Life As Worship

Praising God When He Gives and When He Takes

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What is your response when life is really hard? Do you shake your fist at God? Stiff-arm Him? Or do you worship Him even in the darkest times? Join me this week as Kelly Arena and I discuss how to worship God even in the darkness.

Angela welcomes Florida-based speaker and ministry leader Kelly Arena for a powerful conversation anchored in Job 1:20-21. Kelly’s story of chronic illness, grief, and everyday surrender brings authenticity and hope to those navigating loss and uncertainty. Together, they unpack the raw lament and astonishing worship of Job, discover the miracle of praising God in pain, and offer practical ways to move “from weary to worship,” no matter the season.
 
Episode Highlights
  • Angela and Kelly explore the Book of Job—how it reveals God’s sovereignty, Job’s real wrestling with grief, and the permission God gives to lament honestly.
  • The conversation centers on Job 1:20-21, where Job, after losing his livelihood and all his children, mourns deeply but turns to worship, declaring, “The Lord gives and the Lord takes away; blessed be the name of the Lord.”
  • Kelly describes chronic pain and repeated griefs, sharing how turning regularly to gratitude, worship music, and honest prayer built the backbone she needed to continue saying, “blessed be His name” through suffering.
  • Listeners are encouraged that worship in pain isn’t a work of willpower—it’s possible by God’s Spirit, sometimes minute-by-minute.
    • Great Quotes
    • “No matter what weary things we’re facing, God is always worthy of our worship.”
    • “Worship in the hard is built in the ordinary. If you practice worship in the good, you have a backbone for the grief.”
    • “Sometimes all I could do was play worship music and let it wash over me—He met me there, and that memory became an anchor.”
    • “It’s not that we always want to, but we choose by God’s grace to say, ‘Blessed be the name of the Lord.’”
    • “Gratitude lists—even for just small things or for God’s character—will keep your heart soft and help you move from weary to worship.”
      • Resources Mentioned
      • Scripture Focus: Job 1:20-21 
      • Kelly’s website: fromwearytoworship.com
      • Instagram: @from_weary_to_worship
      • Worship Song: “Blessed Be Your Name” by Matt Redman
        • Related Episodes
        • Ep. 18: “Hope, Persevering, AND Devotion to Prayer” (Nicole Clark)
        • Ep. 8: “Sowing Tears and Reaping Joy” (Kristi Lowe) 
        • Ep. 15: “Being Upheld by His Hand" (Kelly Hall) 
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          Life As WorshipBy Angela Mackey