Not Down, But Through

(re post)

 

Isaiah 43:2 KJV - When thou passest through the waters, I will be with thee; and through the rivers, they shall not overflow thee: when thou walkest through the fire, thou shalt not be burned; neither shall the flame kindle upon thee.

 

When thou passest through the waters
Deep the waves may be and cold,
But Jehovah is our refuge,
And His promise is our hold;
For the Lord Himself hath said it,
He, the faithful God and true:
”When thou comest to the waters,
Thou shalt not go down, but through.”

Seas of sorrow, seas of trial,
Bitterest anguish, fiercest pain,
Rolling surges of temptation
Sweeping over heart and brain —
They shall never overflow us,
For we know His word is true;
All His waves and all His billows,
He will lead us safely through.

Threatening breakers of destruction,
Doubt's insidious undertow,
Shall not sink us, shall not drag us
Out to ocean depths of woe;
For His promise shall sustain us,
Praise the Lord, whose Word is true!
We shall not go down, or under,
For He saith, " Thou passest through."

by Annie Johnson Flint

 

Isaiah 43:2 holds a very special place in my heart. I have a very tear-stained, handwritten copy of the verse on an index card that I feel I will keep forever because of the strength it gave me during one of the darkest times in my life. And even to this day, I can’t read it without tears welling up in my eyes as the emotions rush in and the memories along with it.

As I went through my time of trial, this verse became my lifeline. I claimed this promise on a daily basis and read and cried over it so many times, hence the tear stains.

But something I never fully grasped until reading this poem was the fact that the Lord says, through.

Through the waters. Through the rivers. Through the fire.

It clearly says that when we pass through, he will be with us. Not down, but through.

That means that it’s only temporary! It will pass.

Through. As in, moving in one side and out the other. Passing beyond. Crossing over.

And this passing through, with God walking alongside, is available to us, redeemed, forgiven, children of God.

Isaiah 43:1b - Fear not: for I have redeemed thee, I have called thee by thy name; thou art mine.

And who is it that walks with us? God.

Isaiah 43:3a - For I am the LORD thy God, the Holy One of Israel, thy Saviour:

We can take great comfort in knowing who it is that is with us and that he will bring us through.

Take a look with me at some other places in Scripture that God reminds us that he will make a way through.

*Please don’t be tempted to skip over the verses without reading them fully. I know that some of you will say, “yeah, I know that verse” and you’ll neglect to read it. I know this because I have been guilty of doing it myself.

It’s easy to gloss over the Words of Scripture when we read something someone has written, thinking that the commentary is more important than the actual verse. How wrong that thinking is! God’s Word should never be read hastily and without thought. God’s Words are so far above man’s thinking and interpretation, that we need to read them carefully and thoughtfully and with a teachable heart, longing to understand what God is saying to us.

So, please, read on and don’t skip a single word!

Habakkuk 3:15 KJV - Thou didst walk through the sea with thine horses, through the heap of great waters.

1 Corinthians 10:1 KJV - Moreover, brethren, I would not that ye should be ignorant, how that all our fathers were under the cloud, and all passed through the sea;

Numbers 33:8 KJV - And they departed from before Pihahiroth, and passed through the midst of the sea into the wilderness, and went three days' journey in the wilderness of Etham, and pitched in Marah.

Hebrews 11:29 KJV - By faith they passed through the Red sea as by dry land: which the Egyptians assaying to do were drowned.

So, what are all these references to the sea? We read the story in Exodus of the miraculous deliverance of the Israelites from Pharaoh’s army.

Exodus 14:16, 21-22 KJV - But lift thou up thy rod, and stretch out thine hand over the sea, and divide it: and the children of Israel shall go on dry ground through the midst of the sea. ... And Moses stretched out his hand over the sea; and the LORD caused the sea to go back by a strong east wind all that night, and made the sea dry land, and the waters were divided. And the children of Israel went into the midst of the sea upon the dry ground: and the waters were a wall unto them on their right hand, and on their left.

This is one Bible story I wish I could have experienced for myself. Can you just imagine walking in between a huge hallway of water rising on either side of you, dry ground underfoot, running your fingertips through the water as you watched the fish swim alongside, like a giant aquarium, crossing to the other side? And as if that wasn’t enough, seeing Pharaoh’s army be swallowed up by the river and swept away, never to be seen again! I don’t even know what expression to use here in this sentence! But wow! Wow! WOW!

