I’ve been undone and remade.
Again and again.
Through encounters with God.

I’ve seen glimpses of what surrounds His throne in heaven.
And every time, I’m left in awe.
Absolutely astonished. Shaking. Weeping. Marveling.

And here’s what I’ve come to understand:

I wasn’t made to marvel at myself.
Or at people. Or platforms. Or culture.

I was made to marvel at God.

When I say marvel, I don’t mean watching a superhero movie.
I mean wonder. Awe. Majesty. Beauty. Glory.

To see God as He is and be left speechless.

Understanding Holiness

Okay. Let’s talk about something that can be triggering if you grew up around toxic religion.

Holiness.

Maybe that word makes you feel judged. Afraid. Disqualified.
But stay with me.

The Bible says God is Holy.
Angels around His throne cry out, nonstop, day and night:

“Holy, holy, holy is the Lord God Almighty.” (Revelation 4:8)

But these aren’t robotic chants in a religious ritual.
They’re raw responses. Deep cries from the core of their being. Reactions to the One they can’t stop beholding.

These angels see Him. And are wrecked by Who He is.

What Does “Holy” Even Mean?

We often think holy means perfect. And yes, God is perfect.
But biblically, holy means something deeper:

Set apart. Different. Other.

God is not just a better version of us.
He is completely unlike us.
He’s in a category of His own.

Holiness = Otherness = Uniqueness.

There is no one like God.
And here’s the part that undoes me…

Holiness Looks Like Jesus

Jesus’ life shows us that holiness doesn’t run from the broken.
It moves toward them.

Jesus (God in human form) walked among sinners.
He was criticized by religious leaders for spending time with the “unclean.”
Yet He was the cleanest One there.

He had every right to judge.
But He chose to heal.

“I desire mercy, not sacrifice.” (Hosea 6:6 / Matthew 9:13)

Holiness that could destroy you actually wants to restore you.

The same God who thundered from Mount Sinai is the same Jesus who knelt to wash dirty feet.

Power. And humility.
Justice. And mercy.
Holiness. And love.

Worship in His Presence

So, let me tell you what happens when you encounter the real Jesus.

When He shows up…
When His presence fills the room…
You are undone.

I’ve felt it.
Terrified. Comforted.
Broken. Embraced.
Like I might die. And yet more alive than ever.

He is the God whose voice shakes mountains.
But He whispers to the hurting.

He holds all power in the universe.
But He chose a crown of thorns.

That’s Jesus.
And when you encounter Him, there’s only one response.

Worship.

What is Worship?

Worship isn’t a genre or a song.
It isn’t a ritual.
It’s a response.

It’s when your heart burns with love because you’ve seen the beauty of Jesus.

Worship is when God becomes the center of everything.
It’s where He consumes your heart and mind.
It means being in awe of and intensely in love with Him.

You can worship while singing.
Or while weeping.
While working.
While dancing.
While sitting in silence.

It’s not about trying to earn anything.
It’s about responding to the One who gave everything.

Worship is awe.
Worship is love.
Worship is surrender.

In all we do, we are meant to worship God.

Because when you encounter God as He is, the natural response is to worship.

God Doesn’t Need Our Worship. We Do.

And here’s something important I need to mention:

God isn’t an insecure being who needs our praise to feel whole.
He is already complete.
Already satisfied in the love of the Trinity.

He doesn’t need us.
But He wants us.

We’re the ones who need Him.

When I worship, I’m not trying to impress a distant deity.
I’m returning to a Father who already loves me.

He is Worthy

Now I’ll be honest.

If you grew up in religion, worship might feel like rules and regulations.
You might have heard “God is worthy” and thought, Sure… but He feels like a tyrant.
And you might even have wondered “What’s the point of this?”

I’ve been there.

But then I encountered Him.

And everything suddenly made sense.

For a long time I thought Jesus demanded that we worship Him.
That He just said about Himself that He is Worthy.

But that’s not the case.

He doesn’t demand worship.
He is worthy of it simply because of Who He is.

When I’ve encountered Jesus, He doesn’t force me to bow.
His presence makes me collapse in wonder.

The magnitude of Who He is causes a response without Him speaking a word.

He is worthy. Not because He says so, but because He is.

“Worthy is the Lamb who was slain…” (Revelation 5:12)

He’s not just powerful. He’s beautiful.
Not just holy. He’s humble.
Not just King. He’s the Lamb who gave Himself for love.

And His presence envokes a heartfelt response.
There’s nothing better than knowing Him.

He is Worthy.

Amazing Love

I legit broke down in tears writing this.

Because Jesus is just… so amazing.

He didn’t come to give you rules.
He came to give you Himself.

He took your shame.
Your sin.
Your pain.
He died.
He rose.
He conquered death.
And He opened the way back to the Father.

This is Jesus.

Not a system. Not a religion.
A Person.
A King.
The Lover of your soul.

Come and See

I want you to know Jesus.

If you’ve been hurt by religion…
If you feel numb or distant…
If you’re starving for something real…

You need to know this.
He wants you.

Not the cleaned-up version of you.
Not the churchy version.
Just you. Right now. As you are.

Cry out to Him.
Ask Him to show you who He really is.

Say yes to Jesus, who died for you.
Ask Him to forgive you.
Let Him fill you with His Spirit.

You were made for this.
You were made to know Him.

And when you encounter Him, everything changes.

It’s impossible to fully put into words how amazing Jesus is.
All we can do sometimes… is just marvel.