How Do We Worship?

"So whether you eat or drink or whatever you do, do it all for the glory of God." 1 Corinthians 10:31

What does it mean to worship God in everything we do? The concept of worship is easy to understand when we go to church, but what does this look like in a classroom? We strive to do our best in everything, using the gifts and talents God has given us. This is a standard answer that can apply to many areas of life. But what does "doing our best" and "using our gifts and talents" look like? Students in 7th and 8th grade were challenged to consider this question more specifically in regards to the writing of a research paper.

For the past few months, the 7th and 8th graders have been working hard to prepare for the science fair. A part of that preparation came through the writing of a research paper as a way to better understand the background behind their experiments. As they worked through these research papers, they were challenged to consider how they could worship God through each step of the process. After brainstorming in class, these are some of their ideas:

How do we worship God in the choosing of a topic?

We can worship God by choosing topics we might not understand. We can learn more about them and how awesome our God is. -Adriana

If it takes us a while to pick a topic, that in itself is a praise to God because we are showing Him how amazing His creation is, and how vast are the choices in His creation.  -Lizzy

We worship God because God made a very diverse world, and he made so many cool things to explore, adventure through, and learn about.  -Emily

How do we worship God as we research?

We can use our own amazingly capable brains to paraphrase information into our own words. We are finding out more about God's creation.  -Isaac

In our research, we can explore and discover God's creation. God wants us to learn and discover the world he created and research helps that.  -Daelyn

When we research, we can look at sources that are valid. We can try our best to get good facts instead of writing down the first sentence we see.  -Casey

How do we worship God in writing a thesis and outline?

We can reflect God's image by being organized. God is organized and we can keep our paper neat. -Jenna

God planed his world down to the tiniest of details, so we should take time and put effort into our own little plan too. God made sure he followed the plan and we need to follow our plan too.  -James

God is an organized God and we should strive to be like him. God had everything planned out from the beginning so we should have it prepared as well.  -Dacey

How do we worship God in the writing of our papers? (paragraphs with topic sentences and supporting details)

God cares about detail. You can see his detail in his work. None of us look the same and God pays attention to every little detail. We are reflecting his image when we care about the little things. -Katelyn

We can use our creativity that God has given us. We can use or gifts and talents that God has given to us. -Logan

How do we worship God in the editing and revising of our papers?

When we proofread our papers, it is a reminder that we're not perfect. We need God to help us and to make things perfect again.  -Maddie

By using correct punctuation and complete sentences, we show that we care and that we put time into writing our paper. God cares about the details, and so should we.  -Mylia

How do we worship God through the citing of sources in our bibliography?

We are giving credit to our sources. We are obeying the Ten Commandments by not stealing someone else's work. -Cody

We are worshiping God through the citing of sources in our bibliography by not stealing and following the Ten Commandments. We worship God by being honest with our work. -Courtney

How do we worship God through the publication of our research paper? (printing out and sharing our final product)

We can worship God by giving our best to our teachers. We can make sure that it is organized and neat. When we do our best, we honor God.  -Ava

We are tuning in our best work. We are also sharing what we learned about God's creation with others so other people can see what complex works God has created. -Becca

We are worshiping God by telling others about God's creation and what he has made for us. We can tell others things that they might not know and can learn new things about God's earth. -Gavin

God has blessed us with so many ways to worship Him! As we go through each day, may we discover more and more what it means to do everything "for the glory of God."