singing Archives - Pastor Terry Lema's Daily Devotions

I love the various descriptions of our God in the Scriptures. In a chapter which begins with “Woe to Oppressive Jerusalem” and ends with “Promised Final Restoration,” there is a portrait of our Wonderful God.

Zephaniah 3:17: “Yahweh your God is among you, a warrior who saves. He will rejoice over you with gladness. He will bring you quietness with His love. He will delight in you with shouts of joy.” [HCSB]

The NKJV renders it this way: “The Lord your God in your midst, The Mighty One, will save; He will rejoice over you with gladness, He will quiet you with His love, He will rejoice over you with singing.”

Do you see the beautiful depiction in this verse? Our God is among us, right in our midst. Jesus said, “remember, I am with you always, to the end of the age.” [Matthew 28:20 HCSB]

Our God has the power to save us. “For the message of the cross is foolishness to those who are perishing, but it is God’s power to us who are being saved.” [I Corinthians 1:18 HCSB]

I think of those two things as the background of this picture of our LORD and Savior. He is with us, and He saves us. But then look at the detail the author paints. Our God rejoices over us with gladness, He delights in us with shouts of joy (singing!)

In that beautiful chapter of the lost, Luke 15, Jesus tells his listeners that “there will be more joy in heaven over one sinner who repents ….” [vs 7 HCSB]

We always think of the angels and saints rejoicing over the lost being saved, but Zephaniah reminds us that God Himself, Our Wonderful, Awesome Father delights in each salvation with shouting and singing.

And still our LORD God is not done. He quiets us with His love. He grants us peace. “And the peace of God, which surpasses every thought, will guard your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus.” [Philippians 4:7 HCSB]

Our Wonderful Saving, Singing, Shouting GOD!

We are not supposed to sing in church. At least that is the recommendation of some officials amid this virus-and-fear pandemic. Apparently when we sing, we expel droplets that may contain the virus and the risk of infection goes up.

Not sing praises to our God when we gather in our church buildings? I know for some that will not be a problem. I have seen people standing there during the music service and not singing because they just are not singers and choose to worship our Savior in a quieter or different way. That is okay.

For many others, like me, that is a big problem. I love to sing praises to my God. I sing on my worship walk. I sing when I pray. I sing in church during song service. Granted, I am not a great singer and since I have had some hearing loss, I am probably more off pitch than on. I sing anyway. I figure that if God is not pleased with my voice, He can change it to something that sounds better. (I know however, that God is pleased when I sing and worship Him, so I am on solid ground.)

Col 3:16: “Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly as you … as you sing psalms, hymns and spiritual songs with gratitude in your hearts to God.”

It seems Paul has everything covered in this verse 16. First we are to allow the Word of Christ to dwell in our hearts richly with wisdom (yesterday’s devotion), and then we are to let the Word of Christ dwell richly in us by psalms, hymns, and spiritual songs with gratitude.

In essence, that reflects what we do corporately in our church services. Perhaps more importantly, it is what we are to do individually in our time “outside” the church service.

That small worship service on a Sunday morning cannot contain enough psalms, hymns. and spiritual songs to get us through the difficulties of our lives each day. There must be the “Word of Christ” dwelling in us in wisdom gleaned by our personal studies of God’s Word, as well as in gratitude through our songs in the night and in the day.

singing

The Saving, Singing, Shouting God!

Not Sing?