Rowan Christian Assembly

Gay Lynn Dickens

At Rowan Christian Assembly we’ve learned a lot about praise and worship – not only how it can change our lives, but also how it can bring us into God’s glory.

One of my favorite scriptures is Psalm 100:4 because it talks about the “heavenly protocol” of approaching God. “Enter into His gates with thanksgiving, and into His courts with praise”. The Bible is pretty clear that if we want to enter God’s glory, we have to start with thanksgiving. We don’t start with a laundry list of our needs and concerns, or even with praise or worship. We start by thanking Him for what’s already happened.

The next step is praise. Praise is declaring who God is, and His mighty deeds and acts. When we start praising God, we’re “changing clothes” in the Spirit. We take off our “worry” clothes and we focus on the Lord. We have to make a decision to praise. Sometimes we won’t feel like praising God; that’s what makes it a sacrifice of praise.

Finally comes worship. The Greek word for worship means “to draw near to kiss,” or to revere. Jesus is saying, “Come a little closer. I want to commune with you.” He’s inviting us – you and me – into a place of intimacy, of awesomeness, of surrender. What a privilege!

Gay Lynn has been the Minister of Worship at RCA since 1992. She is the primary Praise and Worship Leader and is the Director of the Sanctuary Choir. She also works with the Children’s Ministry in the Kingdom Kids Choir and Bell Choir.