All throughout history, and even today, God is watching over his children, and he is going with them as they pass through fiery trials, difficult days, depressing circumstances, loss and grief, pain and sorrow.

Why do we often say we went ‘through’ a trial? Because that’s what we do! We go through it. We don’t stay in it. Even though, at times, it seems never-ending. We go through it.

Even the most well-known Psalm reminds us of this fact.

Psalm 23:4 KJV - Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil: for thou art with me; thy rod and thy staff they comfort me.

With God’s help, we can go through our trials. He will be with us, and we will pass through the waters, the rivers, the fire, the loss of a loved one, the terrifying health diagnosis, the days of dark depression, the financial stress, the heavy workloads, the tiring days of raising little ones.

Whatever it is you’re facing, you can, and you will pass through it. With God’s help, you don’t have to stay there. You can pass through it.

Look down a little further in Isaiah 43.

Isaiah 43:16, 19 KJV - Thus saith the LORD, which maketh a way in the sea, and a path in the mighty waters; ... Behold, I will do a new thing; now it shall spring forth; shall ye not know it? I will even make a way in the wilderness, and rivers in the desert.

These verses tell us that God will make a way. It’s another way of saying that you’ll go through it. He can make a way where there is no way.

We see an obstacle. God sees an opportunity.

Not only does God help us to pass through and make a way, he also promises to go before us.

Deuteronomy 31:8 KJV - And the LORD, he it is that doth go before thee; he will be with thee, he will not fail thee, neither forsake thee: fear not, neither be dismayed.

Isaiah 52:12 KJV - For ye shall not go out with haste, nor go by flight: for the LORD will go before you; and the God of Israel will be your rereward.

Isaiah 45:2 KJV - I will go before thee, and make the crooked places straight: I will break in pieces the gates of brass, and cut in sunder the bars of iron:

But can we, as Christians in 2024, take the Words of the Old Testament and apply them to our lives? Can we claim the promise that God will go before us?

We can and we should! If God loved us so much that he sent his only Son to die a cruel death on a cross, shedding his blood so that we could have eternal life, then how much more will he be with us today? Walking with us, making a way, going before us as we live our lives here on this earth in this day, at this time in history.

His promise still holds true. He will not forsake us.

God told Joshua that he would be with the people of Israel as they went into the promised land, and he will be with us as we venture into an unknown future.

Joshua 1:9 KJV - Have not I commanded thee? Be strong and of a good courage; be not afraid, neither be thou dismayed: for the LORD thy God is with thee whithersoever thou goest.

I found many references in the Bible with the sentences, “God is with thee, you, us and God was with them” etc. And God hasn’t changed. He is still the same. He is still with us.

Whatever it is you’re facing today, take comfort in knowing that God knows all about it. He sees your tears, he hears your cries, he knows your hurt and he will help you go through it. He will make a way. He will go before you and beside you and he’ll even carry you when you can’t take another step.

You may have to go through the waters. You may have to swim across raging rivers. You may even have to go through the fire, but you can come out the other side, dry, unharmed, without even the smell of smoke on your clothes.

God will bring you through.

 

Psalm 46:1-3, 7

God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble.

Therefore will not we fear, though the earth be removed,

and though the mountains be carried into the midst of the sea;

Though the waters thereof roar and be troubled,

 though the mountains shake with the swelling thereof. Selah. ...

The LORD of hosts is with us; the God of Jacob is our refuge. Selah.

 

 

 

Speak Words of Life

 

A friend and I were chatting today, and we got onto the subject of encouragement.

Have you ever stopped to think about the ministry of encouragement? I feel it’s something that is so needed in our churches today, but I also feel like it’s sadly lacking.

Did you know that everyone needs encouragement? And I mean everyone! Not just the lonely, sad and depressed people. Even the people that seem upbeat, optimistic, and put together!

What do I mean by encouragement?

The dictionary defines it as the act of giving someone support, confidence or hope. If you look at the etymology of the word, you’ll see that it literally means to put courage into.

What a beautiful word. Encourage. To put courage into. To strengthen.

But do we find this in the Bible and are we really told to do it?

Yes, and yes!

