King David As A Worship Leader

 David as a 'worship leader'...

1 Chronicles 29:10-20 ESV — "Therefore David blessed the LORD in the presence of all the assembly. And David said: “Blessed are you, O LORD, the God of Israel our father, forever and ever. Yours, O LORD, is the greatness and the power and the glory and the victory and the majesty, for all that is in the heavens and in the earth is yours. Yours is the kingdom, O LORD, and you are exalted as head above all. Both riches and honor come from you, and you rule over all. In your hand are power and might, and in your hand it is to make great and to give strength to all. And now we thank you, our God, and praise your glorious name. “But who am I, and what is my people, that we should be able thus to offer willingly? For all things come from you, and of your own have we given you. For we are strangers before you and sojourners, as all our fathers were. Our days on the earth are like a shadow, and there is no abiding. O LORD our God, all this abundance that we have provided for building you a house for your holy name comes from your hand and is all your own. I know, my God, that you test the heart and have pleasure in uprightness. In the uprightness of my heart I have freely offered all these things, and now I have seen your people, who are present here, offering freely and joyously to you. O LORD, the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Israel, our fathers, keep forever such purposes and thoughts in the hearts of your people, and direct their hearts toward you. Grant to Solomon my son a whole heart that he may keep your commandments, your testimonies, and your statutes, performing all, and that he may build the palace for which I have made provision.” Then David said to all the assembly, “Bless the LORD your God.” And all the assembly blessed the LORD, the God of their fathers, and bowed their heads and paid homage to the LORD and to the king."

Yes. David worshipped God with His words. He sorted through the dirt and garbage of Israel's history and found the gold... the signal not the noise... and gave them that and that created a capacity for the assembly to worship.

We need 'worship leaders'... not people who can just sing skillfully... we need to be led into worship by example.

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A Time Of Fellowship With Someone In Revival

I spoke to a very amazing woman yesterday who is having a 'prayer revival' right now and it was a real blessing. God gave me a word for her about angels being worshipers and how we become worshipers when we see the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ and I just felt humbled that God would use me that way. She is a spiritual giant in my eyes and I kind of marvel at what is happening in her life. It challenges me. She has great hardships, great difficulties and great faith.

"Rejoice always,
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Pray without ceasing,
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Give thanks in all circumstances; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you.
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Do not quench the Spirit.
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Do not despise prophecies, but test everything; hold fast what is good.
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Abstain from every form of evil." - 1 Thessalonians 5:16-22 ESV

This isn't something that can be manufactured. This isn't 'being good.' This is God manifesting Himself through us.

The Bible provides an entrance into this life but there is a person who greats us at the door and ushers us into His home.

When I was fellowshipping with this woman I felt like it was Christmas night and I was out in the dark cold following her into a warm bright home. The light was shining on her as God opened the door for her to enter and I got to walk in behind her. I was still somewhat in the dark and she was shining with light from the doorway. The smells of dinner and Christmas cookies were in the air. The lights were twinkling inside. The festive music was playing and there was a warm spot on the couch waiting just for me. The host was greeting me warmly. I am special to Him but He opened the door for her. She was in front of me. He heard her knock.

God is listening for our knock on His door. Yes, He comes to find us like a shepherd finds a lost sheep. There is this dual dynamic happening. God seeks us first and then we seek Him and others get ushered into His warm festive home as family members.

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P.S. Here is a piece of what God gave me to give to her as she was ministering to me...

{I've been reading and thinking about the 'spirituals' that slaves in United States used to sing and the encoded messages in them used to help guide runaway slaves. If the group sang 'Wade in the Water' it was sending the message that the people chasing the runaway had dogs and to get in the river or stream to mask the scent and throw off the dogs. They would sing a series of songs and if one song was sung twice it meant the coast was clear but if they sang a new song it meant there was danger.

Imagine singing to God... singing with all your heart in worship but also singing knowing the message you were sending in the song might mean life or death for someone who just wanted to be free.

The angels are worshippers. I wonder if they get cues about moving or holding back based on our worship. God desires that people would worship Him in spirit and in truth. That kind of worship is Spirit (capital S) led worship. The Trinity is present in the worship of a person who worships God because the glory of God has been revealed in the face of Jesus Christ.

Maybe... just maybe... when our worry turns to worship it signals the next phase of God's plan to bring us or someone else from bondage in to freedom.}

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Walking And Praying

I have a friend who is in Heaven now, Pastor Bill Cannon, our relationship was primarily centered around prayer. We would get coffee and walk around the parking lot of our church and pray together. Sometimes people would join us. I'm sure he did this with many people over his lifetime.

The aspects of prayer I mentioned yesterday (Praise, Waiting on God, Opening Our Hearts To God, Praying Scripture, Reminding God of His Promises, Watchful Prayer, Intercession, Petition, Thanksgiving, Singing, Meditation and Listening to God) were a part of those walks.

He would quote scripture after scripture to God in a flow that a rap music star would marvel at. It wasn't a stale memorized list. Each time with him was unique and different. He was and is a godly man (God's godly man) and still my friend... I just won't see him again until there has been a great transition/promotion for me also.

I know my prayer life was changed because of exposure to this gifted, gentle, godly missionary man. I pray more now like I used to see him pray as he slowly walked with one arm raised, sometimes singing, sometimes quiet, sometimes quoting scripture after scripture reminding God of what was promised and worshipping his God by extolling divine virtues in a stream of sanctified memory on display.

Thank you, God for Pastor Bill Cannon and every man and woman that prays walking, sitting, standing or kneeling with other younger men and women in a pure stream of praise, worship and petition. They are changing the world. They are salt and light in their homes and communities. We who remain are Your representation of this now in the world. Let 2018 be a year of anointed prayer in groups on mountains, in valleys and across parking lots in every corner of the globe. Thank You, God.

