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worship

Grunt Work

by TerryLema

I volunteered for a bit of what might be called “grunt work” for The Way Middleton.  “Grunt work” is defined as jobs that either lack glamour and prestige or are boring and repetitive. The Pastor and the Worship Leader needed all their worship and praise music entered into a new online program. It means moving a lot of songs from a Word document into the site.

Neither Pastor Laura nor Doug had the extra time to get it done so I volunteered.  I figured I have plenty of time, am semi-computer literate, and to be honest, I am a bit bored. Doug put all the music on a flash drive and gave it to me at church so I could get started.

I started about a week or so ago.  After a few problems figuring out things on the online program, I started entering music, words with guitar chords. I soon discovered this project is anything but boring! As I type the words and chords into the program, I sing the songs in my mind and in my heart and I am blessed! Sometimes I see something that simply makes me stop and think or stop and worship.

I was entering the song, “At the Cross, Your Love Ran Red,” by Chris Tomlin. As I came to the chorus I had to stop and think about what it meant to me.  “At the cross …. Where Your love ran red and my sins washed white …. I owe all to You, Jesus.”

The blackness of my sins and all the stains they left on my soul were made white by the blood of Christ Jesus. His blood “ran red” down that cross and washed me white as snow.  I do owe it all to Him.

“But if we walk in the light as He Himself is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus His Son cleanses us from all sin.” [1 John 1:7 HCSB]

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Experience

by TerryLema

I love reading the Book of Psalms. People often say to me that they need to “learn” how to worship. My response has always been, “Read the Book of Psalms. Read it not only with your mind, read that book with your heart.”

The Book of Psalms leads us into worship. It teaches us that we can express the deepest desires, fears, and even doubts in our hearts. It teaches us that God hears us, and loves us, and responds to us in His faithfulness whether we are soaring or barely crawling through life. It teaches us that when we focus our attention on Him, we can be victorious in all things.

It teaches us something else also, and I saw that this morning as I was reading David’s Cry for Help in Psalm 143. The New King James Version renders verse 8 as: “Cause me to hear Your lovingkindness in the morning, For in You do I trust.”  

I have an online program which allows me to read other translations, so I looked up Psalm 143 in what is rapidly becoming my favorite, the Holman Christian Standard Bible translation.  It reads: “Let me experience Your faithful love in the morning, for I trust in You.”  

“Let me experience Your faithful love…”  Experience. We are to experience (which means practical contact or encounter with) God’s lovingkindness (faithful love).

David understood that to “hear” God is to “experience” God. Each morning David anticipated an encounter with God’s faithful lovingkindness – no matter what his enemies might be planning for him that day. That, beloved, is worship in its humblest form.

May you “experience” Him today. Amen.

 

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Do Not Forget …

by TerryLema

If you are looking for a quiet resting place today, take a walk in Psalm 103. It begins: “My soul, praise Yahweh, and all that is within me, praise His holy name. My soul, praise the Lord, and do not forget all His benefits. He forgives all your sin; He heals all your diseases.” [Psalm 103:1-3 HCSB]

It is so easy to forget. Last night I forgot our nighttime medications. I was getting ready for bed when Bob asked, “Did we take our pills?”  Nope, I forgot. So, I asked him to remember to remind me to remember next time. Hopefully, one of us will remember.

The LORD’s benefits to us are very real. The psalmist lists two, forgiveness and healing. We could probably list many more, rest, renewal, the promise of a future and a hope, peace that passes understanding, an inheritance in the saints, new mercies every morning. That does not even scratch the surface of blessings found in the LORD.

Still, it is easy to forget. The things of this life are often louder or seemingly more intense. They distract and pull us toward them. Will I lose my job? Can I afford groceries or gas? Can I feed my family? Will I get this virus? Will my employer provide protection? Will I die? Those are just a few 2020 distractions, not to mention the regular ones, like cancer or loss of a loved one, aging, or rebellious children or …?

The psalmist provides the best way to not forget God’s benefits by reminding us to praise the LORD, to bless His Holy Name. To command our soul to praise our LORD is to put God’s blessings foremost before us. To do so drives the other things into the background.

There is nothing like praising God to find the renewal we need in those green pastures beside those still, quiet waters. Praise Him today, beloved, and see if the things of life that challenge us most are not rendered silent before Him.

https://www.bing.com/videos/search?q=praise+music+youtube&cvid=43d7834433d84b4abf3cac5844dfb53a&pglt=803&PC=LCTS&ru=%2fsearch%3fq%3dpraise%2bmusic%2byoutube%26cvid%3d43d7834433d84b4abf3cac5844dfb53a%26pglt%3d803%26FORM%3dANSPA1%26PC%3dLCTS&view=detail&mmscn=vwrc&mid=B31EAAC8A6F497BFE0EFB31EAAC8A6F497BFE0EF&FORM=WRVORC

 

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Not Sing?

by TerryLema

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.

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With the Measure You Love

by TerryLema

“With the measure we love God, that is the measure we will use to worship Him.”

Sunday’s message was out of John 4, the story of the Samaritan woman and Jesus. It centered around Jesus’ words that “true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and truth; for the Father is seeking such to worship Him. God is Spirit, and those who worship Him must worship in spirit and truth.” [23-24 NKJV]

No longer is there a specific location to worship, God is present with us and in us by faith. Now it is our hearts and our heads that are involved in worship – wherever the body might be. There must be knowledge of sound doctrine that invites our minds to consider our God and all His Worth, and there must be passion in our spirits to give voice to our worship.

I was reminded also that worship is never stationary in the sense that it reaches a level where it simply stops and we consider it “enough.” Our worship is truthfully based upon our love for God. That love is to continually increase and grow. Down through our years we should be more aware of all God has done for us, all He has done in us, and all He is doing through us. We should see His Hand revealed in everyday life and in those moments of despair and crisis, confirming to us how much God cares for us.

When we see God’s goodness around us, we love Him more. The measure of our love for Him increases with the knowledge of Him. That measure of love will determine our level of worship. The expression of deep love flows out in a level of worship that matches it. (Just the way a shallow love of God produces but a shallow worship.)

Father, may we love deeply, more and more as the days pass. May we worship you greatly in spirit and truth. May our worship grow more honorable as we love you more and more. Amen.

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