In the Bible we find over and over the phrase ‘one another’. We see it over 50 times. At times it is used in a negative sense. Like hating one another. Or oppressing one another or judging one another.

But we also see many ‘one another’s’ that are commands of Scripture and have positive outcomes.

For example:

• Be at peace with each other (Mark 9:50).
• Be devoted to one another (Rom. 12:10).
• Honour one another above yourselves (Rom. 12:10).
• Live in harmony with one another (Rom. 12:16).
• Accept one another, as Christ has accepted you (Rom. 15:7).
• Serve one another (Gal. 5:13).
• Be kind and compassionate to one another (Eph. 4:32).
• Submit to one another (Eph. 5:21).

But the most frequently used ‘one another’s’ we find in the Bible is the command to love one another. And one of the ways we love one another is to be an encouragement to others.

John 13:34 KJV - A new commandment I give unto you, That ye love one another; as I have loved you, that ye also love one another.

In the Old Testament we see this word ‘encourage’ used 4 times and each time it has the idea of strengthening, restoring, sustaining, comforting.

When we see it in the New Testament, it is translated as exhort and comfort. It has the idea of not only breathing courage into, but also admonishing, giving strength to, instructing and teaching.

Do you see where I’m going with this?

In a church setting, in a collective body of believers, we are supposed to be giving and receiving from one another courage. We are to give hope and confidence and comfort in the Lord.

And in case you think I’m just spouting feel good words, let me show you a couple of verses to back up my claim.

In 2 Timothy 4:2, Paul reminds Timothy, as a Pastor, not only to preach the Word, but also to exhort with longsuffering and doctrine.

And in Hebrews we read this:

Hebrews 3:13 KJV - But exhort one another daily, while it is called To day; lest any of you be hardened through the deceitfulness of sin.

And who is this talking to? Look at the preceding verse. The brethren. That’s us. Fellow believers. So, if you have some distorted view that it is only the Pastor’s job to instruct and encourage, then this verse should make it pretty clear that that’s not the case.

Let me remind you of something that I’m happy to repeatedly be ‘preachy’ about and that is the idea of community. We need each other. We were made for community. For fellowship. Of all the ‘one another’s’ in the Word of God, love and encouragement need to be right up there at the top of the list.

Everyone needs encouragement and everyone needs to be giving encouragement!

When you give someone encouragement, your goal is not for them to become dependent on you  and your words, but to strengthen them in the Lord. You need to be speaking truth over them. God’s truth. You need to be encouraging them with the Words of Scripture. This is one of the reasons it’s so important to be in the Word daily, studying it, meditating on it, memorizing it.

Can I just tell you, from someone who has experienced dark depression, the words you speak can breathe life into someone’s soul and be just what they need in a moment of despair and hopelessness?

Words have power. And words of encouragement and love coupled with the Word of God hold a power that surpasses any motivational speaker no matter how great!

There is a beautiful command found in 1 Thessalonians that speaks to this idea of encouragement.

1 Thessalonians 5:11 KJV - Wherefore comfort yourselves together, and edify one another, even as also ye do.

Not only do we find a new word, edify, that means to build up, but we also find our word for encourage in the word comfort.

Comfort yourselves together. Edify one another.

Sounds pretty clear to me that we are to speak life-giving words.

Have you found that encouragers are energy-giving people, while discouragers suck the life out of a church?

When you are around someone that speaks words of life and is always looking for ways to bring God’s goodness into the conversation and lift others up, you can’t help but feel a little joy welling up inside.

A word of warning though. Encouraging is not all about nice, happy and feel-good words. The word exhort in Scripture also means teaching and instructing. Sometimes it’s hard to swallow. Sometimes it means coming alongside and showing someone where they are going wrong and helping to point out the right way. This always needs to be done in love. (Ephesians 4:15)

There are some important verses in Hebrews that we would do well to pay attention to.

Hebrews 10:23-25 KJV - Let us hold fast the profession of our faith without wavering; (for he is faithful that promised;) And let us consider one another to provoke unto love and to good works: Not forsaking the assembling of ourselves together, as the manner of some is; but exhorting one another: and so much the more, as ye see the day approaching.

SIDE NOTE: I’ve always found the idea of provoking each other to love and good works interesting. We usually equate the word provoke with the negative but here it is used as a positive. Another thought for another time.

