Fresh Manna
by Pastor Tim Burt

One morning while I was praying and worshiping the Lord, He spoke to my heart. It was very clear and what He spoke to me was a fresh word to my heart. By that I mean that I had never before had the thought He was communicating with me at that moment. As I was worshiping Him He spoke to my heart and said, Tim, worship isn’t for my benefit. When the Lord speaks to me He usually doesn’t say many words. He’ll make a statement and then as I pause, think, and pray about what He has said, scriptures will come to my mind and the Lord will continue the conversation through those verses. That is the benefit of having learned and put God’s word in your heart. He will most often speak to us through His Word. If you don’t have His Word in your heart, it’s more difficult to discern between your own imagination and what God is truly saying to you.

The Lord had said,  Tim, worship isn’t for my benefit. As I began to think about what the Lord spoke, I heard more. I heard Him say, I am not ego deprived. That was all I heard. I just began to meditate further and think about what the Lord had spoken. Suddenly, it was as if the lights came on.

I am a worshiper of God and always have been since I gave my life to Jesus. I was so thankful for Him saving me that I always wanted to find ways to express my thanks and love to Him. Besides that, the Word of God instructs us to worship the Lord. The Lord alone is worthy of and deserves our worship. Yet now I could see worship in another new and exciting way. The Lord said, Tim, worship isn’t for my benefit. It’s for yours!  The Lord was showing me that worshiping Him was for my benefit, not His. It was so easy to see. And so true!

Sometimes life seems like more than a plateful. As a man, a husband, a father, a Pastor, a son, a brother, a friend, and a Christian, it can sometimes seem like there are so many responsibilities—so many things I should do and do well. I want to be good at every one of these things. I want to be diligent and do what’s right and show the proper respect and love and friendship while being responsible for each of these areas of my life. Because I do, it brings me to this simple truth; outside of God, I can’t do it. Jesus warned us of that in John 15:5 (NIV).  “He said, ‘I am the vine; you are the branches. If a man remains in me and I in him, he will bear much fruit; apart from me you can do nothing.'”

It’s only when I’ve ever thought I could do all this and attempted to do it in my own strength that I’ve fallen flat on my face feeling overwhelmed or like a failure. God never created us to live outside His grace, strength, and help. The grace of God is His supernatural help given to us to do all the things He has given us to do well. He knew we’d feel overwhelmed without Him. He wanted us to lean on and count on Him—on His grace. When we learn to really focus on the greatness of our God and upon the covenant of blessing He established with us and for our benefit; when we meditate on His love that surpasses human understanding that He has for us; when we truly believe He desires and is willing to help us; then and only then will we lean on Him, and ask and have faith in His grace to help us. This is where we gain the strength to look any challenge in the eye knowing the Lord will help us. If we did walk in this kind of faith and strength, then we’d feel like the writer of Psalm 46:1-3 (NIV) who wrote,  “God is our refuge and strength, and ever-present help in trouble. Therefore we will not fear, though the earth give way and the mountains fall into the heart of the sea, though its waters roar and foam and the mountains quake with their surging.”

You have to admit, if you were anywhere near mountains falling or caught in roaring seas, you’d be shaking in your boots. These are the kinds of things that cause instant panic. But the revelation being shared in these verses is that when our heart deeply worships God, His presence grows within us. In worship, the revelation of His love, power, and might are magnified.  As we magnify Him through worship, our problems and feelings of being overwhelmed shrink. The light and revelation of His faithfulness, promise, and love strengthen us so that in His strength, we can manage the challenges before us a step at a time.

That is why the Lord said to me, Tim, worship isn’t for my benefit. Worshiping the Lord is for us—for our benefit. Psalm 95:6-7 9 (NIV) says, “Come, let us bow down in worship, let us kneel before the LORD our Maker; for He is our God and we are the people of His pasture, the flock under His care.” Psalm 34:3 (NIV) says, “Oh, magnify the LORD with me, And let us exalt His name together.”

God is not egotistical. He does not tell us to worship Him for Himself. He tells us to worship Him so that as we will reflect on the magnificence of the Heavens and creation around us—reflecting that the one that created this all, loves us and is watching over us as His children day by day.

Worship elevates the Lord to His rightful place—the throne of our hearts! When we worship the awesomeness of God, He is magnified in our spirit, and the cares, worries, and lies of the devil shrink. When we worship the Lord our faith grows in our hearts and the supernatural help of God flows into our lives. When we worship the Lord, He becomes Almighty God and we become His children. Praise His Holy Name!

Psalms 89:15 (NLT) “Happy are those who hear the joyful call to worship, for they will walk in the light of your presence, Lord.” 

In His love,
Pastor Tim Burt

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