A Minute In It - Who Am I, Lord?

A minute in God’s Word will change your life. Take a moment to read the text below and then answer the questions at the bottom of the post.

1 Bless the Lord, O my soul,
    and all that is within me,
    bless his holy name!
2 Bless the Lord, O my soul,
    and forget not all his benefits,
3 who forgives all your iniquity,
    who heals all your diseases,
4 who redeems your life from the pit,
    who crowns you with steadfast love and mercy,
5 who satisfies you with good
    so that your youth is renewed like the eagle's.

6 The Lord works righteousness
    and justice for all who are oppressed.
7 He made known his ways to Moses,
    his acts to the people of Israel.
8 The Lord is merciful and gracious,
    slow to anger and abounding in steadfast love.
9 He will not always chide,
    nor will he keep his anger forever.
10 He does not deal with us according to our sins,
    nor repay us according to our iniquities.
11 For as high as the heavens are above the earth,
    so great is his steadfast love toward those who fear him;
12 as far as the east is from the west,
    so far does he remove our transgressions from us.
13 As a father shows compassion to his children,
    so the Lord shows compassion to those who fear him.
14 For he knows our frame;
    he remembers that we are dust.

15 As for man, his days are like grass;
    he flourishes like a flower of the field;
16 for the wind passes over it, and it is gone,
    and its place knows it no more.
17 But the steadfast love of the Lord is from everlasting to everlasting on those who fear him,
    and his righteousness to children's children,
18 to those who keep his covenant
    and remember to do his commandments.
19 The Lord has established his throne in the heavens,
    and his kingdom rules over all.

20 Bless the Lord, O you his angels,
    you mighty ones who do his word,
    obeying the voice of his word!
21 Bless the Lord, all his hosts,
    his ministers, who do his will!
22 Bless the Lord, all his works,
    in all places of his dominion.
Bless the Lord, O my soul!
Psalm 103 (ESV)

How does this Song of David describe God?
How does it describe us?
After reading this, why should we worship God?
Does your soul worship Him?

Rocking The House

Like some fiery choir, they would call back and forth continually.
Holy, holy, holy is the Eternal, the Commander of heavenly armies!
The earth is filled with His glorious presence!
They were so loud that the doorframes shook, and the holy house kept filling with smoke. Isaiah 6:3-4 (VOICE)

Ever been to a concert or some event where the crowd is on fire for whomever is entertaining them? The room is filled with electricity. Everyone is "in one accord" as they join in singing to the music and being united with one purpose. Mostly, I enjoy this if it is a Christian concert because adding praise to that scenario takes it to the next level.

Can you imagine how Isaiah must have felt in that room with all the seraphim singing and praising God? Like a fiery choir they called back and forth praising God and filling the temple with songs of praise and adoration. Isaiah 6 tells us that they were so loud the doorframes shook! 

WOW! Wish I could be in that place worshipping in that way. The electricity, the excitement, the joy as everyone praised God. There will come a day when we get to worship with the angels in this way and my heart skips a beat to imagine how awesome that will be. 

Until then? We should keep on praising him here and now. The gentle praise of his kids has a mightier impact than the choirs of angels....we forget that we can rock the house with our lives.

Pain and Worship

Job stood up and tore his robe in grief. Then he shaved his head and fell to the ground to worship. Job 1:20 (NLT)

Job just found out that he had lost everything, most importantly his family. What was his response? To grieve and worship. That doesn't sound synonymous does it? How can you grieve and worship at the same time?

One of the problems we have is that we see worship as something we do only when we are happy. We only think of doing it when we are happy or when things are going well. Often, I think we misunderstand why we worship.  We shouldn't worship because everything is going well.  We should worship because of who God is and because of how he loves us.

It's hard to do that. Sometimes, it's really hard. Maybe because when things are going badly, we focus on the bad and forget to look up and remember who we are.

We are children of the King! Chased after by a God who would give anything to make sure we spend eternity with him. We are loved by Jesus so completely that he endured unthinkable things so we could choose eternity. The Holy Spirit whispers love songs into our hearts. We are never forgotten. We are always the center of their attention.

So on days when your problems are overwhelming, on days when you need to grieve, remember, you are not in this alone. Take a little time to focus on Jesus. Worship who he is in the middle of all that you are going through. Know you are loved and being held.

Worshipping No Matter What

“Job got to his feet, ripped his robe, shaved his head, then fell to the ground and worshiped:” ‭‭Job‬ ‭1:20‬ ‭MSG‬‬

Can you imagine? There was Job. He was having a normal kind of day, minding his own business - being very faithful to God - and all of a sudden in the blink of an eye, he lost everything. He lost his children, all of his workers and his livelihood. Everything he owned that made him happy and wealthy was gone.

