EPISODE 04: God Shows Up to Inhabit Our Worship

Meeting a new neighbor can be a big deal. But when it’s God moving into the neighborhood … well, that’s a huge deal!

Solomon spent 7 years carefully building the temple in Jerusalem, making sure everything was perfect. After all, the temple would be filled with God’s presence and be where all Israel came to worship.

Today we’ll GET INTO the story of Solomon building the temple and explore God’s presence—then and now. After the video we’ll TALK IT UP and ACT IT OUT, discovering how what happened in the temple is still happening today, and much closer to home.

So grab a seat, settle in, and stream the “Solomon’s Temple” video!

In today’s video, God showed up to inhabit (INHABIT (verb): to live in; be present in; use as a dwelling) the worship (WORSHIP (noun): great love or devotion; a time when great love and praise are shown to God. (verb): to honor or adore; to give glory to) of His people. God literally filled the temple with His presence, inviting His people to turn their hearts and minds to Him.

God is still giving His people—that includes us—the same opportunity. We can still meet Him as we worship. Use these questions to TALK IT UP and dig into what God’s Word tells us about God showing up to inhabit our worship:

Where in today’s story do you see God showing up? What did that look like?
Back in Solomon’s day, God’s people worshiped Him through song, praise, and offering sacrifices. Describe what worshiping God looks like today. What have you seen or heard?
Solomon’s attention drifted away from God. He started to focus on impressing people and building his own fame. What tempts people to take their attention off God today?
In what ways does worshiping God help you stay connected to Him?
Tell a partner how you’ve seen God show up during a time of worship—or is that something you haven’t seen yet?

God’s presence filled the temple Solomon built, and it’s God’s presence that inspires our worship today. When you get a sense of who God is, of all God is, well—it’s hard not to be in awe.

You might be thinking: If only God were still filling buildings with His presence.

Good news: Because Jesus rescued us, God now fills more than a building. He fills us with His presence through His Holy Spirit.

The Bible says this: “Do you not know that your bodies are temples of the Holy Spirit, who is in you, whom you have received from God?” (1 Corinthians 6:19)

In Solomon’s time, God’s people could visit the temple; as a believer, you are the temple. Solomon built a temple to be filled with worship; God built you for the same reason.

Let’s explore how we might be worship-filled temples. Pick 1 (or more) of these activities and put into action what you learned in TALK IT UP.

Find a place where you can be alone. Set an empty chair where you can stand in front of it and then, while standing there, think about how God is with you in the room. (He is always with you, you know!) Respond as if God were actually seated in the chair. Will you bow? Kneel? Lie flat on the floor? Use your body as well as your words to worship God now.
Write a list of words that describe God and then read aloud the list, letting those worshipful words be a prayer to God.
Sing a praise song. Don’t know any? Write one! It’s OK if you aren’t a champion singer; God will always accept your best effort as worship and praise!
Explore how it feels to be worship-filled temples by playing a quick round of “Fill ’Er Up”!

These questions will help you connect the Bible story to your own life. Use all the questions or pick 1 or 2—it’s up to you!

Like God showed up to be with His people when they worshiped Him at the new temple, God shows up to be with us when we worship Him. Describe a time you knew God was with you and you just wanted to jump up and shout out praise to Him. Where were you? How did that feel?
Do you think worship is more something we do … or we are? Why do you answer as you do?
Given what you’ve learned about God showing up to inhabit the worship of His people, how might you think differently about worship services you attend? How might you act differently while you’re there?

The first rule of being a king or queen is: You don’t bow to others; they bow to you. You learn that on your very first day of Royalty School.

Yet we see Solomon, the chosen king of Israel, as he stands before the altar of the Lord in the temple. The crowd that has come to see the dedication of the temple watches their king kneel and lift his hands toward Heaven (2 Chronicles 6:12-13).

Solomon is bowing before the King, the Lord the God of Israel. Solomon praises God for showing up to be with His people and for inhabiting their worship. Now it’s your turn to thank God for those same things and do it in a way Solomon would find familiar.

Directions

Have everyone stand with you and then bow at the waist as you thank God for showing up to be with all of you. God is faithful to be with you!
Next have everyone kneel and lift their hands as you thank God for dwelling not just among you, but in you through the presence of the Holy Spirit.
Finally, invite others to also pray aloud. Finish by asking everyone to say with you, “In Jesus’ name we pray these things. Amen.”

Sharing what God’s doing in and through us encourages us to remember that He always shows up. Plus, we encourage other believers! Here are some ideas for sharing what you’ve discovered about God showing up to inhabit our worship.

Use images you find in magazines or print from online to create a collage that reflects what you find worship-worthy in God. Give someone else a guided tour of your collage, explaining the images.
The next time you’re in the bath or shower, it’s time for a little rub-a-dub worship. Belt out a worship song at a roof-raising volume. Don’t know a worship song? Make one up! (Note: singing loudly guarantees you’re sharing a worship message that others will be sure to ask you about!)
Write a review. Describe why God deserves praise and have an adult post your review online.

Use the hashtag #GodInAction so we can see what you’ve been up to!

1 Kings 1:32-40; 5–9; 2 Chronicles 2–8; 1 Kings 10:1–11:8