Creation Sings the Father's Song

Creation sings the Father's song;
He calls the sun to wake the dawn
And run the course of day
Till evening comes in crimson rays.
His fingerprints in flakes of snow,
His breath upon this spinning globe,
He charts the eagle's flight;
Commands the newborn baby's cry.

Hallelujah! Let all creation stand and sing, "Hallelujah!" Fill the earth with songs of worship; Tell the wonders of creation's King.

Creation gazed upon His face;
The ageless One in time's embrace
Unveiled the Father's plan
Of reconciling God and man.
A second Adam walked the earth,
Whose blameless life would break the curse,
Whose death would set us free
To live with Him eternally.

Creation longs for His return,
When Christ shall reign upon the earth;
The bitter wars that rage
Are birth pains of a coming age.
When He renews the land and sky,
All heaven will sing and earth reply
With one resplendent theme:
The glory of our God and King!

I've mentioned in past posts the joy I experienced driving to school in the morning and passing the lake each day. I marveled at how differently it looked day to day, at the impossible variety. My eyes would search the bend in the road, anticipating the moment when I would have curved around just enough that the vast expanse of varying blues would stretch across my vision. And when it did, I felt compelled to praise the Lord. My justified heart would rise on its own accord and glorify the Creator.

Today, I no longer make that drive to school each day. Instead, I wake up while it is still dark and set out for Milwaukee. And I've discovered a new beauty - the sunrise. It was a gift I never expected to experience as I am by no means a morning person in any way. The sunrise is impossible to accurately describe. Words fail me at the thought of its intrinsic majesty. Creating singing out "Hallelujah" in worship to the Lord. Creation beaming in utter contentment in its Sustainer. Creation crying for the King to return and release it from the warped chains of sin. Creation glorifying the Creator.

Creation's automatic response of glorifying God often becomes a call to worship for me. What are some of the ways that creation calls your mind to the Creator?

Still, My Soul, Be Still

Still, my soul, be still
And do not fear,
Though winds of change may rage tomorrow
God is at your side
No longer dread
The fires of unexpected sorrow

God, you are my God
And I will trust in you and not be shaken
Lord of peace, renew
A steadfast spirit within me
To rest in you alone

Still, my soul, be still
Do not be moved
By lesser lights and fleeting shadows
Hold on to His ways
With shield of faith
Against temptations flaming arrows

Still, my soul, be still
Do not forsake
The truth you learned in the beginning
Wait upon the Lord
And hope will rise
As stars appear when day is dimming

"Still, my soul, be still" has become an oft repeated phrase in my life. I say it to myself over and over, many times a day. There is some traffic on the highway and I start to freak out? Still, my soul, be still. God is in control. Someone says something that makes me angry? Still, my soul, be still. Do not overreact or react in undue anger. Love others more than yourself. I'm driving home in the dark (after driving to work in the dark) and depression starts to weigh in on my mind? Still, my soul, be still. You have much to be thankful for!
The examples could go on and on and be much more specific or even more general. The other day I was in a taxi in downtown Chicago and seriously thought that perhaps I would not live. Still, my soul, be still. You are ready to go home. God is in control. And I calmed down...

This song is beautiful and it covers it all: change, sorrow, temptation, uncertainty. And it concludes with an awesome reminder: do not forget what you have learned. Do not walk away from what you know to be true. Instead, cling to what you know. Persevere. Trust in the Lord.

"God, you are my God. And I will trust in you and not be shaken."

Amen

Psalm of Praise

Psalm 150:1-6

1 Praise the LORD! Praise God in His sanctuary; Praise Him in His mighty expanse.

2 Praise Him for His mighty deeds; Praise Him according to His excellent greatness.

3 Praise Him with trumpet sound; Praise Him with harp and lyre.

4 Praise Him with timbrel and dancing; Praise Him with stringed instruments and pipe.

5 Praise Him with loud cymbals; Praise Him with resounding cymbals.

6 Let everything that has breath praise the LORD. Praise the LORD!

Here's a timely reminder for myself that in all things, I am to be praising the LORD with my whole heart for His excellent greatness! And one day we will all praise God together, no longer hindered by our sin or our selves. Have a great day, everyone!