We are reminded here again to exhort/encourage one another. And even more urgent is the need as the days are drawing to a close and it won’t be long before we meet the Lord in the air.

In closing, let me give you some reasons why encouragement is so important.

Encouragement brings hope.

Encouragement helps others as they walk through difficult times.

Encouragement helps others feel loved.

Encouragement gives others the will to carry on.

Encouragement makes it easier to live in this present world.

Encouragement strengthens relationships in the body of Christ.

Encouragement reflects the character of Jesus Christ.

Encouragement strengthens faith and trust in God’s promises.

And last, but not least, encouragement is a command from the Lord.

So, as you go about your day, be sensitive to the needs of others. Be alert to the Spirit’s leading and be listening for his still, small voice as he whispers to your heart to speak words of life.

You never know what someone is facing in the very moment you choose to speak words of encouragement to them. You never know the effect of your words and the help they can be when spoken through God’s prompting at just the right time.

Whether it be the lady behind your local post office counter or the cashier at the grocery store or a brother or sister in Christ that you fellowship with on a Sunday morning, everyone needs encouragement.

Breathe life and courage into others by what you say. Use the words of Scripture to encourage and bring hope.

Romans 15:4 KJV - For whatsoever things were written aforetime were written for our learning, that we through patience and comfort of the scriptures might have hope.

 

 

 

 

 

Can we skip to the good part?

 

I think that everyone would have heard the audio on a reel somewhere that has this line, “can we skip to the good part?”.

We see someone in a certain setting, possibly in untidy work clothes, and then the audio plays, the hand goes up, palm facing outwards and voila! everything changes.

But life isn’t really like that is it?

We can’t magically say the words and life is suddenly just how we want it.

Can I speak to the readers today who are single? Sit with me just a minute. Please, stop what you’re doing. Put aside the distractions and pay attention to what I have to say.

Right. Are you ready?

I want to tell you that it’s okay if you’re single. It’s okay if you’re not in a relationship right now. It’s okay if you’re not married and running around after little ones.

What you are doing in your season of singleness matters. You are not less important. You are not less impactful. You have purpose. You have value to God.

Your singleness has a purpose.

Okay, so you may be sitting there saying, “It’s easy for you to say. You’re married. You married young, had babies that grew into adults, they married and now you even have grandkids!”

Well, yes, that is true. And I praise God regularly for the way he planned my seasons and the blessings he showers upon me. But there is no reason that you can’t live content in your current season, eagerly but patiently waiting for God to bring along the right someone for you in his perfect timing.

I have 2 daughters, unmarried, still living at home. I love them dearly and not wanting to embarrass them, but keeping it real, I know that they desire to be married and have their own families. But I am so proud of them for the way they are living out their current season of life and the maturity they show in their level of contentment while all around them their friends are falling in love and getting married, embarking on new seasons of adventure.

It is a good thing to desire a partner in life. It is a good thing to want children and a home to share with those you love. But it is even better to desire, above all else, to chase after God with a devoted heart, sincerely wanting what he desires for you.

Can I let you in on a little secret? Did you know that there are many things that you can do as a single person that you can’t do once married? And when children come along, the dynamic changes once again and there are other limitations.

Don’t get me wrong. You can serve the Lord and minister with a life partner and children, but there are things that can be done in your service to the Lord that he knows are best done single.

I want to encourage you that right now matters.

Where you find yourself tomorrow starts with what you choose today.

The choices you make today will affect your tomorrows.

The Bible tells us that there is a season for everything.

Ecclesiastes 3:1 KJV - To every thing there is a season, and a time to every purpose under the heaven:

Did you know that seasons are part of God’s grand design? They are part of his design for the earth. Winter. Spring. Summer. Fall. But seasons are also part of his design for you and me. Joy and sorrow. Struggle and peace. Highs and lows. Birth and loss. Singleness and marriage.

We all go through seasons. And everyone’s season is different.

But no matter what season we find ourselves in, we can be sure of one thing. God is not absent. He is always there. And if you are one of his children, he is ever present, ever caring, and always aware of your circumstances, your passions and your hearts desires and he has your best interests at heart.

Do you know what I love about the word season? It implies that it is a time that will pass. It’s just a season. It may be a season of waiting. But it will pass. The sun will rise, the flowers will bloom once again, the clouds will disappear, and the tough season won’t last forever.