"Pray without ceasing." - 1 Thessalonians 5:17 KJV

"I will therefore that men pray every where, lifting up holy hands, without wrath and doubting." - 1 Timothy 2:8 KJV

Yes and Amen.

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Enter His Gates

"A Psalm for giving thanks. Make a joyful noise to the LORD, all the earth! Serve the LORD with gladness! Come into his presence with singing! Know that the LORD, he is God! It is he who made us, and we are his; we are his people, and the sheep of his pasture. Enter his gates with thanksgiving, and his courts with praise! Give thanks to him; bless his name! For the LORD is good; his steadfast love endures forever, and his faithfulness to all generations." - Psalm 100:1-5 ESV

I really like this Psalm.

I didn't want to make 'a joyful noise' to the Lord when I woke up. It has been a hard couple of days for me for whatever reason. Motivation is a little harder to find.

Then I followed the progression of this Psalm...

The Lord is God.
He made us.
We are his people.
We are cared for like sheep.
There is a gate we can enter into.
Enter it!
Pick the attitude of thanksgiving when you enter.
Thank Him personally.
His Love is a forever Love.
He was faithful. He is faithful. He will be faithful to ALL generations.

This Psalm changed my mind and my heart began to follow. I found a motivation that is strong. I found it inside the gate of His property.

"I will never forget thy precepts: for with them thou hast quickened me." - Psalm 119:93 KJV

Precepts.

They can enliven us because there is a kingdom right behind, beneath and above them. Evil ones can kill us but God's Heavenly ones can bring us into the gates where there is life.

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Morning Worship

Quieting myself and entering into worship this morning. Pause. Worship. Everything is about HIM just for a few moments. He IS amazing, wonderful counsellor, mighty God and King of all Kings. Full focus. There are no problems. Pain can go on a coffee break. Worry can take a walk alone outside. Just HIM. He Is all I see or care about. Obligations... none... not now. Now I just enjoy Him and know that He enjoys me because of Christ.

As I enter my day He Is with me and I am with Him. Miracles are waiting even in seemingly mundane circumstances. He becomes my Shepherd.

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The New Moon

In the old testament, there were animal sacrifices pointing to the great substitutionary sacrifice of the coming Messiah. Perhaps we only think of sin offerings or offerings on holidays like the Passover but something happened every week and every new moon.

"And it shall come to pass, that from one new moon to another, and from one sabbath to another, shall all flesh come to worship before me, saith the LORD." - Isaiah 66:23 KJV

"Blow up the trumpet in the new moon, in the time appointed, on our solemn feast day." - Psalm 81:3 KJV

"Thus saith the Lord GOD; The gate of the inner court that looketh toward the east shall be shut the six working days; but on the sabbath it shall be opened, and in the day of the new moon it shall be opened." - Ezekiel 46:1 KJV

The new moon happens directly after the stage when the moon gives no light because the Earth is blocking the sun's light from reaching the moon then a small sliver of light shines from the moon. This moon that is shining again even just a little is considered 'new.'

"Let no man therefore judge you in meat, or in drink, or in respect of an holyday, or of the new moon, or of the sabbath days:" - Colossians 2:16 KJV

Paul wrote this to believers because they had a new life in Christ. No more temple sacrifice was needed to cover sin. Personal sin had been blotted out by the blood of the lamb.

Things get dark in our lives. It comes in cycles but that is no surprise. Life is like that but are we looking for that sliver of light? Are we prepared to worship?

Rosh Hashanah is the Hebrew new year. Many cultures today wait until midnight to celebrate their new year but in Israel it wasn't a new year until that first new moon was sighted. The moon would disappear and when the people saw the first sliver of moonlight shining the trumpet would sound and everyone would welcome a new year.

"And he will send out his angels with a loud trumpet call, and they will gather his elect from the four winds, from one end of heaven to the other. From the fig tree learn its lesson: as soon as its branch becomes tender and puts out its leaves, you know that summer is near. So also, when you see all these things, you know that he is near, at the very gates. Truly, I say to you, this generation will not pass away until all these things take place. Heaven and earth will pass away, but my words will not pass away. But concerning that day and hour no one knows, not even the angels of heaven, nor the Son, but the Father only. For as were the days of Noah, so will be the coming of the Son of Man." - Matthew 24:31-37 ESV

This passage is no mystery. Jesus is talking about a global new year that is coming soon to a theater near you. No man knows exactly when the new year starts. It isn't a time set on a clock. It is a confirmed sighting of a sliver of moonlight after a season of seeming absence.

Will Jesus return this Rosh Hashanah or on Rosh Hashanah? Our God is a God with great sense of humor. He could. He could come at any moment. New testament believers were freed from a lunar system of worship but God has kept Israel in the picture against amazing odds. Rosh Hashanah is still celebrated every year all over the globe and it is a reminder to us.

Every month when it gets darkest God keeps giving the world a sliver of hope that gets brighter and brighter all over again. One day a trumpet will sound and we will be gathered for a great celebration.

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Build An Altar In Bethel

Put away the other stuff and focus in on the right God.

"God said to Jacob, 'Arise, go up to Bethel and dwell there. Make an altar there to the God who appeared to you when you fled from your brother Esau.' So Jacob said to his household and to all who were with him, 'Put away the foreign gods that are among you and purify yourselves and change your garments. Then let us arise and go up to Bethel, so that I may make there an altar to the God who answers me in the day of my distress and has been with me wherever I have gone.' So they gave to Jacob all the foreign gods that they had, and the rings that were in their ears. Jacob hid them under the terebinth tree that was near Shechem." - Genesis 35:1-4 ESV

It is funny that God is saying, 'Make an altar to the God who appeared to you.' as if there are other options. God isn't saying, 'Make an altar to Me.' He is acknowledging that Jacob has other options and He is challenging Jacob to act on one of many options.

'Which God will you choose Jacob?'

