Worship is Not About Us

In the late 1990s, Matt Redman wrote a worship song that quickly became well-known: "The Heart of Worship." The key line in that song is the reminder that worship is "not about us," but rather about focusing on God. It's so easy in our busy lives to adopt a "check-the-box" mentality or fall into the attitude of just getting things done. This often spills over into our worship life as well. Singing songs in church can become just another task to check off, rather than an opportunity to offer our heartfelt praise to God.

There’s a phrase we sometimes use--“sacrifice of praise” --to acknowledge that there are moments when we don’t feel like worshiping, yet we do it anyway because God is worthy. Ultimately, worship is not about us; it’s entirely about Him. If we expect to “get” something out of worship every time, we’re missing the point.

However, there’s a beautiful tension here: you can’t outgive God! When He sees our genuine desire to worship Him, He blesses us with His presence. In the end, it’s us who receive the ministry. This is simply God’s generous nature at work. Worship is a relational experience—we give to Him, He blesses us, we’re filled, and then we worship even more. It’s a cycle that keeps deepening our relationship with Him, and it’s a beautiful thing.