When Jesus began His earthly ministry, one of His first actions was to cast the moneychangers out of the temple: “Do not make My Father’s house a house of merchandise” (John 2:16).  He removed the businesspeople from the temple because they were bringing things into worship that shouldn’t be there. In the same way, our challenge and calling as worshippers is to maintain the purity of worship without mixture – without attitudes of self-promotion or pride or personal gain.

Leading others into the presence of God is a privilege and honor, and it is something not to be taken lightly. If the Lord has given you the position of leading worship, He has given you a sacred responsibility - as well as the authority to stand as a Levite and minister to Him. Here are a few tips to prepare spiritually for leading worship.

We are worshippers; we are not performers. As worship musicians, this means that we are called to point people to Jesus, not to ourselves.

The Holy Spirit is the true worship leader. As we are playing piano or singing, our goal is to hear and follow His voice as we play, sing, and lead. Before we discuss how to follow the voice of the Holy Spirit in worship, we need to establish that God still speaks today and we can hear His voice.

Mary of Bethany was one of Jesus’ dearest friends and most radical lovers.  Her lavish worship has inspired songs, books, and works of art for centuries; and her unrestrained adoration has shown the way of love to millions. In her story, we find an allegory of each of our lives. 

Welcome to 2025!  As we begin a new year, my personal prayer is that this would be a year of His presence – a year to know Jesus more, to pursue His heart, and to become more like Him.

At the beginning of each year, I ask the Lord for vision and direction for our community at Adoration Music Academy.  I am excited to share with you the vision for this year as well as new opportunities that will be launching soon.

Another key aspect of the worship of heaven is the centrality of thanksgiving.  Recently I was challenged to have a spirit of thankfulness in all things.  As a result, I decided to study the Scriptures on the topic and was amazed by what I found.

The greatest privilege is to know God and be His friend.  Far above fulfilling any calling, purpose, or achievement, we desire to know Him… to sit in His heart, to be trusted, and to discover how our lives can minister to Him.  We see this same heart cry throughout the Scripture, but perhaps most notably in the life of Moses.

Worship is one of the most intimate expressions of love between us and Jesus.  As we worship, we come face to face with God, as we were created to do; and as we behold His face, our hearts erupt in continual worship.

Let's be honest... sometimes we just don't feel like worshipping. We know we should, and we know it is our "one heart and one purpose" (Jer. 32:39), but often our hearts just aren't feeling it. Recently I was pondering this reality and asking the Lord what it is that positions our hearts in the place of truly desiring to worship.

In order to worship Jesus “in spirit and in truth,” we have to know Him. The problem is that many people today don’t know Him. What does He like? What does He dislike? What are His ways? What is on His heart in this moment? Beyond simply speaking of Him in words, how can our hearts truly know Him?

Worship must begin in what the Scriptures call "the secret place" (Matt. 6:6), with just you and the Lord. You will never be able to lead others into worship in a corporate setting until you can worship alone when no one is watching. You will never be able to worship at your instrument until you can first worship without it. So how do we worship Jesus alone in the secret place? Psalm 46:10 gives us the key: “Be still and know that I am God.”

What happens when we worship? Are we simply singing songs in our living room, or is our personal worship a part of something far bigger, far more eternal? Throughout history, the Scriptures and the church have always seen worship as the coming together of heaven and earth.

In this life, there will be times when we go through hardship and pain. We pray for healing but our loved one dies. We are in pain and the doctors cannot figure out why. We deal with trauma and loss, face financial difficulties, or simply have too much to do in a day. When we face these hard times, we naturally want answers – we want to know why this is happening to us.

One of the beautiful results of worship is that it creates a habitation – a dwelling place, or a resting place – both for the Lord and for us. In the New Testament, we find that Jesus often traveled to Bethany to stay at the home of Mary, Martha, and Lazarus. Why? He was loved there. They worshipped Him, and He made their home His habitation.

We were created for one purpose – to worship, to behold Jesus, to love Him. That is the only thing that will ever satisfy us. No pleasure on earth, no promotion, no bonus, no person will ever satisfy us – only Jesus will. We were born to worship. Worship is the highest calling. That doesn’t mean that everyone has to sit in a prayer room and sing all day, but everyone is called to this heart of worship.