Take for example this past Sunday night when Lawrence Tynes, kicker for the New York Giants, nailed the last-second field goal to lift his team past my beloved Dallas Cowboys to victory. I had to respond. Without a word, I hit the 'Off' button on my remote in chagrin and disgust. At that time, the response honestly wasn't my most shining moment. But it was real. And it was me. My response.
But what if things had gone my way? What if Tynes shanked it, or what if DeMarcus Ware had gotten a beefy mitt on the ball and knocked it convincingly to the ground along with the Giants' hopes? Then my gut-level response would've been altogether different. I would've rushed in to my bedroom and woken my wife with shouts of joyous celebration (as I have so many other times)! Or possibly with an impromptu (and very Baptist-looking) victory dance. I just simply couldn't help it!
That is the best way to describe the life-activity we call worship: our response.
At it's core, worship is primarily a response to God's revelation of Who He is and what He has done. It is a reaction to His action. And it is something we can't help but to do when He appears or initiates or inspires in our lives.
Just ask Isaiah when you get a chance (Isaiah 6:1-9a). Or Mary (Luke 1:39-49). God acts (or just IS), we encounter, and lift up our response to Him.
Go on, worship! Every moment, every day. You can't help it!
