Separated

You make known to me the path of life; in your presence there is fullness of joy; at your right hand are pleasures forevermore.
Psalm 16:11 ESV

The darkness of man is because of the absence of God's light. The darkness of the soul is because something has separated it from being in God's presence. Sometimes, we're in a dry place. We wonder how we ever got so far away... Have you ever been there? The real question is, How do we get into or BACK into His presence? Psalm 100...

Serve the Lord with gladness;
Come before His presence with singing.

The Bible also tells us that God sings over us (Zephaniah 3:17). When was the last time you sang a love song back to Him?

Know that the Lord, He is God;
It is He who has made us, and not we ourselves;
We are His people and the sheep of His pasture.

Oftentimes, that's how we get separated. We think we've made ourselves a success. We think we own the talents God bestowed on us when we were being formed in our mother's womb. Let us acknowledge His - God's - marvelous works! 

Enter into His gates with thanksgiving,
And into His courts with praise.
Be thankful to Him, and bless His name.

How many times is it written, Give thanks to the Lord, for he is good...?

For the Lord is good;
His mercy is everlasting,
And His truth endures to all generations.

Prayer:

Father,

         Forgive us for foolishly thinking we can do life on our own. We cannot do anything apart from You. We acknowledge and thank You for all the provision You have made, are making and will make throughout our lifetime as we walk with You. And we will go on thanking and praising You, giving all glory and honor unto You, O God. Keep our hearts and minds and eyes tuned to You, Father. In Jesus' Name we pray. Amen

There is Hope

Sing to the Lord, bless His name; Proclaim the good news of His salvation from day to day. Declare His glory among the nations, His wonders among all peoples. For the Lord is great and greatly to be praised; He is to be feared above all gods.

Psalm 96:2-4 NKJV

Part of my day job is to assist with business continuity during incidents and events that are outside our normal scope of business. It involves keeping up with the press conferences, coverage and latest updates. It's nipping rumors so they don't get filtered down as truth and ensuring that someone's friend's mother's cousin's hearsay isn't distributed as gospel. In so doing, one takes in a lot of tough news. And right now, we're in a place we've never been before so it's incumbent on us as Christians to speak faith not fear. Peace not panic. To reach out with hope, not wreak havoc.

Psalm 16 tells us that the Lord is always with us and in His presence, there is the fullness of joy. How do we get into the presence of God? Psalm 100:2 tells us - come into His presence with singing. So tonight, I encourage you to do exactly that. Come into His presence with singing. I'm not talking about listening your way in - I'm talking about singing - opening your mouth and singing your way into His presence. God doesn't care if you can carry a tune - He said to make a joyful noise...

And there are so many streaming music apps. When I'm at the computer, YouTube is my choice. I have created so many playlists and mixes of songs old and new that I can sing along with that I can get lost for hours. Here are just a very few lines of lyrics excerpted from some of my favorites.

Through good and bad, we've learned to trust that You are loving, wise and just... 

All my life You have been faithful. All my life You have been so, so good. With every breath that I am able, I will sing of the goodness of God...

This troubled world is not my final home. But until then, my heart will go on singing... 

We'll all stand together and declare Jesus is Lord! When the Reason that I'm standing stands in front of me; when every battle that I've fought will fade from memory, I'll bow before His mighty throne and fall down on my knees... 

Over and over, again and again, God is faithful. Over and over, again and again, Through it all, He's made me able to stand and survive, to come through alive when it sure looked like I couldn't win...

I promise you the world looks different when you're viewing it from within the presence of God. There is hope and so much more. See for yourself.

Prayer:

Father,
           Thank You for allowing us to come into Your throne room. Thank You for Your peace that far surpasses anything the world has to offer. Thank You that Your promises are true and that You are a Promise Keeper, our Waymaker, Miracle Worker, our Light in the darkness. We pray for our world, Father, that You would stem the tide of this coronavirus, for Your Name is above everything that is named, including CoVID-19. We pray for wisdom, healing and protection. In Jesus' Name, Amen

A Melody

And do not be drunk with wine, in which is dissipation; but be filled with the Spirit, speaking to one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing and making melody in your heart to the Lord, giving thanks always for all things to God the Father in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ...
Ephesians 5:18-20 NKJV

When my children were small, I would snuggle them close and sing to them. When they were babies and toddlers, I would rock them and sing them to sleep. And as they got older, when we went anywhere in the car, we would sing. I believe singing while holding my babies taught them that every song can be a love song, and I believe singing together connects people with a language understood only by the heart.

Our text for today is why I believe participatory praise and worship is so important. I've heard people say, "Oh, I don't sing during praise and worship because I just want to hear the praise team or worship leader sing." or "I don't sing during praise and worship because I can't carry a tune and I don't want to distract from anyone else's worship." That's a lie bought and sold from the father of lies to keep us from praising God Almighty.

Let me just say that God doesn't care if you can't carry a tune in a bucket with handles and help! It's not about carrying a tune - it's about making melody in your heart to the Lord. It's about singing Him a new song. it's about O for a thousand tongues to sing praises to my King...There is NO Scripture anywhere in the Bible that says, "Sing a perfect-pitch praise unto the Lord." In Truth, it reads "Make a joyful NOISE..." And it's not always because you feel happy. Some of the greatest hymns and gospel songs were written in the darkest of times.

We're always talking about planting seeds, sowing and reaping. How about cultivating the music of your life? Is there a song in your heart? Do you remember your heart's song? If you will sing it to someone else, they can sing it back to you when you haven't the wherewithal to sing it yourself. Just start humming...Make a melody in your heart.

Prayer:

Father,
Thank You for music! Thank You for ways to express ourselves that we couldn't even begin to do any other way. Hear our songs, Father! Let them be a sweet smelling savor to You. In Jesus' Name we pray. Amen

* Get It On

Come before His presence with singing!

Psalm 100:2b KJV

As a follower of Christ, where would you most want to be at any time, but especially when life is hard? In His presence, right? Wrapped up in His arms, yes? Held close to His chest?

Our Promise for Today tells us to come before His presence with singing. And in a previous Psalm, it assures us that God inhabits the praises of His people. So there's never a reason not to praise our God.

When we're happy and doing well, we, His people, naturally want to thank and praise Him. It's in the tough times that we struggle with it...and yet that is the very time we need Him the most. Isaiah 61:3 tells us Christ comes to give us a garment of praise for the spirit of heaviness. And don't worry, God knows your size. So, let's get it on!

From "The Desert Song" by Hillsong
"All of my life - In every season, You are still God! I have a reason to sing! I have a reason to worship."

Prayer:

Father,
          We come to You washed in the Blood of the Lamb and singing Your praises. We want and need more of You, Lord! More of Your resident presence in our lives. In Jesus' Name we pray. Amen