Greater Passion In Worship Part 1

Exodus 20:1-11 ESV

And God spoke all these words, saying,“I am the LORD your God, who brought you out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of slavery.
        “You shall have no other gods before me.
“You shall not make for yourself a carved image, or any likeness of anything that is in heaven above, or that is in the earth beneath, or that is in the water under the earth. You shall not bow down to them or serve them, for I the LORD your God am a jealous God, visiting the iniquity of the fathers on the children to the third and the fourth generation of those who hate me, but showing steadfast love to thousands of those who love me and keep my commandments.
“You shall not take the name of the LORD your God in vain, for the LORD will not hold him guiltless who takes his name in vain.
“Remember the Sabbath day, to keep it holy. Six days you shall labor, and do all your work, but the seventh day is a Sabbath to the LORD your God. On it you shall not do any work, you, or your son, or your daughter, your male servant, or your female servant, or your livestock, or the sojourner who is within your gates. For in six days the LORD made heaven and earth, the sea, and all that is in them, and rested on the seventh day. Therefore the LORD blessed the Sabbath day and made it holy.

Have you ever wondered why it is that when someone is angry, frustrated or in pain that the words "Ooooh Adolf Hitler" rarely ever seem to be uttered? Or how about "Oh Maria mother of Fidel Castro"?
I ask a couple of co-workers this question the other day at my place of employment. The looks and answers were quite enlightening. For all the answers of blaming the culture, family, or just plain co-incidence, they seemed to scoff the idea that the answer lies in the heart of each of us who are in rebellion and war against God.
When it comes to the purpose of our very existence the ultimate top of the list is our individual and corporate worship of God. Worship is at it's simplest definition is giving to God acknowledgement, devotion, and effort, to His glory and praise.
The first four commandments of the famous ten seem to be a good starting point for our goal of Greater Passion in Worship in 2013. Below are just some applications where some improvement and growth can come.

1. Clear out all competing gods. One of the biggest deceptions that we all seem to have is that we all worship all the time. Whether we realize it or not we in our heart give honor, praise, and time to something(s). It could be employment, sports, hobbies, entertainment, activities, people, or groups of people. God makes Himself very clear that He shares glory and praise with no one. We who claim Christ as Savior are in a life time warfare with ourselves to cast our these gods that seek to steal from the one true God who deserves our undivided attention. Sometimes comparison, commitment, or compromise will clue us in on our heart's attention. 
• In comparison does a headache keep you from group worship but not something else more fun, or "important"?
• Is your commitment to the group worship dependent on feelings and circumstance?
• Do you make compromising deals with yourself and others in name of doing a good activity?