Our seasons have a purpose.

If you find yourself in a season of singleness. You’re tired of the waiting. You just want clarity and direction. Maybe you are being pressured to be in a relationship. Maybe you are being made to feel less of a person because you don’t have family to care for.

Did you know that God is as much here in this season as he will be in the next season?

He has not deserted you now and he won’t desert you then.

You have to learn to recognize his hand in the midst of what you’re walking through, whether it’s what you desire or not. You have to make a choice to be content.

I once read a quote that really stuck with me and convicted me at a time when I had lost my joy and contentment.

“If you cannot find happiness, joy, peace, and contentment in the Lord with what He has already done for you in your present- then you will probably not be able to find it with whatever He will want to do for you in your future, since you will always be looking for that next, new, big thing that you think will make you happy, content, and fulfilled.”

If you don’t work on being content today, with the season God has you in right now, then how do you expect to be content in the future?

You don’t have to waste your current season. It can be put to good use.

Don’t try and speed up the waiting season. There are many examples in Scripture where people tried to get ahead of God, and it didn’t go very well. Think about Sarah. Think about Saul.

There are benefits to waiting on God’s timing. Let me share with you two passages found in the Old Testament that will be an encouragement to you.

Lamentations 3:25 KJV - The LORD is good unto them that wait for him, to the soul that seeketh him.

Isaiah 64:4 KJV - For since the beginning of the world men have not heard, nor perceived by the ear, neither hath the eye seen, O God, beside thee, what he hath prepared for him that waiteth for him.

These verses remind us that God has good things in store for us when we wait on him. I love that in Isaiah we are told that we can’t even fathom or imagine what he has in store for us when we wait.

I think of many young people in years gone by who have settled for less than God’s best, simply because they were afraid of missing out.

They jumped into marriage thinking that if they didn’t take the opportunity, they might never get the chance again, only to find themselves in a loveless relationship, crumbling beneath them.

Loneliness is real and it is painful. And it often drives people to make foolish choices to try and fill the void. But loneliness is not a place. It’s a state of mind. It’s a state of mind that impacts the soul and the peace that is desired.

Loneliness is not dependent upon a relationship status. You can be lonely whether you are single or married, divorced or widowed. Loneliness is not a respecter of persons.

The good news is that your loneliness is seen by God.

You are never alone.

You are significant.

You are unconditionally accepted.

You are unconditionally loved.

Just as God met Hagar in her time of distress (Genesis 16) leading her to find out that he really was El Roi, “the God who sees”, he will meet you.

If you are in a waiting season of singleness, desiring to find someone that will love and cherish you forever, don’t lower the bar. Don’t lower your standards. Don’t lower your expectations. Don’t force the door open too soon.

Wait on God.

Waiting on God doesn’t mean doing nothing. It is more of an active stillness.

You need to be busy serving in your local church and community. You need to stay productive in the work of the Lord. You need to be in tune with God, walking in obedience to him, listening for his voice, faithfully serving him in any way you can.

You need to be in the Word. Study it. Meditate on it. Memorize it. Share it.

You can’t just ‘skip to the good part’. Good things take time to flourish and grow. They need to develop a good root system. They need watering. They need sunlight. They need time.

You need time. You need to go through the hard seasons to purify you and make you more like Christ. You need time to learn contentment so that when the trials come in days to come, you will be ready to face them with a heart full of faith and a deep-seated trust in the Lord.

Stop waiting for someday to arrive. Don’t sit idle. Take the next step with what you’ve already been given and live your days with a purpose and a zeal for God that shines light into this dark world we live in.

Don’t waste your singleness. Use it to bring glory to God. Today.

Start where you are right now because this moment matters.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Just let me finish

Hands up anyone that is impatient.

Yeah, me too.

Waiting has never been my strong point. Ask any member of my family, and they will heartily agree. I am happy to say though, that God has been working in my heart in the past few years and I think I am getting better at being able to wait. Not just in general, but especially in the area of waiting on God.

Waiting can feel so hard, especially in a culture where everything is geared toward instant gratification.

We expect fast food, express post, instant answers to texts, call backs within the hour and so on.

And we roll this over onto our expectations of God. We expect instant answers to our prayers and the requests we make to God.

