Archive for May 2017

The Life of God

2017-05-08 Devotional with Hymn No comments

“The wind blows where it wishes and you hear the sound of it, but do not know where it comes from and where it is going; so is everyone who is born of the Spirit.” 

“If anyone is thirsty, let him come to Me and drink. He who believes in Me, as the Scripture said, ‘From his innermost being will flow rivers of living water.’” But this He spoke of the Spirit, whom those who believed in Him were to receive. (John 3:8; 7:37-39, NASB)

As uncontrollable as the wind,
as refreshing as a spring,
as mighty as a great river,
the Life of God blows,
rises, and
flows
all around us and within us,
purifying,
transforming,
enlightening, and
empowering anyone who will simply trust in Jesus Christ.

Listen and sing:
Hymn: Life of God
Recording
Printed Music & Lyrics

from Prepare Yourself for Worship

2017-05-05 Devotional with Hymn, Prepare Yourself for Worship No comments

Father, Receive My Gift

Father, You are beyond all need.
You are full to overflowing.
All that is flows from You and
is forever nourished by You.
Your nature, Your joy is
to give,
to share,
to bless.

Your resources are endless, and
Your authority is complete.
You simply speak, and it is so.
Your will is the power that fuels all reality.
Your love is the music that makes the universe dance.

You are not impressed by our material gifts.
You are like a great-hearted king
to whom a child joyfully, lovingly brings a penny.
The penny is worthless.
The love is priceless.

Father, my Father,
that’s what I want to give You:
I want to daily bring You my love.
Like the alabaster perfume,
like the widow’s mite,
I want my life to be a gift of love,
worthless to the world, but
priceless to my loving Father.

Let all my “accomplishments” be like
a child’s drawing.
Receive the love they express, Father.
Receive the worship,
simple but sincere.
Receive the gift
because it is all I have.
I offer it joyfully, thankfully to You.

Listen and sing:
Hymn: As Simply as a Child
Recording
Printed Music & Lyrics

Reflecting Back

2017-05-03 Devotional with Hymn No comments

What is it like to follow God?

When we respond to His call and follow Him, we are saying “Yes!” to His invitation of love. We are fully embracing a love that never quits, that gladly sacrifices itself completely for those it holds dear.

If you’ve loved a spouse or raised children, you’ve had a taste of what love requires. But look at the life of Jesus, or the Apostle Paul, and you’ll get a fuller idea of what it means to follow God and live His all-giving love.

It’s demanding. Often draining. Sometimes frustrating…and overwhelming.

It lays bare your every weakness, every vulnerability, every failure.

It is a tornado that catches you up and spins you helplessly around. It seems to threaten all you hold dear.

It’s heart-wrenching. At times it dangles you over the brink of despair.

But following God unites you with Him. And in that union, your life becomes infinitely more than it ever could have been. Now you walk as a full-fledged citizen in realms higher and holier than you know you deserve.

When you look back over the years, you see part of what God has accomplished through your stumbling obedience. It’s stunning, and humbling. His grace, operating through your imperfect faith, has made you fellow workers with a God who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine (Ephesians 3:20, NIV).

Brothers and sisters, when Almighty God comes to you making lavish demands and lavish promises, follow Him, even at the risk of utter failure. Your failure might become the most important thing you have ever done.

To Him be the glory in the church and in Christ Jesus to all generations forever and ever. Amen. (Ephesians 3:21, NASB)

Listen and sing:
Hymn: You Are Good
Recording
Printed Music & Lyrics

The Value of Singing

2017-05-01 Congregational Song, Devotional with Hymn, Hymns No comments

I love singing hymns – hymns of many types and styles. Singing is such a beautiful way of expressing the Word that Christ has planted in us. As we sing, we share that Word with each other. We affirm it together. And we lift it in praise to our God and Savior.

Augustine (and later, Martin Luther) said, “He who sings prays twice.” I never understood that statement until I began singing as part of my prayer life. Singing involves the entire being. It starts from the heart and catches up the mind and body as well. When we sing, we embrace God’s Word physically, mentally, and emotionally. Prayer rises from our whole selves.

As we trust the Word that God speaks to us, joy overflows, and singing is one spillway for that joy. Singing is the music of faith. I’ve long felt that if we have the truth, saying it is not enough. The truth longs to come to life. It cries out for full expression. It yearns to sing and dance, to celebrate with life and feeling and physical joy.

Singing does that. Singing sets the truth free.

Singing unites us. Think of what’s happening when we sing together in worship. The Word of God is in our hearts and minds and on our lips. We lift it to God together. We unite with each other and with Him.

Hymns express our beliefs about God–our theology–but they do so in terms that are heartfelt and life-centered. Yes, abstract, factual hymns have been written, but they generally don’t last. The hymns that God’s children love to sing are those that speak their faith with warmth and vitality, in a way that resonates with personal experience.

Hymns are a feast for the body, mind, and spirit. Enjoy them completely! Don’t just listen to hymns. Sing them! The most life-changing songs are not the ones we hear but the ones we sing. As Paul urged the young church in Colosse, “Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly as you teach and admonish one another with all wisdom, and as you sing psalms, hymns and spiritual songs with gratitude in your hearts to God” (Colossians 3:16, NIV).

Sing! Sing to God! Sing from your heart!

Listen and sing:
Hymn: The Reason We Sing
Recording
Printed Music & Lyrics

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