21
Jun '21
Mighty to Save
21
Jun '21
During one of my devotional times, I read Zephaniah 3:17. As I read the verse it sounded strangler familiar. Suddenly I remembered we used to sing this song about forty years ago! It’s not a song we sing today, but I could remember the words and sang it the way I had learned it.
Zephaniah 3:17 KJV
The Lord thy God in the midst of thee is mighty; He will save. He will rejoice over thee with joy; He will rest in His love. He will joy over thee with singing.
When I finally got the tune out of my head, I concentrated on the words and what the Lord was trying to show me.
A little background…
There are only three chapters in Zephaniah. Zephaniah had to bring a strong message from God to Josiah the King of Judah of destruction and repentance. The Lord sent His prophet to the people because they had basically turned their backs on God and what He was going to do.
There are only three chapters in Zephaniah. Zephaniah had to bring a strong message from God to Josiah the King of Judah of destruction and repentance. The Lord sent His prophet to the people because they had basically turned their backs on God and what He was going to do.
In verse 17, it says the Lord your God in the midst of thee is mighty. When God is in your midst, He is in you and completely covering you. Then He will save you. God will save you through whatever you are going through.
Then the rest of the verse should just bless the socks right off you.
It says He will rejoice over you with joy! That should be all our desire – to bring joy to the Lord. He will then rest in His love and He will joy over you with singing… imagine, God singing over me and you when we have brought joy to Him! This part really got to me. I tried to imagine God singing over me and I was humbled by that notion.
The bottom line? God takes His relationship with us very seriously, so should we! Let’s determine to bring Him joy today, and rest in His strong hands.
Take a moment to listen to this song that refers to this scripture. It’s not the one I had originally learned, but I think I like this one better.
Author:
Elder, Faith Assembly
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31
Oct '18
The Importance of Worship Together
31
Oct '18
Why is weekly worship with a local body of believers important? If we profess to be Christ-followers, we practice the teachings of God’s Word and follow the example brought to us by Jesus himself. This includes worshiping in unity, as one body, on a regular basis.
But why corporate worship? Can’t we worship God the way we feel most comfortable by ourselves?
And what’s with all the singing?
As others have done, I could fill an entire book and reference all the scriptures (there are many) to prove that God commands us to worship, we were created to worship Him and in the end, all will worship Him (willing or not). For the sake of brevity, I’ll offer my short answer to the question here – a question I’ve been asked many times throughout my ministry.
We endeavor to pare everything down to a few strategic elements in our worship services, encouraging believers to participate fully in this worship process – worship through song, prayer, giving and hearing of the Word of God. This is an active (not passive) process. By focusing our hearts and minds on Him as a body of believers, we are once again united by one purpose. We can’t be “one” alone.
We are together, obeying God’s commands and fulfilling the prayer of Jesus when he prayed in John 17:11:
I will remain in the world no longer, but they are still in the world, and I am coming to you. Holy Father, protect them by the power of your name, the name you gave me, so that they may be one as we are one.
God desires our Worship, but he doesn’t need it. We desperately need it.
He knows who He is and who you are! Do you?
As people who are trying to figure out how to live a righteous life in a wicked world, worship does so many things for us as a body of believers. These are but a small glimpse of the power of worshiping together. Remember, the power isn’t in the singing or music in of itself, it’s in the Holy Spirit working through our Willingness to submit to his will and live lives of obedience.
• It re-focuses our minds, emotions and spirits on Him.
• It reminds us of the Truth of who He is, who we are in Him and who we are without Him.
• It gives us courage to combat the lies of the world and stand strong.
• It convicts us of our sin and propels us to repentance.
• It humbles us, producing gratefulness and other fruits of the Spirit.
• It places God back on the throne of our hearts when our human nature fights to put ourselves on it.
• It heals, restores, forgives and leads us to righteousness.
• It compels us to believe, increases our faith and gives us hope.
• It gives power to do battle with temptation, and the courage to embrace the transformation process.
• It encourages a spirit of unity and reconciliation.
• It allows the Holy Spirit to speak and guide.
• It strengthens us go out into the everyday world to proclaim the gospel.
• It bonds us together and strengthens our common purpose as sons and daughters of God.
Consider These Thoughts:
Worship is the strategy by which we interrupt our preoccupation with ourselves and attend to the presence of God… Feelings are great liars. If Christians worshiped only when they felt like it, there would be precious little worship. We think that if we don’t feel something there can be no authenticity in doing it. But the wisdom of God says something different: that we can act ourselves into a new way of feeling much quicker than we can feel ourselves into a new way of acting… A Christian congregation is a company of praying men and women, who gather usually on Sundays, for worship, who then go into the world as salt and light. God’s Holy Spirit calls and forms this people. God means to do something with us, and he means to do it in community. We are in on what God is doing, and we are in on it together. -Eugene Peterson
It’s a Battle of Wills
Our willful participation in worship with other believers says something about who we are and what we stand for. Yes, there are times when our hearts are breaking and singing can be a painful experience of submission. There are times in prayer together when we don’t have words or we have trouble hearing from Him. There are times when we hear the Word of God preached and struggle to focus. God knows this – and He knows you need it anyway. True obedience is rarely easy. It’s a sacrifice of our wills, preferences and pride.
And the Singing?
I’ve heard this many times: “But what about all the singing? I’m not a singer! It makes me uncomfortable.” (God never said you had to be a singer and calls you out of your comfort zone) or “I just want to come and hear a message!” (God wants your active participation, not passive hearing). And why is it no one wants to just show up for the offering? interesting question!
So Why all the singing?
• God commanded it. King David made it a mandatory part of worship at the temple and even appointed a whole tribe of people (the Levites) to serve God in this manner, and not only for his reign, but from generation to generation.
• The Scripture is full of musical praises, poetry and expression– even whole books of it. That’s how important it is to God.
• Music is a powerful force for change – for our whole being, the mission of the body of believers and the church.
• Music moves us in ways nothing else does. God knows it, because He created it. We are made in His image, which also means it’s in our DNA to appreciate beauty and creative expression. He also knew that directing an outward expression of song back to Him in praise has the power to soften hard hearts.
• Music reinforces. How many of you remember commercial jingles or popular songs from when you were a kid? Yep, something happens when we sing. When we worship in song, we are actually confessing and declaring the scriptures and the many Truths of God through our mouths. When we not only hear something, but sing it out loud on repeat, we retain it and it becomes part of our long term memory.
• Brain science (neuroplasticity) is now proving that intentional action like this actually makes new connections through new neural pathways, forming the ability to adapt, change behavior, learn new things and create new memories. Awesome right? But of course, God knew this all along. Science is just now catching up.
Indeed, we can “act ourselves into a new way of feeling much quicker than we can feel ourselves into a new way of acting”. With the power of the Holy Spirit, worshiping together as one body – through prayer, song, giving, communion, and discovering the Word together – we are following the example of Jesus himself and practicing unity with Him and one another.
So next time you meet together as a body of believers, cherish the time to worship together and actively participate. It does me good, it does you good, it does a “body” good. (see what I did there?)
Keep on worshiping friends.
Author: Michelle Marx
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