Three Ways to Worship God Whenever and Wherever

The next Conference talk I'm going to blog about is about worship. As I listened to it, I thought of a scripture we read in our family scripture study recently. In Alma 32, Alma taught a group of Zoramites that we can worship God anywhere, not just in our meetinghouses, and we can worship God every day, not just on Sundays. Listening to Bishop Dean M. Davies describe the true nature of worship, I began to wonder how it's possible to maintain that feeling of reverence constantly.

I don't know about "constantly," but I know how we can worship God daily, no matter where we are, no matter what day of the week it is, and so does almost every Primary child and seminary student. We can worship God daily by praying to Him and studying His words. These simple practices, often repeated as being essential and of great benefit, are just that, and they are also a good way to help us direct our thoughts to the Lord in worship.

Another way to worship God is through appreciation. Many of us spend at least a small portion of our daily lives outside, if only to travel from one building to another. Whenever we go outside or near a window, we can think about the wonders of nature and how grateful we are to the Lord, who created them. Also, we all have bodies and spirits, and as limited as our bodies and spirits may be, they are all still marvellous gifts from God, and we can be thankful to God for all that we can do with them. Additionally, though this may not be a gift from God, per say, but I find myself frequently impressed by the capabilities of modern technology (and the blessing of modern conveniences), and I occasionally remember to thank God for the many blessings we enjoy and often take for granted. Expressing thanks to God is a fine way to worship Him, and it's something we can do any time.

A third way to worship God daily is to keep His commandments and strive to become like Him. These two practices are actually the same because God's commandments were designed to help us become more like Him. As we keep His commandments, we develop His attributes. I've heard it said that imitation is the sincerest form of flattery. I don't know if flattering God is quite what we're going for, and imitating God doesn't sound quite right to me, but emulating God is a decent way to worship Him.

Studying the scriptures, praying, giving thanks, and keeping God's commandments are all things we can do frequently - nearly constantly - throughout the day. It takes conscious effort, at least at first, but the blessings we'll receive for doing so can certainly be worth it. In the Sacramental prayer over the water, we're promised that we can "always have His [God's] Spirit to be with us," so long as we "always remember Him." Worshipping God through study, prayer, gratitude, and obedience is how we can "always remember" God. Emphasis on always. We don't have to wait until Sunday to worship God, and we don't have to be in a church either. Those things can help us worship Him, but if we put our minds to it, we can worship God any time, and anywhere.