I have often been guilty of interrupting my husband as he explains some new scheme he’s come up with, or a new business venture idea, because I don’t like the direction the conversation is going and I’m sure it’s not going to end how I want it to, only to have him utter four small, but very powerful words. “JUST LET ME FINISH”.

My impatience gets the better of me, my struggle to wait rears its ugly head and I react.

And yet, if I had just let him finish, I would have had the full story, the entire plan, and maybe I would have had more understanding and been able to respond instead of react.

Or maybe it’s your children that illustrate this better. How often do you find yourself preparing something for them, whether it’s food, or a craft idea, or maybe you’re just hanging a load of washing and you’re being pestered by their impatience? And you say those words, “Just let me finish.”

You know, I think this is how we treat God at times.

We pour out our hearts to him, longing for him to act, and then we impatiently stamp our foot at the silence. All the while he is saying, “Child, just let me finish.”

A phrase I have come across in the Bible regularly is, “How long”. I did a quick search and found around 13 verses that ask this question directly of God.

Here’s just a few.

Psalm 6:3 KJV - My soul is also sore vexed: but thou, O LORD, how long?

Psalm 13:1-2 KJV - How long wilt thou forget me, O LORD? for ever? how long wilt thou hide thy face from me? How long shall I take counsel in my soul, having sorrow in my heart daily? how long shall mine enemy be exalted over me?

Psalm 35:17 KJV - Lord, how long wilt thou look on? rescue my soul from their destructions, my darling from the lions.

Often, we despair of God’s ever answering our prayer. We pour out our hearts to the Lord, offering our frustration, fear, anger and hurt.

Psalm 142:1-2 KJV - I cried unto the LORD with my voice; with my voice unto the LORD did I make my supplication. I poured out my complaint before him; I shewed before him my trouble.

Just like the Psalmist, we lament and cry aloud. And we ask, “How long, O Lord, how long?”

Can I encourage you that waiting is not a waste of time. It is an investment of time.

Why do I say this? Because of this verse (and many others).

Psalm 27:14 KJV - Wait on the LORD: be of good courage, and he shall strengthen thine heart: wait, I say, on the LORD.

Waiting is an investment of time because while we wait, he strengthens our heart. Did you see that? God is strengthening our hearts while we wait!

When God says, “Just let me finish” and we let him finish, we let him do the work he started out doing, all the while waiting, trusting and hoping, with a right attitude and a humble spirit, he is able to bring about the blessing we didn’t know we needed.

Yes, God calls us to pour out our honest, heartfelt pleas just as the Psalmist did long ago, but he wants us to wait and let him finish. He wants to quiet our hearts, still our restless souls and bring peace as he reveals to us his goodness, power and love.

The Word of God tells us that good things come to those who wait. And God is good to those who seek him.

Lamentations 3:25 KJV - The LORD is good unto them that wait for him, to the soul that seeketh him.

And we are told that we can’t even imagine what God has in store for us when we wait on him.

Isaiah 64:4 KJV - For since the beginning of the world men have not heard, nor perceived by the ear, neither hath the eye seen, O God, beside thee, what he hath prepared for him that waiteth for him.

What do we do while we wait? We remember who he is and what he has done in the past and we trust the silence.

God works in the dark moments. He works in the quiet. He works amid the chaos. He hasn’t forgotten you in the past and he won’t forget you in the future.

We bring our hard questions to God and don’t let the unexplainable, unfathomable, impossible things drive us away from him.

We remind ourselves that God’s plan is part of a bigger plan, and his answer is part of a bigger picture that we can’t see from our perspective.

We trust that he is working even when we can’t see it.

We anchor ourselves in who he is and let the truth we know strengthen our faith.

We trust his answer and his perfect timing.

 

In the waiting, we remember.

In the waiting, we hold onto hope.

In the waiting, we build our trust in him.

In the waiting, we let him strengthen our heart.

 

And in the waiting, we just let him finish.

 

Psalm 37:7a KJV - Rest in the LORD, and wait patiently for him:

 Isaiah 40:31 KJV - But they that wait upon the LORD shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings as eagles; they shall run, and not be weary; and they shall walk, and not faint.

 

 

 

 

It’s not Worship, it’s Karaoke

 

What in the world am I about to delve into with a title like that, you may ask?

