My ears reverberated with echoes so loud my brain hurt. I could not hear anything but the massive wave of sound made of shouts, yells, and screams. My eyes saw a sea of fist-pumping fans, jumping in the stands, snarling as they cheered for their home team. It was the “loudest crowd roar” in the Guinness Book of World Records, and it 
was just a few Sundays ago at CenturyLink Field, a stadium seemingly built for noise production.
People wore their home team jerseys, hats and waived foamed fingers — while others, poked plugs in their ears.
Got me wondering… tap… tap… tap… what do I worship with this enthusiasm? And, what have these people become?
The first answer is…I worship God fervently in my spirit, but honestly, I don’t wear jerseys with his name on my back, or shout so loud that I lose my voice. Although my worship is 24/7 and doesn’t crescendo like it did at the stadium, it’s authentic, yearning for God and honoring him.
Which leads me to answering the second question…what are people becoming? They, including many non-suspecting Christian men and women worship athletes, locales and logos with what we wear, cheer for, and yearn for. But God has a name for that, and it’s not pleasant: Idolatry.
Imagine the next time you roll into church, wearing a hat, jersey and a painted face that says “I’M A REBEL FOR CHRIST” and you sing loudly, seek God fervently, waive your hands openly in honest and honoring praise for our father in heaven. What would people think? Should you care?
If you and your character are under the influence of God’s touch, then you are becoming more and more like Christ every day. You recognize God’s amazing grace, soul-saving sacrifice, and imminent power in your life. You would naturally — even audaciously and sometimes spontaneously — worship Christ with all your mind, heart, strength and spirit.
That’s what God directs us to do in Luke 10:27 “…Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength and with all your mind…”
Unfortunately, all too often, power and pleasure get our worship. Satan tried using these on Jesus in Luke 4. But Jesus answered in verse 8 “It is written: ‘Worship the Lord your God and serve him only.’”
Here’s the question God’s men need to answer daily: Are you becoming more like Christ today? That will tell you what you really worship. And, you know who will tell you if you are? The people around you! It takes courage to ask this question, but it will be revealing.
If you worship Christ, then you will become like Christ. That’s what it says in 2 Corinthians 3:18 “And we all, who with unveiled faces contemplate the Lord’s glory, are being transformed into his image with ever-increasing glory, which comes from the Lord, who is the Spirit.”
I’m not suggesting you start wearing a robe, sandals and grow a beard. But, the next time you are in church during the worship service, I hope you give God all your worship. He deserves it more than your favorite sport team!
In case you missed them:
Disarming the Profanity Sting
Looking Forward to a “Good Fight”
Eradicating the Porn Pandemic
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Kenny Luck is the president and founder of Every Man Ministries. As the men’s pastor at Saddleback Church in California, Kenny has found the proven way to improve men’s ministries around the world. Sleeping Giant is this blueprint, and gives men the tools they need to lead and understand their own men’s ministry. Watch Kenny’s teachings at EveryManMinistries.com.
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