Jacob chooses the God who answered him in the day of his distress. Television, movies and music don't answer you. Food, sex and vacations don't give a living response. They can be a temporary escape but they don't change a person and they can only mirror back what is in the heart. They have no power of transformation.

When Jacob ran from Esau that was the first time he really struck out on his own and left his family behind. Mom wasn't there to help him. He didn't need to worship his father's God anymore because he wasn't under his roof. He was on his own in a cold world and God met him there to show him He wasn't alone.

You may find yourself at a crossroad or a brick wall may be in your path preventing you from going forward. Stop and decide to make an altar to the correct God. Identify the idols and put them away. They only help you to waste time while you are stuck in your present location. They are not of any real use. They just distract.

"And as they journeyed, a terror from God fell upon the cities that were around them, so that they did not pursue the sons of Jacob. And Jacob came to Luz (that is, Bethel), which is in the land of Canaan, he and all the people who were with him, and there he built an altar and called the place El-bethel, because there God had revealed himself to him when he fled from his brother." - Genesis 35:5-7 ESV

Then God opens a path for that altar to be built.

Without a mission Jacob would have never made it to Bethel. When he decided to identify the right God then God acted on Jacob's obstacles to open the path up for Jacob to make a lasting impact on the world around him.

Now Bethel has an altar that it didn't have before. Jacob had a ministry that left a mark on a place because he chose the right God and put the other ones away.

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The New Moon - Colossians - Part 48

"He disarmed the rulers and authorities and put them to open shame, by triumphing over them in him. Therefore let no one pass judgment on you in questions of food and drink, or with regard to a festival or a new moon or a Sabbath. These are a shadow of the things to come, but the substance belongs to Christ." - Colossians 2:15-17 ESV

The Hapax Legomenon (unique word) here is 'new moon'. The Hebrew calendar is a lunar calendar and worship was on a lunar schedule.

Festival, New Moon and Sabbath = Recreation, Cycles (or marking the passage of time) and Rest

"And it shall come to pass, that from one new moon to another, and from one sabbath to another, shall all flesh come to worship before me, saith the LORD." - Isaiah 66:23 KJV

"Likewise the people of the land shall worship at the door of this gate before the LORD in the sabbaths and in the new moons." - Ezekiel 46:3 KJV

These two passages are prophetic in nature. Many people don't mark the passage of time by worship.

At the time this is written we are closing out a month and will soon begin another. What does that mean to us?

I often look at the month coming before it arrives. I look at my birthday list and pray. I think about appointments. I gauge needs. I pay or mentally put aside money for bills that come in monthly cycles.

My devotional life is a portal into worship. It isn't me trying to better myself. It is the exploration of God's mind.

Oppression leaves a depression that is painful. An oppressor seek to exploit and to do that he or she must isolate, accuse and gain dependency. To do that integrity must be destroyed so that accusation will be internalized and isolation will be reinforced. Then exploitation can continue.

A worshipper can't be isolated. God is there. A worshipper knows accusations can't isolate unless they are internalized.

If worship has been disqualified in our lives we have believed a lie. It might be a lie about God or about ourselves... or both. It takes humility to worship. Lets humble ourselves and enter in by faith. God's light will banish the darkness. His Word will be a light for our path and a lamp for our feet on the path that echoes with praise.

In God's economy of grace we are not in bondage. We are not forced to regulate ourselves (or others) in recreation or rest. We each mark the passage of time differently and our emphasis may be different. In truth, from God's perspective, the substance of these things rests in Christ. When He becomes the focus then worship is incorporated into our cycles and our Sabbath.

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Distractions

Distractions. I suppose in every season of life we have them and some things change categories over time.

"Have nothing to do with irreverent, silly myths. Rather train yourself for godliness; for while bodily training is of some value, godliness is of value in every way, as it holds promise for the present life and also for the life to come." - 1 Timothy 4:7-8 ESV

"Shall we provoke the Lord to jealousy? Are we stronger than he? 'All things are lawful,' but not all things are helpful. 'All things are lawful,' but not all things build up." - 1 Corinthians 10:22-23 ESV

A distraction is something that we 'can' do but does not build anything or perhaps it builds something but does not contribute to the present project or cause.

"Look carefully then how you walk, not as unwise but as wise, making the best use of the time, because the days are evil. Therefore do not be foolish, but understand what the will of the Lord is. And do not get drunk with wine, for that is debauchery, but be filled with the Spirit, addressing one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing and making melody to the Lord with your heart," - Ephesians 5:15-19 ESV

Wow. Isn't this a good passage. People take the middle part of this passage and use it as an anti-drinking passage but really it is an anti-distraction passage.

I don't drink. It is my choice. I have people in my life that have problems with addiction and I would never want to be a stumbling block to them. I don't need it or want it. I don't spend my pleasure that way. I invest my joy in other things. Wine is mocker. It isn't getting my time. It adds nothing to me and only detracts.

But distraction is my subject today. I want to identify what is and isn't a distraction so that I can focus and make a choice. Responding to distractions are choice driven actions. We either don't realize we have a choice, make a compromise or stay focused. Our choices train us and strengthen our future focus or lack of focus.

"Therefore, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us also lay aside every weight, and sin which clings so closely, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us, looking to Jesus, the founder and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is seated at the right hand of the throne of God. Consider him who endured from sinners such hostility against himself, so that you may not grow weary or fainthearted." - Hebrews 12:1-3 ESV

Ah Ha!

The Finished Work of The Cross is never a distraction. It is a profitable focus that fine tunes and rearranges our priorities to align with God's mind. He has a redemptive goal. Perhaps we are so project oriented at times that we miss what He has in mind.

Focus us God. We look unto Your Son this morning and we desire to have a distraction free day. Of course there will be potential detours that appear in our view but we desire to have a single eye today. Thank you God. Worship is not a distraction for us. Grace is not. The cross is not. Thank You God.

