Called to Worship - Vernon Whaley

Worship is our response to God's call to fellowship. It is through worship that we express our relationship to the Creator. The Hebrews knew about worship. They used a great number of words to describe what worship was all about. Shachah meant "to kneel or prostrate oneself in reverence"; Shabach means "to shout to the LORD"; Yadah was used to mean "worship with uplifted hands"; Tehillah meant to "sing spontaneous songs of praise." My personal favorite though was the word Halal, which literally meant to "celebrate God foolishly and boast about his attributes." But when we tie all of these diverse meanings together we find the very heart of worship.

Love the LORD your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your strength. 

(Deut. 6:5, Matt. 22:37, Mark 12:30, Luke 10:27)

It is with this premise - that Worship is our outpouring of Love towards the Creator - that Dr. Whaley begins Called to Worship. Written in a very conversational, one might even say Sunday School-esque, style, Whaley's words contain a sense of profundity in their simplicity. He tears down the wall of the modern conception of worship as something we DO before the pastor gives his sermon and reveals to us the City of God that the wall would not let us see. Worship, says Whaley, is not about ritual or routine, but simply about love.

In about 350 pages, Whaley takes us through the 66 chapters of Worship called the Bible, from the privilege of perfect worship that Adam and Eve enjoyed before the fall to the once again perfect worship that all believers will enjoy in eternity. Overall, Called to Worship is a wonderful exposition of how to do what we were created to do - WORSHIP! It emphasizes that worship is something we live, an integral part of who we are as Christians, and not just something that we do at church on Sunday. It engages both the heart and the mind, and leaves the reader desperate to worship his Creator. In this book, worship moves from the mundane and ritual to the moving and vibrant. Whether you are a worship leader or a layperson, if you want to see what Biblical worship is all about, this book is a must.

Called to Worship - Vernon Whaley