"For the Christ Follower, thankful worship is a Lifestyle" (Colossians 3:16-17)

Our passage says, "Let the word of Christ richly dwell within you, with all wisdom teaching and admonishing one another with psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing with thankfulness in your hearts to God. Whatever you do in word or deed, do all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks through Him to God the Father" (Colossians 3:16-17). I remember reading about Charlie Brown asking Linus, "Do you ever think much about the future?" Linus answers, "Oh, yeah, all the time!" Charlie Brown then asks, "What do you think you'd like to be when you're grown?" After a brief pause, Linus says, "Outrageously happy!" Happy is defined as, "Feeling or showing pleasure or contentment." There are primarily two ways to try and gain happiness. One way is to attempt to arrange your circumstances so that you will be content. You try to get a fulfilling job. You try to get a satisfying marriage and family life. You try to get enough money to live comfortably. You try to get and remain as healthy as you can. However, there's one huge problem! None of these things are secure! Your job can be lost. Sickness can ruin your health. There's no such thing as a trouble-free marriage or family on earth. Excess money is no security and is uncertain at best! All these things can be changed in an instant by factors beyond your control! The other way to seek happiness is to seek it in the Lord Jesus Christ and Him alone! This is because, if you're happy in Christ, you have lasting happiness! Are you happy in God? Contentment should be a distinguishing feature of the man or woman who has put his or her affairs in the hands of God! The Christ follower should be marked by contentment engaging the entire person in every area of life! I believe that we all can use some pointers in how to mature, grow, and develop in that area! This is what our passage is all about. A life that's happy in God is one of thankful worship! As we examine Paul's words of wisdom, we see that verse 16 describes the church gathering, where we're told to teach and admonish one another through God's Word and singing, thankfully worshipping God. Verse 17 extends it to every area of life! The question is, "What do we mean by worship?" I like William Temple's definition. He says, "For to worship is to quicken the conscience by the holiness of God, to feed the mind with the truth of God, to purge the imagination by the beauty of God, to open the heart to the love of God, and to devote the will to the purpose of God." True worship is concerned with the holiness of God, the truth of God, the beauty of God, the love of God, and the purpose of God! Be encouraged!