A Thought On Worship

The last two weeks in Sunday School, my class and I have discussed how we are to worship God. The lesson was near the beginning of a series we are doing on sanctification - the process of being made holy, becoming more like Jesus. We learned from John 4:24 that "God is Spirit, and those who worship Him must worship in Spirit and in Truth."
So what does this mean, to worship in spirit and in truth. Briefly, in order to be worshiping God we must be recognizing a truth about Him and responding to it emotionally. We learned that it is not enough to simply experience some emotions or to know various 'facts' about God. The truths about God must spark a heartfelt response in order for worship to occur. For example, after the Israelites were released from their enslavement in Egypt and then pursued by the entire Egyptian army to be brought back, God parted the Red Sea, allowed the Israelites to pass through, then destroyed the entire Egyptian army by releasing the Sea as they were crossing. Right after this account, we read a beautiful song that the Israelites sang. In it, they recognized that God was mighty, powerful, and good. They responded to these 'facts' by singing in excitement, joy, and thanksgiving.
An important note to make here is that this song could easily have been sung by a person who was not worshiping as she sang. If an unbeliever sings a hymn praising God for His holiness and forgiveness, it is not worship because she does not believe that what she is saying is true.
Another example of worship can be found in Job. After Job has received news that everything he owns has been stolen or destroyed and that all of his children have died, he falls to the ground and says, "The Lord gives and the Lord takes away; blessed be the Name of the Lord." Job recognized that God was in control over everything that had happened and that He had the right to allow whatever He wished. He responded in submission.
Although both these examples look very different, they are both examples of true worship. I urged my kids - as I urge you now - to take these things to mind this week as we go about our daily lives. Be on the lookout for opportunities to worship God. As you look for ways you will be amazed at the number of times in the day that He will reveal Himself to you in a multitude of ways. Remember, we were created for the purpose of glorifying God and we glorify Him by worshiping Him. If we are looking for opportunities to worship, we will never run short for we will be trying to do the very thing we were created for the express purpose of doing.

Having A Fiesta Heart!

My neighbors recently had a “fiesta.” I am not sure what they were celebrating, but they really went all out for this party. They started getting their yard prepared and setting up at least a full day in advance. What fun it was to watch all the preparation. They seemed to be enjoying themselves immensely! They rented a gigantic bouncy “house” for the children. (This thing was 1 ½ stories high!) They strung up tarps in the trees to shade their backyard. They set out long lines of tables with decorations. They blew up balloons. They had a big piñata. They had lively music playing starting mid-morning and the party didn’t even start until early evening! Then when the party started, everyone seemed to be having a great time! Family and friends gathered together, their children playing and laughing, and all of them eating some fantastic smelling food!

As I watched and listened to the music and the way they were relating to each other, I couldn’t help but think of the parable in Luke 14 and Matthew 22 about the King who threw a wedding party. He sent out the invitations after all of the preparations for the joyous occasion were finished, but none of the original recipients wanted to come and celebrate with the King. It seems that they were all too busy with the everyday “stuff.” So instead He sent out His messengers to all the poor and needy and all the travelers on the road and many came to His celebration. How sad that the original recipients were so caught up in their own plans that they missed the great celebration the King had for them! How wonderful for the poor and needy and the travelers, who had nothing “of this world” to captivate them and were able to joyfully respond to the invitation!

I am so, SO glad that God “sent out” His messengers to me! I am so glad that He would invite me to His “marriage supper!” I imagine how it will be when we are with Jesus in glory, either in heaven or on the new earth. I know some people picture Heaven as some solemn place where everyone is too holy to smile, or where we stand around singing “Holy, Holy, Holy” all day; but I picture it as a place of real soul-bursting joy and celebration. How can it be anything less, when we are covered in the righteousness of Christ (our bride clothes!), we are free from sin, and we are in the presence of the most happy and complete person of all: God! I picture us celebrating with the Lord and the brethren from throughout the ages! Talking with Jesus, and Paul and Elijah, etc. Laughing with Peter… (people as boneheaded as he and I are sure to get along and have lots to laugh about!)

I have to say that my neighbor’s “fiesta” really encouraged me and added to my anticipation of the good which the Lord has for us with Him. It also reminded me to not set my heart on the things of this life which can so easily captivate us and distract us from the future hope and inheritance that we have awaiting us with our Lord! I know that someday we will be with Jesus, celebrating and enjoying His presence as well as fellowshipping with other believers, worshiping and filled with everlasting joy! What wondrous things we have to look forward to! Lord, help me to keep my heart and my eyes focused on You. Keep me looking up, not sideways!