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Hope In God

God isn't going to change. God isn't going to die. If we place our hope in God we will have hope until the end. We can have hope for each circumstance and each life we come in contact with. It is a realistic hope because we have a risen Saviour.

I almost don't want to say more... Isn't that good?

"For I know the thoughts that I think toward you, saith the LORD, thoughts of peace, and not of evil, to give you an expected end." - Jeremiah 29:11 KJV

"Let this mind be in you, which was also in Christ Jesus:" - Philippians 2:5 KJV

Jesus had a mind full of hope. He was going to the cross believing that God would make everything alright for the world and for Him also. Jesus was and is hope.

We can believe God. Jesus does believe God... always.

Is your situation dark? Jesus is with you in the situation. Is your neighbor's situation dark? God has you there to participate in hope. He has you, His ambassador, there to be a person who believes.

Deception is an absence of Hope in God. Hope is either gone or it is misplaced.

Today can be a great day because of Jesus. God hears prayers because of Jesus. Miracles happen when Jesus is present.

It is simple... very simple... so simple. We say His name and think about who He is. He died and rose and will never die again. He will never change in His love. He is alpha and omega. When He enters a room hope enters also.

'Jesus'

Say His name. Demons tremble at that name. Heaven sings when they hear it. Healing comes when hope comes.

Thank You God. Thank You. Darkness would have overcome us but You walked in and saved us. Thank You God. Let healing tears of hope come into dark places today. You are our strong tower. We run to You and hide in the comfort of Your strength and wisdom. You are the awesome God. There is healing in Your wings.

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The Immeasurable Gift Of God

I have a 'hard saying' in mind this morning and I was taught long ago never to start any communication with a hard saying because the hearer is likely not to have any capacity to hear it. Communication should address the capacity of the hearer or you might as well be talking to yourself.

"I therefore, the prisoner of the Lord, beseech you that ye walk worthy of the vocation wherewith ye are called, With all lowliness and meekness, with longsuffering, forbearing one another in love; Endeavouring to keep the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace. There is one body, and one Spirit, even as ye are called in one hope of your calling; One Lord, one faith, one baptism, One God and Father of all, who is above all, and through all, and in you all. But unto every one of us is given grace according to the measure of the gift of Christ... Wherefore putting away lying, speak every man truth with his neighbour: for we are members one of another. Be ye angry, and sin not: let not the sun go down upon your wrath: Neither give place to the devil. Let him that stole steal no more: but rather let him labour, working with his hands the thing which is good, that he may have to give to him that needeth. Let no corrupt communication proceed out of your mouth, but that which is good to the use of edifying, that it may minister grace unto the hearers." - Ephesians 4:1-7, 25-29 KJV

'Neither give place to the Devil' is the hard saying.

Paul has spoken for three glorious chapters before he gets to chapter four and he talks about the gift(s) God has given. The measure of the gift of Christ is an immeasurable measure. It is a gift beyond calculable value.

All anger is not wrong. There is a righteous indignation but it seems that anger is often what leads to people marking off a territory to the accuser.

I like the advice given to the thief. Instead of stealing the thief is advised to work hard and give what he or she has worked for to others. Like wise grace words are the substitute for angry words. Grace must crowd out the place that was formerly given over to accusation.

As we all know anger isn't easily displaced.

"With all lowliness and meekness, with longsuffering, forbearing one another in love; Endeavouring to keep the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace... That we henceforth be no more children, tossed to and fro, and carried about with every wind of doctrine, by the sleight of men, and cunning craftiness, whereby they lie in wait to deceive; But speaking the truth in love, may grow up into him in all things, which is the head, even Christ... That ye put off concerning the former conversation the old man, which is corrupt according to the deceitful lusts; And be renewed in the spirit of your mind; And that ye put on the new man, which after God is created in righteousness and true holiness. Wherefore putting away lying, speak every man truth with his neighbour: for we are members one of another... Let no corrupt communication proceed out of your mouth, but that which is good to the use of edifying, that it may minister grace unto the hearers. And grieve not the holy Spirit of God, whereby ye are sealed unto the day of redemption. Let all bitterness, and wrath, and anger, and clamour, and evil speaking, be put away from you, with all malice: And be ye kind one to another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, even as God for Christ's sake hath forgiven you." - Ephesians 4:2-3, 14-15, 22-25, 29-32 KJV

Worship, Truth and Fellowship reveal the immeasurable gift of God and that gift displaces anger and accusation. God has not made us to be disappointed people. He has made us to be rich in grace and mercy.

These footholds freeze us in a mindset and no one wants that.

God please help us. We are not going to get introspective about our lives. Secure for us a place of worship for this season of life. Give us a place where truth is flowing and fellowship is real. We pray that also for the people that we love that don't seem to have freedom. Let all bitterness, clamour and evil speaking be far from us and them. We want to live in the measure of the immeasurable gift. We want that to fill up and displace any footholds. Thank You God. We want hearts that are so full of truth that accusation can find no place to land and settle in. Thank You God. Your gifts have no limit. Your love is endless. Your mercy overflows. Thank You God.

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Mind Not High Things

"A Song of Ascents. Of David.
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O LORD, my heart is not lifted up; my eyes are not raised too high; I do not occupy myself with things too great and too marvelous for me.
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But I have calmed and quieted my soul, like a weaned child with its mother; like a weaned child is my soul within me. O Israel, hope in the LORD from this time forth and forevermore." - Psalm 131:1-3 ESV

Such a good psalm.

One key to apply the wisdom expressed in it is to understand the context. Songs of ascent were sung on the uphill journey to Jerusalem on the way to one of the feasts. At points in Jewish history they were sung going up the steps to the temple. Tradition says that some groups would stop on a step and sing a psalm and then move to the next step and sing another one.