Well, I came across a quote this week that piqued my interest and got the little cogs in my mind turning musical cartwheels.

I have taken the liberty of adding to it just a little to make it read what I think it should say.

“If you know the lyrics, but don’t know the Lord, if you are not sincere in meaning what you are singing about, then it’s not worship. It’s karaoke!”

Quite a few years ago, I did a series of blog posts on the subject of praise in song. I remember digging into verses in the Bible that spoke of the importance of praise and using our voices to glorify God. I was amazed at the multitude of scripture on this topic and was so excited that something I was so passionate about was in the Bible in such vast amounts that I would never be able to reach its depths.

As a musician, I love the time of worship in song in our church services, and I love to play and sing about the Saviour and glorify him through music. When I am singing the words to a good, sound, and worshipful hymn or chorus, and I am able to focus on the words of the song and sing them as unto the Lord, it does my heart so much good.

Before I go any further, I want to give you a simple definition of worship that I once heard. 

"Worship is all that I am, responding to all that God is"

We know that music has power. Power to heal and power to harm. There is no such thing as neutral music. All music stirs some sort of emotion whether instrumental or lyrical.

Saul used the power of music, through David’s harp playing, to calm his troubled soul in 1 Samuel 16:23.

Moses and Miriam sang a song of praise to the Lord after the crossing of the Red Sea, complete with timbrels and dance, and it stirred praise in the hearts of the hearers. (Exodus 15)

After the building of Solomon’s temple, we read of an epic praise and worship service by God’s people in response to God’s providence, with singing, and cymbals and harps and one hundred and twenty trumpets!  (2 Chronicles 5:11-14)

The book of Psalms is a song book treasure trove, housing the largest collection of songs in the Bible, giving us a glimpse into the life of David, primarily, his ups and downs and his devoted worship of God.

I think you’re getting the picture. Worship through music in the Bible held a crucial role in the lives of early believers and it should still be important to us today.

Now, don’t get me wrong, the preaching of the Word of God is of utmost importance and too many churches today are losing sight of this with their elaborate so-called ‘worship’ services and emphasis on music.

We know that music often has a greater effect than the spoken word in expressing the moods and feelings of the soul, but there is definitely a need for discernment as not all music is glorifying to God and the preaching of God’s Word needs to be the central focus.

To go back to our quote, if you know all the words to a song, if you know the melody, and even find yourself tapping along with your foot, if you enjoy the good ‘feeling’ it gives you, and yet you know nothing of God’s character, his love, his mercy, his grace and you are singing by ‘rote’ not meaning the words coming from your lips, then you are not worshipping. You are singing Christian Karaoke.

There is so much to be said on this topic and as much as I would love to go on and on about it, I mainly want to stress the importance of our sincerity in our worship.

We don’t praise God just to stroke his ego. Our praise of him is commanded many times in scripture, yes, but it is not the only reason we sing.

God knows that our praise of him also benefits us. In praising him through Godly, doctrine-filled hymns and choruses, we get to know him better. We learn more of his character. We gain a better perspective of our lives and the things we face and how small our trials really are in comparison to his greatness.

But not only that, we are told something interesting in the book of Colossians.

Colossians 3:16 Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly in all wisdom; teaching and admonishing one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing with grace in your hearts to the Lord.

 

Did you know that in our songs, we can actually teach and exhort and warn and help each other? Many a sermon has been preached through the lyrics of a song.

Music is not only for enjoyment, it’s not only for praising God, although that should be the main goal, it is also for edification. We can impart instruction, instil doctrine, explain or expound on something and warn and exhort, all in the words of a song.

The message of the song is so much more important than how well we can sing.

I like how the commentator Matthew Henry puts it:

“When we sing psalms, we make no melody unless we sing with grace in our hearts, unless we are suitably affected with what we sing and go along in it with true devotion and understanding. Singing of psalms is a teaching ordinance as well as a praising ordinance; and we are not only to quicken and encourage ourselves, but to teach and admonish one another, mutually excite our affections, and convey instructions.”

 

All too often, we are guilty of not really listening to the words that we’re singing. We sing of God’s goodness, his power, his love and yet we sing them like we’re reading a boring lesson on physics or something.