When one after the other Job was given the bad news the Bible says he fell to the ground and worshiped. I have to tell you, I can see falling to the ground because he collapsed from grief or falling to the ground because he passed out; but the Bible is pretty clear. He fell down and worshiped. In verse 21 he follows up with "Blessed be the Name of the Lord."

What is it that allowed Job to bless the Lord's name even in the midst of calamity? What in his life did he possess that caused him to say "It's God's to do with what he will" instead of "God, why are you doing this to me?" The Bible says Job was devoted to God. When you read the first few verses of Job, it sounds like it was his heart's desire to please God and that he actively pursued this life-style. 

When disaster struck, Job didn't think first about the bad things that were happening, he thought first about his relationship with God. He went there first. He looked at and leaned in to what he knew and what he trusted.

Maybe, this is why God - even though he knew Satan's character - said "Look, look at my friend Job." God knew Job's heart. He knew Job just like Job knew Him.

I want to be more like Job. 

Door #1 or Door #2?

 “When you pray, don’t be like the hypocrites who love to pray publicly on street corners and in the synagogues where everyone can see them. I tell you the truth, that is all the reward they will ever get. But when you pray, go away by yourself, shut the door behind you, and pray to your Father in private. Then your Father, who sees everything, will reward you." Matthew 6:5-6 (NLT)

We have such a tendency to skim over texts we know well and not read them like we are reading for the first time. I am certainly guilty of this. But today, something different caught my eye. The word reward. It shows up in two places.

The first place is in verse five where it says that if you are praying not to connect with God but to get attention that will be your one and only reward. People will notice you and you will be praised for your many, eloquent words but that is where the fulfillment will end. Just thinking about that sounds like such a letdown. It will be short-lived and hollow.

The second place the word is used is in verse six where it says if you go off by yourself, have a one-on-one with God, just you and him he will reward you. There is no show. You don't have to have a lot of fancy words. You don't have to appear to have it all together (let's face it....he knows we don't have it all together). You just have to be you. You can be as open and honest as you want. You can spew your hurts, frustrations and disappointments and shout out your praise. This is about the connection; this is about the relationship. And no one will know except the one that counts.

The reward you get? You get some one-on-one time with the King of the Universe. You get to be real (for maybe the only time that day). You get to shift your focus from the burdens you have to the God who can and does make a difference. And in those quiet moments you know you are loved. 

I love the way The Message puts verse 6. "The focus will shift from you to God, and you will begin to sense his grace."

Two behaviors. Two rewards. Two totally different outcomes. Which one will you choose?

A Minute In It - It's Hot In There

A little time in the Word every day changes you. Take a few minutes, put yourself in the story and ask yourself a few questions.

King Nebuchadnezzar made a huge golden statue of himself and ordered all the people to bow down to it and worship it. He said whoever didn't bow down the statue would be thrown in the fiery furnace. Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego refused and the threatened them with their lives. (Daniel 3:1-15 NLT) Here is the rest of the story......

Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego replied, “O Nebuchadnezzar, we do not need to defend ourselves before you. If we are thrown into the blazing furnace, the God whom we serve is able to save us. He will rescue us from your power, Your Majesty. But even if he doesn’t, we want to make it clear to you, Your Majesty, that we will never serve your gods or worship the gold statue you have set up.”

Nebuchadnezzar was so furious with Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego that his face became distorted with rage. He commanded that the furnace be heated seven times hotter than usual. Then he ordered some of the strongest men of his army to bind Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego and throw them into the blazing furnace. So they tied them up and threw them into the furnace, fully dressed in their pants, turbans, robes, and other garments. And because the king, in his anger, had demanded such a hot fire in the furnace, the flames killed the soldiers as they threw the three men in. So Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, securely tied, fell into the roaring flames.

But suddenly, Nebuchadnezzar jumped up in amazement and exclaimed to his advisers, “Didn’t we tie up three men and throw them into the furnace?” “Yes, Your Majesty, we certainly did,” they replied. “Look!” Nebuchadnezzar shouted. “I see four men, unbound, walking around in the fire unharmed! And the fourth looks like a god!”

Then Nebuchadnezzar came as close as he could to the door of the flaming furnace and shouted: “Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, servants of the Most High God, come out! Come here!”

So Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego stepped out of the fire. Then the high officers, officials, governors, and advisers crowded around them and saw that the fire had not touched them. Not a hair on their heads was singed, and their clothing was not scorched. They didn’t even smell of smoke!