The Hebrew word translated 'too great' is gadowl (Strong's H1419) and it means great in magnitude.

In a way this is the simplification we long to achieve when we go on a special trip like a wedding in another city, a vacation or a trip to a fair. The psalmist isn't saying they never mind high things or attempt large or complicated tasks they are saying that this is not the time to do those things because the family, with other families, is traveling to Jerusalem and it in a time for worship, fellowship and a narrowing of purpose.

It is also time to have a weaned soul that can endure discomfort knowing the provision is coming like a child that sees a schedule for feeding and is not driven and ruled by it's hunger to react and demand in panic.

"So then, there remains a Sabbath rest for the people of God, for whoever has entered God's rest has also rested from his works as God did from his... For the word of God is living and active, sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing to the division of soul and of spirit, of joints and of marrow, and discerning the thoughts and intentions of the heart. And no creature is hidden from his sight, but all are naked and exposed to the eyes of him to whom we must give account. Since then we have a great high priest who has passed through the heavens, Jesus, the Son of God, let us hold fast our confession. For we do not have a high priest who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses, but one who in every respect has been tempted as we are, yet without sin. Let us then with confidence draw near to the throne of grace, that we may receive mercy and find grace to help in time of need." - Hebrews 4:9-10, 12-16 ESV

There is a rest to enter into. There is a throne to go boldly towards. On this trip things are simplified. The truth that is God's sword cuts and divides so that motives and intentions are defined and visible. Attitudes become evident on trips like these. We are not mentally wrestling with large luggage that breaks our back. We travel light and have what we need. We pack with purpose knowing when we are going and why we are going there.

We have a destination and we worship as we go and say, 'hope in the LORD from this time forth and forevermore' because we value the pilgrim life and the vacation journey.

The high things are for another time because when we function in God's word and simplicity we get definition that exposes and illuminates the light burden of being yoked up with Jesus. The word of God whittles that large unmanageable thing into smaller manageable parts.

Jesus has passed through the Heavens already. He has moved past principalities and powers and sits at our destination. We can rest going there also.

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Teraphim

"Moreover, Josiah removed the mediums and the spiritists and the teraphim and the idols and all the abominations that were seen in the land of Judah and in Jerusalem, that he might confirm the words of the law which were written in the book that Hilkiah the priest found in the house of the LORD. Before him there was no king like him who turned to the LORD with all his heart and with all his soul and with all his might, according to all the law of Moses; nor did any like him arise after him." - 2 Kings 23:24-25 NASB

Josiah was a unique king. He went against the current of the time.

I picked this version because it left a word untranslated that interested me. Teraphiym (Strong's H8655) is used 15 times in the old testament and is often translated image, idol or household god. It is plural for the Hebrew root Rapha (H7495) with means healer or physician.

In other words he took away the things that people used to self medicate. He removed public idol worship and private idol worship. Oh, how people would be up in arms if that was attempted in most societies today. I am not recommending this course of action. Josiah was unique and Israel was unique.

I do think that there is much value in separating our own household from idols and teraphim. Self medication cuts us off from receiving true comfort. Josiah knew this. The people could not worship the true God but have all these idols around. It was one or the other.

Perhaps I don't speak about my own hobbies here very much but I have some things I enjoy and derive great pleasure from. I am in my forties and I'm learning my first musical instrument and discovering the joys of reading sheet music. Most days these halls echo with the sound of a clarinet for a short time. As the weeks go by I'm getting more proficient. The dog doesn't howl like she used to. I still get her going from time to time and I have a long way to go. It is new territory and a different avenue for me to worship God and I just love it. I listen to more jazz, big band and klezmer music and find the different instruments as I listen. I am developing the ears of a student.

I'd love to go listen to live venues but where is most jazz played? In bars. So guess what... I don't go to those places to listen. Not gonna happen. I won't cross the line. I don't want to take home what is being served there.

I see a lot of posts on social media about wine. Wine is a classy way for women to self medicate but do people know that there is a Comforter in Heaven and here on Earth inside each one who believes? When we find comfort in other places we are committing adultery the same way a married man or woman runs to the arms of a strange lover.

I don't say this to condemn anyone or bash your lifestyle. Do what you do. We will both stand before God some day and make an account for the choices we made and didn't make. Some folks would tell me that my love of the clarinet is wrong because I enjoy it so much but it isn't about the pleasure of a thing. I speak about wine this way because the Bible gives clear definition.

"Wine is a mocker, strong drink a brawler, and whoever is led astray by it is not wise." - Proverbs 20:1 ESV

"And do not get drunk with wine, for that is debauchery, but be filled with the Spirit, addressing one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing and making melody to the Lord with your heart," - Ephesians 5:18-19 ESV

There it is. Do with it what you will. I see a stop sign. What do you see?

I see music that glorifies God as a recommended pastime.

When I was young mockery and brawling were fun activities. Not anymore.

I want the teraphim out of my house. If the public idols were taken away our streets would be safer and our children would have a better chance at life. I have a God and He is amazing. I don't want to worship anywhere else or anyone else. There are pain relievers on a shelf in my bathroom. I use them when needed but by God's grace they will never come before Him. If they ever do then I would rather live in pain. I am thankful that there is a provision for pain available.

Josiah was a unique king and we are unique people with a unique sphere of influence. I want to share God's grace with people and recommend the great Comforter as a remedy for what ails them.

Let's live like royalty today. If we have control over our space then we can exercise that control like royalty.

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Spectators And Participants

I was thinking last night about being a spectator as apposed to being a participant.

"But God, being rich in mercy, because of the great love with which he loved us, even when we were dead in our trespasses, made us alive together with Christ - by grace you have been saved - and raised us up with him and seated us with him in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus, so that in the coming ages he might show the immeasurable riches of his grace in kindness toward us in Christ Jesus. For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God, not a result of works, so that no one may boast. For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand, that we should walk in them." - Ephesians 2:4-10 ESV

We are spectators to salvation but participants in faith.

