And when the wise men saw the star, they were so ecstatic that they shouted and celebrated with unrestrained joy. When they came into the house and saw the young child with Mary, his mother, they were overcome. Falling to the ground at his feet they worshiped him. Then they opened their treasure boxes full of gifts and presented him with gold, frankincense, and myrrh.

Matthew 2:10-11, The Passion Translation

The Apostle Matthew tells us how the wise men presented to Jesus gifts of gold, frankincense and myrrh. Their offerings express their worship of Jesus as they understand Him to be and who He is. In other words, worship creates for us the capacity and opportunity to mirror back to God the same love that God has for us. Because God freely gives Himself to us, we give freely of ourselves to God.

The amazing revealing of Jesus to the wise men brought them incredible joy and they opened their treasure chests to offer their best gifts to Him. Their ability to give generously reveals a worshipping heart. True worship nurtures a spirit of excellence in us. We can endeavour to give God our best because God has given His best to us in the person of Jesus Christ. In doing so, our act of worship is no longer to bring a sacrifice, but giving ourselves fully to God.

Worship and giving are two ways we can tell God how much He means to us and how much we love Him. Part of what hinders worship and giving is the fear that God might want more from us than we can afford. This unreasonable fear comes from an orphan spirit. If you are not convinced of God's love, then you are not convicted by God's faithfulness and provision.

God will never confidently demand from us what He will not cheerfully supply to us. If God was to do that, then our worship becomes a performance of self effort. And any self effort on our part to please God will lead to self-righteousness and a misleading sense of entitlement. Both are enemies of true worship because they produce false expectations and disappointments.

Pray for God's grace to enable you to worship and give liberally from the treasure of your heart. It is a kind of prayer only sons and daughters of God will pray. Let it be your continuous prayer.