A word of warning, if you attend our church and I’m up the front playing, and you see me looking around, one of the reasons is because I like to see the faces of the people singing and get a little glimpse into where they’re at and whether or not they are singing with sincerity and a heart of praise. I can’t see down into someone’s soul, but I can read a lot on people’s faces as they mouth the words of praise, whilst trying to hide a distracted, grumpy or apathetic attitude.

I think, if we’re honest, we’ve all been guilty of singing without sincerity. We follow the words on the screen or in our hymnbooks, letting them flow out our lips, maybe even harmonising and yet we do not mean what we sing.

Let me give you an example.

Search me, O God, and know my heart today,

Try me, O Savior, know my thoughts, I pray;

See if there be some wicked way in me;

Cleanse me from every sin, and set me free.

 

Do we really want God to search us and cleanse us?

Or how about this one?

Have thine own way, Lord!
Have thine own way!
Thou art the potter,
I am the clay.
Mold me and make me
after thy will,
while I am waiting,
yielded and still.

Do we really want God to have his way in our lives? Do we want him to mold us?

You get where I’m going with this, right?

But while I’m on one of my hobby horses, I need to mention one more that really gets me going.

O Lord my God, When I in awesome wonder,
Consider all the worlds Thy Hands have made;
I see the stars, I hear the rolling thunder,
Thy power throughout the universe displayed.

Then sings my soul, My Saviour God, to Thee,
How great Thou art, How great Thou art.
Then sings my soul, My Saviour God, to Thee,
How great Thou art, How great Thou art!

When I see Christians singing this song with a long face or a face void of any sort of emotion, I am astounded! How can you sing these amazing words of praise, that come across as a prayer to God, how can you sing them without a sense of wonder and awe and an immense feeling of gratitude to God for all he has done for you?

Many of our songs can be sung as a prayer to God. They are thoughtful, meditative and sober. But we sing them as robots, knowing the words by heart, following the melody up and down and yet we remain unmoved.

The purpose of our praise and worship to God, through music, is to glorify him. Spiritual music gives voice to our joy and adoration unlike anything else. When we are filled with the Holy Spirit, then Psalms and hymns and spiritual songs are the natural expression of our hearts, and we can’t help but sing unto the Lord.

It doesn’t even matter if you can’t hold a tune in a bucket, God sees your heart of sincerity and he calls you to make a joyful noise to him. (Psalm 100)

Music holds great power and as a musician, I know all too well how it can be used to sway emotions and stir people. There is a fine line between using music to help set the right atmosphere in a church setting and using it to move people to make emotional based decisions.

Music and our worship services are not about how they make us feel. They are about how they make God feel. If we let our focus be on singing in sincere praise and adoration of God, our song will be pleasing to him.

We are told in Ephesians to sing and make melody to the Lord (Ephesians 5:19) A song that arises from someone whose heart is overflowing with praise and adoration of God, is a blessing to God and it is sweet music to his ears.

If you focus on God’s goodness to you as a poor, wretched sinner, undeserving of God’s grace, but justified and on your way to heaven, then praise should flow out of you almost involuntarily.

Praise should continually be in your mouth. (Psalm 34:1)

So, can I encourage you to let your singing be acceptable, be favourable, be desirable to God. Let it be done with a heart of sincerity and gratitude.

As the Psalmist puts it, “Let the words of my mouth, and the meditation of my heart, be acceptable in thy sight, O LORD, my strength, and my redeemer.” Psalm 19:14

Don’t be guilty of knowing the lyrics but not knowing God.

If you can’t sing with genuine, heartfelt, honest praise to God, then don’t sing!

Don’t let words of praise come across your lips if you don’t mean them!

And if you do mean them and you truly are grateful for God’s goodness, if you really do want him to search your heart and have his own way, then sing out! Let your praise overflow. You have reason to sing. Let it be evident!

 

Psalms 28:7

 The LORD is my strength and my shield;

my heart trusted in him, and I am helped:

therefore my heart greatly rejoiceth; and with my song will I praise him.

 

Psalm 96:1-3 KJV - O sing unto the LORD a new song: sing unto the LORD, all the earth. Sing unto the LORD, bless his name; shew forth his salvation from day to day. Declare his glory among the heathen, his wonders among all people.

 

Psalm 33:3 KJV - Sing unto him a new song; play skilfully with a loud noise.