The Discipline of Worship - Part 2

Worship should be a continuous part of the Christian's life. We shouldn't set aside a portion of our day for worship and then not 'worry' about it for the rest of the day. Instead, we should always be looking for opportunities to bless the name of the Lord.
There are hundreds of opportunities for us to worship throughout our days. I am blessed every morning by driving past Lake Michigan on my way to school. I am amazed that it looks different every day, rough and gray yesterday, calm and bright blue today, then green and deep blue tomorrow. If I am looking for opportunities to worship, instead of simply enjoying the view, I can praise God for giving it to me. I can thank Him for His grace in allowing me to see it and appreciate it and marvel at His involvement with creation.
If I am running late for work or church and all the lights are green, I should take a moment to thank God for making it so. If all the lights are red, instead of getting anxious and angry, I can worship God being a God who keeps His promises - specifically the one where He promises never to give us more than we can handle. I use being late as an example because I am a spaz about being on time. Being late somewhere is one of the worst things I can imagine. :)
The basic point is to be looking for ways to worship God throughout the day. Look for times where it is consistently hard to worship and find a way to make it easier
For example, I am not a morning person. If I had my way, the world would stay up until 3am and not wake up until 11am. That would be great! Unfortunately, that is not the way it works and I usually have to get up at (gasp!) 7am to get to school on time. By the time I am in my car and on my way to school I really hate the world. So I got in the habit of making sure that I had Christian music in my cd player the night before set to a song that praises God for who He is. When I get in the car, and hear the music, it helps me tremendously to bring my heart and mind under control and focus it on worship. We all have bad times, but if we are looking for ways to worship in those bad times, it will be so much easier.
Attending church is a really obvious way to worship. Most people would agree that that is the main purpose of attending church. We sing before hearing the sermon at my church (and pretty much every church I've ever heard of) which is great in helping us to prepare our hearts for worship. But a lot of people I talk to think that that is the end of the worship. Once the singing stops, so does the worship. I can still remember a time last fall. I decided to try going to InterVarsity at my school to get to know some Christians my age. Most of my friends are a bit older than me....and married....and have children. :) I thought it would be cool to get to know people my own age. One night, as I was arriving, a friend came up and told me that we weren't going to be having any worship that evening. I honestly thought he was telling me that InterVarsity was canceled that evening. It turned out though, that all he meant was that we had a guest speaker coming in and he was going to talk for so long we didn't have time to sing.
This made me sad, that the act of hearing the Word was not considered worship. I wondered how we were able to worship without knowing the Word. If you remember from yesterday, we are to worship in spirit and in truth. Its not enough for us to get really psyched up because we like the music and the songs etc. If the emotion we are filled with is not gratitude, awe, humility, reverence, and love for our Lord THEN IT IS NOT WORSHIP!! Hearing the Word of God preached is an extremely important part of worship because without it we do not have the knowledge to worship. How can I thank God for His creation if I do not know He created it? How can I thank God for getting me to work on time if I do not know that He is sovereign?
As our knowledge of God and His works grows, so will our worship. As Jesus becomes more and more beautiful, our worship will become sweeter.
To wrap this series up, I would just like to say that all of the spiritual disciplines are very closely related. As you desire to grow in each one, the others will naturally grow as well.

The Discipline of Worship - Part 1

Psalm 95:6 "Come, let us bow down in worship. Let us kneel before the the Lord our Maker."
It is really hard to adequately define what worship is, so I am going to give you Don Whitney's definition, "To worship God is to ascribe the proper worth to God, to magnify His worthiness of praise, or better, to approach and address God as He is worthy. As the Holy and Almighty God, the Creator and Sustainer of the Universe, the Sovereign Judge to whom we must give an account, He is worthy of all the worth and honor we can give Him and then infinitely more."
In order for us to be worshiping, we have to be focused on God, who He is and what He has done. Worship is how we respond to that knowledge. Worship is not about us.
Worship is to be done in spirit and in truth. There needs to be a balance of these two things. It cannot be just truth, where we are only focusing on facts about God and His works without any kind of heartfelt reaction about these 'facts.' It cannot be simply emotion directly vaguely towards that which is spiritual. Worship has to be a sincere reaction to our knowledge of who God is.
It is not always easy to worship God. We all have hard days and trials that make worshiping God. It is by remembering who God is and what He has done that we are able to worship during these hard times. Its easy to worship when life is good and things are going our way. We need to press on in worship even when times are hard.
Don't wait until you 'feel' like worshiping. If necessary, start by focusing on your Savior, Creator, Sustainer, and Father. Start by thinking about the works of God, what He has done in your life and the lives of those around you. Read the Old Testament and look for passages where God does tremendous and miraculous things to make His Name known. As you turn your mind towards the things of God, your heart will naturally follow.
Tomorrow we will discuss different opportunities for worship.