One Why-se Man

This morning, Charlotte and I attended our local church in East Finchley, for the first reading of our Banns of Marriage. It was the first time I had attended a church service for many years, and it left me with one question. Yet before I get to that (atheistic, antagonistic) question, I'd like to note the enjoyable aspects of the service. Firstly, it was the first time we'd been to any sort of 'community meeting', so it was nice to see some friendly, local faces. Secondly, there was a wonderful part of the service whereby everyone was invited to wander around the church, shake each other's hand, and say 'Peace be with you'. Now that's a sentiment even a cold-hearted scrote like me can get behind; particularly as our fellow 'worshippers' were from a variety of racial and ethnic backgrounds. Thirdly, it was lovely to be surrounded by children, playing, screaming and interrupting the vicar - one child was baptized so it was nice to witness a proud family coming together for their special moment. Finally, of course, it was great to hear our names read out and for the 'wheels' of our marriage to be put into motion.

So, I hope you'll agree, I approached the experience with something of an open mind and an accepting heart.

My question is this: If God exists, why does 'he' want to be worshipped?

I'm not trying to be clever - if anyone can suggest a reason, I'd be glad to hear it. I can understand why humans might decide to worship (some of the experiences I've noted above, such as building a community spirit and having a shared sense of belonging, to name just two) but why would an all-powerful deity want to be worshipped? Is there any evidence (or, at least evidence in the tenuous, religious sense: scripture, commandments etc.) which explains why God wants to insist upon this constant, fawning servility? I know that the bible is emphatic about not worshipping false gods, but why worship 'the big man', exactly?

To my understanding, the reason for God's incarnation as a human, through Jesus, was for him to experience the vulnerabilities and frailties of the human mind at first hand. If this is the case, surely he would have noticed that, within the human sphere, 'worship' (i.e. excessively being pre-occupied with one person or thing, obsessively celebrating their mere existence) is a wholly negative thing. To my mind, at least, it leads to dependency, repressiveness and low self-esteem: we can never live up to the example set by the object of our 'worship'. 

So why would God insist that we worship Him? I won't be so glib as to suggest it's sheer conceited arrogance on His part, but I truly can't come up with a better reason. 

I would welcome your (or His) enlightenment...