Believing is not a work. It is an orientation. Faith is the result of a paradigm shift in our thinking that gives us a viewpoint different than what we had before naturally. 'Paradigm Shift' is fancy term describing a simple idea. It is the change in thinking that happens when a person walks in someone else's shoes and sees things from a viewpoint that was closed to them before. The 'shift' part is what happens to them because of that new comprehension. They are moved and can't go back to what they thought before without the new viewpoint added to the mix.

Good theology declares correctly the things we should watch and the things we should participate in. The boundaries become clear to us. An ambassador must know the authority and responsibility her or she has. They are present in a foreign land for a defined purpose.

Wrong participation has different names. Interference. Meddling. Judging. Vanity.

By grace we now participate in God's love and enter into worship. We make righteous judgments as spectators of the cross. God participated in humanity to accomplish something wondrous.

We look on in awe of what He has done. It prompts us to raise our voices and assemble our instruments. We see that it is finished and that shifts us to a new place. It is not our power that brings us there. We see from God's perspective because He has moved us and shown us love in action.

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A Clean Victory

There are issues that we face and the only true offense we can take against them is to praise God. On one level this sounds crazy. Shouldn't we be like action heroes and grab what is on hand and face the enemy with all we have in us. So what if the odds are against us. That is what we have been taught but is there a better way?

"Did you not, our God, drive out the inhabitants of this land before your people Israel, and give it forever to the descendants of Abraham your friend? And they have lived in it and have built for you in it a sanctuary for your name, saying, 'If disaster comes upon us, the sword, judgment, or pestilence, or famine, we will stand before this house and before you - for your name is in this house - and cry out to you in our affliction, and you will hear and save.' And now behold, the men of Ammon and Moab and Mount Seir, whom you would not let Israel invade when they came from the land of Egypt, and whom they avoided and did not destroy - behold, they reward us by coming to drive us out of your possession, which you have given us to inherit. O our God, will you not execute judgment on them? For we are powerless against this great horde that is coming against us. We do not know what to do, but our eyes are on you.'" - 2 Chronicles 20:7-12 ESV

In this case God had held them back from dealing with these people groups and there are things and people we can't deal with head on also. Something prevents us from doing it.

If you have a family you have faced these kinds of things haven't you? If you have had a job?

"And they rose early in the morning and went out into the wilderness of Tekoa. And when they went out, Jehoshaphat stood and said, 'Hear me, Judah and inhabitants of Jerusalem! Believe in the LORD your God, and you will be established; believe his prophets, and you will succeed.' And when he had taken counsel with the people, he appointed those who were to sing to the LORD and praise him in holy attire, as they went before the army, and say, 'Give thanks to the LORD, for his steadfast love endures forever.' And when they began to sing and praise, the LORD set an ambush against the men of Ammon, Moab, and Mount Seir, who had come against Judah, so that they were routed. For the men of Ammon and Moab rose against the inhabitants of Mount Seir, devoting them to destruction, and when they had made an end of the inhabitants of Seir, they all helped to destroy one another. When Judah came to the watchtower of the wilderness, they looked toward the horde, and behold, there were dead bodies lying on the ground; none had escaped. When Jehoshaphat and his people came to take their spoil, they found among them, in great numbers, goods, clothing, and precious things, which they took for themselves until they could carry no more. They were three days in taking the spoil, it was so much." - 2 Chronicles 20:20-25 ESV

We worship and our enemies destroy each other. We are left with a treasure and no blood on our hands. Perhaps there is a mess to clean up but we have not been the ones to cause the mess.

"They came to Jerusalem with harps and lyres and trumpets, to the house of the LORD. And the fear of God came on all the kingdoms of the countries when they heard that the LORD had fought against the enemies of Israel." - 2 Chronicles 20:28-29 ESV

"Behold, I send you forth as sheep in the midst of wolves: be ye therefore wise as serpents, and harmless as doves." - Matthew 10:16 KJV

"That ye may be blameless and harmless, the sons of God, without rebuke, in the midst of a crooked and perverse nation, among whom ye shine as lights in the world;" - Philippians 2:15 KJV

Instead of putting our weapons out on the table and loading them with ammunition to assess our strength we have the great privilege of taking out our musical instruments and tuning them for a day of worship.

There is a balance. Israel used the sword to take the land in the first place and there are times we must fight and we would be fools not to but that should be the exception and not the rule.

Worship may be the last thing we feel like doing in some situations but when our hands are tied it is the only way we can get a true clean victory.

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The Wings of Grace

I'm moving slow this morning but that's alright. I have read my booklet pages about five times and I couldn't tell you what it said if you asked. Today like everyday I need to know grace. I cling to it. I cherish it. I won't condemn myself nor will I quit. I have great grace. God will never condemn me. He can't. He won't. I'm slow but I'm taken care of so I think of others.

< Listened to 'He Giveth More Grace' on the GaitherVEVO channel on YouTube and prayed for a number of people as their faces flashed by in my minds eye. A handful of them are deeply on my heart >

Sick people need more grace... tired people... grieving people... Oh, Yes they do... the grieving person is not themselves yet... time passes and they think that they are but it comes in waves because it is below the surface... they need grace... they need a Heavenly hope and to live in their Heavenly identity... God will dry the tears someday... He will dry them forever.

God wants us just as we are. God accepts us right now just as we are. Jesus is enough. Jesus was, Is and forever will be the only requirement attached to our lives.

Pregnant people need more grace... older people do and younger people do also... healthy people do but they just may not know it... working people do... my friends need it so do my family members... they need God's grace to be real... they need His touch... they need His love... my neighbors do... my co-workers do... the newly married people do... the older couples who know each other all to well do... young people do... they need it so much... the world is a crazy faster place now... they need grace to run and not be weary and to walk and not faint... they are young but they need wings... their strength is not enough... grace must carry them to where they must go... our brave, beautiful, talented children need grace... do they know it?... they need more grace... they need to learn to give themselves grace and more grace.

