He wanted worship for himself and he has never had a shot at it. Every time you magnify God above the problem, the problem gets put back to its real size.

So when the day gets heavy, start the praise before you feel like it. The Holy Spirit meets you there, and darkness has no answer for a person who is looking at Jesus.