A Vision of Praise and Worship

– Extravagant Worship

Periodically I go back and reread books on worship that I’ve collected throughout the
years. This time I felt led to pull “Extravagant Worship” by Darlene Zschech. And here is
where I started:
[Everyone in town knew her as a sinful woman, but her selfless display of extravagant
worship changed how everyone remembers her now. Jesus was in Bethany, reclining at the table
in the home of a man know as Simon the Leper. “When [she] learned that Jesus ws eating at the
Pharisee’s house, she brought an alabaster jar of perfume, and as she stood behind him at his feet
weeping, she began to wet his feet with her tears. Then she wiped them with her hair, kissed
them and poured perfume on them” (Luke 7:37-38).
Imagine the depth of this woman’s tears being enough to clean the dusty feet of Jesus!
Imagine the gratitude that moved her to boldly display her devotion and adoration of the Man
reclining at the table. She had heard Him teach of the kingdom of heaven. She had understood
the heart of the Lord. She had see the miracles He had done. She had been delivered from her
old way of life through His loving acceptance of her.
With tears flowing from a sobbing heart, she washed the Lord’s tired feet and wiped
away the soil with the tresses of her hair. Then she perfumed His feet with oil from her alabaster
jar that was valued at a year’s wages. Her love for Jesus knew no bounds. When the other
voiced their disapproval of her extravagance, Jesus said, “Leave her alone, She has done a
beautiful thing to me.”]

Like Mary, the tears and this deep longing within my inner most being once more began
to rise up with the desire to pour out every ounce of my being into worship before the Lord. Not
the usual longing for intimacy with God, but an overpowering and overwhelming need of God.
During this time of intimacy, God has once more began expanding on a vision He’d begun last
summer of how we are called to raise up, mentor, and train worship leaders within our church.
But more than that, He’s calling each of us (the church body) to be extravagant worshippers, lost
in him, our eyes stayed on the cross, time with Him our overwhelming and unquenchable desire.

“My heart’s desire is that God

will find me to be an extravagant worshiper.”
 And then God began impressing the importance of all the worship team attending
teaching nights, becoming firmly rooted and grounded in the Word. If we could only get to that
place of unquenchable hunger, where we don’t want to stop, we have to have, and need more of
God and His Word.
Going on in “Extravagant Worship:”
[What does it mean to be an extravagant worshiper?
Webster’s Collegiate Dictionary defines the word extravagant as “2 a: exceeding the
limits of reason b: lacking in moderation, balance and restraint (praise) c: extremely or
excessively elaborate 3 a: spending much more than necessary b: profuse, lavish.” The Holy
Spirit is calling us to excessive worship. We’re to be overgenerous in our praises to God.
Extravagant worship means to elaborate in our offering of admiration to Him; our worship is to
be over and above reasonable limits previously established.
The cause of Christ pumping away in our veins should cause extraordinary praise to the
Father. I long to worship Jesus as did the woman with the alabaster jar of perfume! Excessive,
abundant, expensive, superfluous, lavish, costly, precious, rich, priceless, valuable . . .
Jesus knew the woman who anointed Him with her precious perfume fully understood
that she had been forgiven for terrible sins. Jesus explained this love she had had for Him to
Simon the Leper, telling him a parable about two servants who were forgiven for debts by their
Master. One owed Him a little; the other owed him much. Jesus continued the story:

“Neither of them had the money to pay him back, so he canceled

the debts of both. Now which of them will love him more?
Simon replied, I suppose the one who had the bigger debt canceled.”
“You have judged correctly,” Jesus said.
Then he turned toward the woman and said to Simon, “Do you see this
Woman? I came into your house. You did not give me any water for my
feet, but she wet my feet with her tears and wiped them with her hair.
You did not give me a kiss, but this woman, from the time I entered, has not stopped kissing my
feet. You did not put oil on my head, but she has
poured perfume on my feet. Therefore, I tell you, her many sins have
been forgiven—for she loved much. But he who has been
forgiven little loves little.”
 Then Jesus said to her, “Your sins are forgiven.”
The other guests began to say among themselves,
“Who is this who even forgives sins?”
Jesus said to the woman, “Your faith has saved you; go in peace”
(Luke 7:42-50).

What is an extravagant worshiper? An extravagant worshiper might be defined as

someone who is committed to praising God at all times, whose passion to worship the King is
unquenchable, and whose single desire is found in Psalm 73:25-26:

Whom have I in heaven but you?

And earth has nothing I desire besides you.
My flesh and my heart may fail,
but God is the strength of my heart
and my portion forever.

When we stand before the Lord to worship Him, we are to worship Him in truth. To do
so, we must ask ourselves, “How big are the debts Jesus canceled for me? How generous was
He toward me when considering the pain my sins inflicted upon Him? How much thanks do I
owe Him for canceling the consequences of my past? Am I overgenerous with my worship? Do
I exceed reasonable limits when praising Him? Or am I merely doing what is required, merely
fulfilling the basic level of commitment? Am I simply trying to earn my right of passage?” If
our worship is spiritual and truthful, we will search our souls and appraise the value we place on
His love for us. What can we bring to the altar that represents extravagance?]

I didn’t think the tears would stop that day. How was I to go to work, tears streaming,
big, swollen red eyes, and how would I explain it? The tears did stop, and I did go to work.
However, this day was different I had been transformed by God into what He would have me be.
I had put him first and had given as extravagantly as possible. God heard the groanings and cry
of my heart and replaced them with his power and His love. That day went so much better.
Every day should and would be this way if only we could become extravagant worshippers.

This is my hearts cry for the worship team and our church!
Vicky Lucia