What is Worship

There are a lot of things I could be doing right now, but I think my ADD got the better of me right now. This is bothering me so much that I can't help but have to write about it. I may add more stuff later.It has been bothering me for a long time, but my recent experience at Teens Conference have actually created pain in me that has been hurting me for the last 3-4 weeks.The problem is how worship leaders are more obsessed with imitating "successful" churches or worship leader in what they do than why they do what they do. For example, when it come to prayer, kids starts to talk about "let's do the Korean Prayer", and I go like "what?" What they meant is the one stream of Pentecostalists' method of prayer, which is very popular among a few circle of Korean Churches. The motive is, since the Korean Churches are known for being a praying church, and the number of Korean who are Christians are unbelievable, so if we pray like them, God will answer our prayers.That is scary because that has made prayer just a pretending imitation act of a group of people rather than imitating the heart.At Teens Conference, a kid walked around the Hall screaming and yelling out prayer and telling people what they should be doing, etc. First of all, that should be the job of the Worship Leader, and should be done like that of a pastor talking to the congregation, and not like a Marine Sergeant yelling at the platoon at training camp.I don't even know where to start with what's wrong with this one.I have heard from a pastor friend that at a worship conference, "Asian Style" worship was filled with Hillsong songs. Then I look at worship at our churches and at Teens Conference. They are full of imitation of Hillsong (or other worship bands) CD performance.Their idea is that since Hillsong concerts are so moving and make you feel so close to God, imitating them would bring the same effect.All the above are MYTH embedded into our young people head, and the young adults are helping it, and a lot of adult, being afraid of being called unspiritual and unsupportive, refuse to do anything about it.Why are we doing or allowing imitation of action to lead us in worshiping our Lord? I have nothing against loud and fast music, and I have nothing against praying out loud; however, when we copy action other people without making it our own, we are just a bunch of disharmony gongs that just make noise that can kill.Worshiping with emotional only is a very dangerous thing, because our emotion is the most dangerous part of us, it is a part of us that is the most vulnerable to Satan's attack. If our worship is all about logic, then we are endangering our faith to become legalistic: you HAVE to worship a certain way to be proper and acceptable to God.Worshiping must be emotional (what? I thought you said...), or else we will be like robots, but, if our emotion is without reason, we are just going through the experience looking for the next "spiritual" high. That, in no way, is worship. It is because GOD IS NOT A DRUG DEALER.The Korean Church's "success" is not due to HOW they pray, but their attitude in prayer. If someone want to imitate them, then let's get together at 6 am and pray. I mean get together, not get up at 6 am. If imitation is desired, imitate that.Hillsong is great is getting people to connect with God, but not just with everything loud and fast and excited. They spend hours in planning a "service", and they use different kind of songs with Scriptures and sharing. They also spend hours rehearsing, and there is seldom any ad lib moment. EVERYTHING has been planned. If imitation is desired, imitate that.What is Worship? Worship is to give EVERYTHING we got to focus on the One who has given us everything. Worship is not "Simon Said" nor what we feel like. Worship is digging deep into ourself and clear out every self-centered thinking and emotion, and worship the Lord our God with all our heart, soul, mind, and strength.