Jacob is limping after meeting God but he is mindful of the sheep now. He needs grace and knows it. I curse my limping flesh sometimes. I'm slow and it's painful but would I even be looking around at others if I didn't have it? I don't know. I doubt it. God loves a selfish rascal wearing the 'hairy arms of Esau' when He loves me. He Is blind to my old nature and feels His Son when He reaches out to touch me. He gives more grace. I put my arms out and He lays His hand on my head and blesses me.

< Stopped to listen to 'The Glorious Impossible' >

Jesus is the glorious impossible One. Grace is our glorious impossible provision. It ignores all that is covered under the blood and dares us to look up at the One sitting on the right hand of the throne.

We don't need to change ourselves. We don't need to strive. We are wise to just enter into worship. To hold out our arms that are covered because we have put on Jesus Christ and let God bless us. What we need is more grace and it is right there. Like an ocean it is right here.

A little time. A little rehearsing of truth. A little worship and newness flows in. Strength comes when it comes. We can move in a minute or two. We need to sit before we can go anywhere. In our weakness we have wings.

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Clean Free Hands

His mercies are new this morning. They are right out of the oven mercy. Fresh. Warm. Wholesome. New.

"But this I call to mind, and therefore I have hope: The steadfast love of the LORD never ceases; his mercies never come to an end; they are new every morning; great is your faithfulness. 'The LORD is my portion,' says my soul, 'therefore I will hope in him.' " - Lamentations 3:21-24 ESV

His quickening is real this morning.

"If the Spirit of him who raised Jesus from the dead dwells in you, he who raised Christ Jesus from the dead will also give life to your mortal bodies through his Spirit who dwells in you." - Romans 8:11 ESV

The Word is sharp and alive as ever.

"For the word of God is living and active, sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing to the division of soul and of spirit, of joints and of marrow, and discerning the thoughts and intentions of the heart." - Hebrews 4:12 ESV

His faithfulness is not yesterday's news. It is today's reality.

"For great is his steadfast love toward us, and the faithfulness of the LORD endures forever. Praise the LORD!" - Psalm 117:2 ESV

"Behold, the LORD's hand is not shortened, that it cannot save, or his ear dull, that it cannot hear;" - Isaiah 59:1 ESV

God's ears are awake and His arm is strong.

"Behold, he who keeps Israel will neither slumber nor sleep. The LORD is your keeper; the LORD is your shade on your right hand. The sun shall not strike you by day, nor the moon by night. The LORD will keep you from all evil; he will keep your life. The LORD will keep your going out and your coming in from this time forth and forevermore." - Psalm 121:4-8 ESV

He isn't sleeping. He hasn't forgotten us. He has been awake this whole time.

"If you, O LORD, should mark iniquities, O Lord, who could stand? But with you there is forgiveness, that you may be feared. I wait for the LORD, my soul waits, and in his word I hope;" - Psalm 130:3-5 ESV

New mercies mean new hope.

"A Song of Ascents. Come, bless the LORD, all you servants of the LORD, who stand by night in the house of the LORD! Lift up your hands to the holy place and bless the LORD! May the LORD bless you from Zion, he who made heaven and earth!" - Psalm 134 ESV

We let go of the old and lift holy hands. We don't want to hold on to that which is false and feed on ashes (see Isaiah 44:20).

"Therefore, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us also lay aside every weight, and sin which clings so closely, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us, looking to Jesus" - Hebrews 12:1-2a ESV

Today we rise to drink the cup of salvation and rejoice in the freshness of who God Is and always will be. Today is a day to shake off the dust, cast all of our cares on Him and rejoice as we worship Him with clean free hands.

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Sweet Words

Praise isn't worship. Praise is what we do because of worship. Worship is a study of God's character. We get glimpses of grace and those glimpses produce praise.

People can worship other people. It happens all the time in fact. Our eyes move to the things we see and true worship ceases. A little convenient editing while wearing rose colored glasses gives us praise for people.

Worship of God is true worship. The deeper we go into who God Is the more cause there is for praise and further exploration. Man made in the image of God also has a depth but we aren't going to like what we see if we dig too deep.

"You shall have no other gods before me." - Exodus 20:3 ESV

"Pay attention to all that I have said to you, and make no mention of the names of other gods, nor let it be heard on your lips." - Exodus 23:13 ESV

God is jealous this way. Any other God must be a lie because He Is the only God. He is the God of all grace.

How many 'sweet words' have been lost (see Proverbs 23:8) because we realize the flaws in people. It might just take as little as a drive on our local highway or in your downtown center to lose sweet words and trade then for sour ones.

It is a paradox. When we worship God we can love people because God loves people. When we worship people we can't love God because we have forsaken the fountain of living waters..

Praise is not an activity for me. If I don't have praise on my lips then something has happened. It means my spiritual vision is either obscured or misplaced. I either can't really see who God Is or I have stopped looking at Him and started looking at something else for my happiness, provision and focus.

"Therefore, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us also lay aside every weight, and sin which clings so closely, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us, looking to Jesus, the founder and perfecter of our faith" - Hebrews 12:1-2a ESV

"If then you have been raised with Christ, seek the things that are above, where Christ is, seated at the right hand of God. Set your minds on things that are above, not on things that are on earth. For you have died, and your life is hidden with Christ in God." - Colossians 3:1-3 ESV

"For this reason I remind you to fan into flame the gift of God, which is in you through the laying on of my hands, for God gave us a spirit not of fear but of power and love and self-control." - 2 Timothy 1:6-7 ESV

Oh, I love that translation of 2 Timothy 1 verse 6. Fan into flame the gift of grace. If you are born from above that fire can not die. The embers may be small but they are alive. Fan them. Fan the gift of your calling... fan the gift of salvation... be with people who are alive and get close to their fire... listen to a preacher who burns with the fire of grace and is not consumed... let the reality of grace have the air that it needs to be reignited in your life and feed scripture and concentration into that fire and praise will just come. It will spring from your lips as God comes into view in the face of Jesus Christ.