Then Nebuchadnezzar said, “Praise to the God of Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego! He sent his angel to rescue his servants who trusted in him. They defied the king’s command and were willing to die rather than serve or worship any god except their own God. Therefore, I make this decree: If any people, whatever their race or nation or language, speak a word against the God of Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, they will be torn limb from limb, and their houses will be turned into heaps of rubble. There is no other god who can rescue like this!” Daniel 3:16-29 (NLT)

How would you have felt if you were Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego as the decree was being made? Would you have known immediately that you wouldn't bow down? Would you have weighed your options? After you decided not to bow before the idol, would you have been able to say "King, God can save us but even if he doesn't we will worship him anyway"? What do you think Jesus said to the three men as he walked with them in the flames? And then after you stepped from the fire, how do you think you would feel looking back on how God showed up?

A Minute In It

A little time in the Word every day changes you. After you read it, take a few minutes and ask yourself the questions below.

I waited and waited and waited for God.
    At last he looked; finally he listened.
He lifted me out of the ditch,
    pulled me from deep mud.
He stood me up on a solid rock
    to make sure I wouldn’t slip.
He taught me how to sing the latest God-song,
    a praise-song to our God.
More and more people are seeing this:
    they enter the mystery,
    abandoning themselves to God.

Blessed are you who give yourselves over to God,
    turn your backs on the world’s “sure thing,”
    ignore what the world worships;
The world’s a huge stockpile
    of God-wonders and God-thoughts.
Nothing and no one
    comes close to you!
I start talking about you, telling what I know,
    and quickly run out of words.
Neither numbers nor words
    account for you.

Doing something for you, bringing something to you—
    that’s not what you’re after.
Being religious, acting pious—
    that’s not what you’re asking for.
You’ve opened my ears
    so I can listen.

So I answered, “I’m coming.
    I read in your letter what you wrote about me,
And I’m coming to the party
    you’re throwing for me.”
That’s when God’s Word entered my life,
    became part of my very being.

I’ve preached you to the whole congregation,
    I’ve kept back nothing, God—you know that.
I didn’t keep the news of your ways
    a secret, didn’t keep it to myself.
I told it all, how dependable you are, how thorough.
    I didn’t hold back pieces of love and truth
For myself alone. I told it all,
    let the congregation know the whole story.

Now God, don’t hold out on me,
    don’t hold back your passion.
Your love and truth
    are all that keeps me together.
When troubles ganged up on me,
    a mob of sins past counting,
I was so swamped by guilt
    I couldn’t see my way clear.
More guilt in my heart than hair on my head,
    so heavy the guilt that my heart gave out.

Soften up, God, and intervene;
    hurry and get me some help,
So those who are trying to kidnap my soul
    will be embarrassed and lose face,
So anyone who gets a kick out of making me miserable
    will be heckled and disgraced,
So those who pray for my ruin
    will be booed and jeered without mercy.

But all who are hunting for you—
    oh, let them sing and be happy.
Let those who know what you’re all about
    tell the world you’re great and not quitting.
And me? I’m a mess. I’m nothing and have nothing:
    make something of me.
You can do it; you’ve got what it takes—
    but God, don’t put it off
Psalms 40 (MSG)

Is there something you are waiting on God for? Where are you, in the mud on or on the rock?
When you are swamped with guilt and troubles, where do you turn?
Do you believe God loves you? Do you believe he will intervene in your life and make something of it or you?
Do you go looking for him? When you find him, have your words been able to describe him adequately?

Look for him this weekend. Look for him in ways you have not done before. You'll be blown away at the different places he shows up!

Looking for Life

Why are you looking among the dead for someone who is alive? Luke 24:5 (NLT)

The Bible is great at asking questions that are hard to answer or that make you think. So let me ask you, do you ever look for life by staring at death? We don't usually do that. We look for life among the living. When Jesus came the Bible says he came so we could live life abundantly. How often do we choose instead to live life boxed in?

When we choose to stare at our troubles and stay focused on our feelings of hopelessness, Jesus is not there. He told us we'd have troubles. He also told us he had already overcome those. He's alive!

When we focus on the past and not the future, when we decide that we cannot do anything worthwhile because of mistakes we made, Jesus is not there. He didn't die and rise again so we could walk through life on our own merit. He died and rose again so we can know we are forever forgiven and that in him all things are possible.

Most importantly, readjusting our thinking so we look at living our lives the very best we can because we've been given an opportunity greater than anyone could imagine, that is choosing life. And that is worship. We can bow down, praise and worship in the here and now because Jesus is not among the dead. He is alive!