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Irresistible Sharpness

"Let the high praises of God be in their throats and two-edged swords in their hands," - Psalms 149:6 ESV

Would you use a two edged knife in your kitchen? I likely wouldn't. Why?

If both sides of a knife are sharp you must exert all of the pressure to cut anything from from the handle. Most kitchen knifes have a sharp side and a blunt side so that you can use your palm on the blunt side and exert pressure when needed or rock the blade quickly up and down to dice tough vegetables. Even heavy cleavers weighed to make cutting easier have a blunt back.

Two-edged swords must be extremely sharp and can only be controlled from the hilt. They can not be used to block because in order to block there must be a blunt back resting on some body part to absorb the blow.

"In his right hand he held seven stars, from his mouth came a sharp two-edged sword, and his face was like the sun shining in full strength. When I saw him, I fell at his feet as though dead. But he laid his right hand on me, saying, 'Fear not, I am the first and the last, and the living one. I died, and behold I am alive forevermore, and I have the keys of Death and Hades.' " - Revelation 1:16-18 ESV

Jesus' words are like a two-edged sword. He does not leverage them. He just speaks them and they have cutting power. His person is irresistible. The writer fell down at his feet like any man would. No one will stand against him.

"Praise the LORD! Sing to the LORD a new song, his praise in the assembly of the godly! Let Israel be glad in his Maker; let the children of Zion rejoice in their King! Let them praise his name with dancing, making melody to him with tambourine and lyre! For the LORD takes pleasure in his people; he adorns the humble with salvation. Let the godly exult in glory; let them sing for joy on their beds. Let the high praises of God be in their throats and two-edged swords in their hands, to execute vengeance on the nations and punishments on the peoples, to bind their kings with chains and their nobles with fetters of iron, to execute on them the judgment written! This is honor for all his godly ones. Praise the LORD!" - Psalms 149:1-9 ESV

Our life of praise as we walk in grace is a two-edged sword. It speaks for itself. We don't have to leverage it with the palm of our hands. It is dangerous to try because we will cut ourselves. Grace is not a cleaver or a saw. Nor is it a defensive weapon. We block with our shield of faith. Faith can rest upon our body and absorb the forceful blows of the enemy. Our sword will only get dull if we block with it.

"For the word of God is living and active, sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing to the division of soul and of spirit, of joints and of marrow, and discerning the thoughts and intentions of the heart." - Hebrews 4:12 ESV

Notice that the verse doesn't say that the Bible is a two-edged sword... It says it is sharper than one and a two-edged sword must be very sharp indeed in order to be effective.

What words do we hold in our hands and what words proceed from our mouths? Are they grace words? Because grace needs no leverage from us. Those words go forth and do what they were meant to do.

We don't want words that hack and saw at issues wearing us down with all the effort we have to put forth. We want words that reveal the irresistible Christ. Words that have supernatural sharpness. Words that cut through cleanly and decisively. Words that cut away what needs to be discarded and dices up the rest for easy consumption.

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A Sense of Awe

Just taking sometime to think about awe this morning.

A sense of wonder where your senses or reasoning connect with the deep essence of your being and there is a connection and awareness that you are seeing or witnessing something great or beautiful.

There was a sunset last week that stopped me in my tracks and I got as high up in my building as I could to see it and tried to take a picture of it with my phone but the pictures all came out blurry and crooked. I caught a moment of wonder but I could not capture that moment.

For some it is a mathematics equation that elegantly displays a solution or a play in a game that was executed with such ideal timing and precision that it brings a crowd to their feet all at once in a roar of adoration. Someone with little knowledge of math or baseball would find these things interesting and might respond to a reaction others have but the wonder would be lost on them.

Beauty evokes wonder but function can also. Perhaps function is beauty to the mind of an engineer or scientist. A simple but efficient design is beautiful. A tool that just works for you after trying dozens of different similar tools.

I have screwdriver that I used as a technician and it just always seemed catch the screw just right... it never stripped a screw and I could use it to break the tightest seal. At the same time it caught the screw heads and spun them so easily when I was locking something down also. I loved using that tool.

Writing, plot lines or music can evoke this sense also. A mystery that totally catches you off guard and you can trace the clues back in your mind but never saw the conclusion coming. A poem or song that captures a mood or stage of life so well that you identify with it and it brings you into that time or place.

The God of the Bible is a God of wonder... He is beautiful... He is functional... He is the perfect match and mirror for our soul. Every song, poem, sunset and thing that causes us to take pause and gasp culminates in who He is. He is the deep satisfying laughter and sublime perfection that evokes worship.  Hymnals are filled with hearts that desire to describe and extol Him... all of creation is His artistry.

Grace amazes me... it is like visiting the grand masters section of a museum and standing in front of a beloved painting that I have stood before dozens of times but each time it does something to me... God's grace makes for perfect flawless relationships. It brings all of who God is into communion and union with all of who we are. Seamless and functional in every way. There is no ugly underbelly... it is beautiful from every angle.

I love my Bible but I also understand why people walk right by it. The awe is hidden inside it what looks like a normal book. God hides Himself this way.

Grace and mercy open our eyes to what is hidden. Favor that never fails and is never withdrawn beckons us to enter and see sights and words that change us. Grace reveals God but it also captures Him so that we can keep Him. The wonder lives in us. The flame may flicker at times or it may shine brightly but it will never leave or forsake us.

God, We worship You! You are our God of wonders.

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