From Lament to Praise

The Book of Psalms

How do you worship?  What does worship look like to you?  In your local church, what does your corporate worship look like?  Is it more somber, singing the hymns of old or is it more upbeat offering the style of the new catchword "contemporary worship" or the even newer phrase, "modern worship?"  Do the lights in the auditorium dim with stage lights focused only on the folks leading worship?  Maybe your worship team has gone even one step further and begun to include secular music to "make a point" that will line up with the topic of the day to drive home the focus of the sermon.  Even more importantly, what is going on in your heart when you enter into worship?  What does scripture say in regards to worship?

The book of Psalms served as the Hebrew "hymnal" to be used during worship in the temple and local synagogues, and provides the most in depth look at worship.  In examining this collection of hymns, there is a noticeable pattern that is seen.  Individually and collectively, there is a progression of verbiage and attitude that takes the reader from lament to praise.  In the third Psalm, David expresses his dismay at the number of his enemies, yet he turns his dismay into loving trust and praise as he declares to God, "But you are a shield around me O Lord; you bestow glory on me and lift up my heard."  This is just one of many examples of an individual psalm progressing from lament to praise.

The collection of Psalms as a whole follows the same progression.  The last five psalms in the collection are filled with high praise of our God and King.  The first two verses in Psalm 145 bears no hint of lament: "I will exalt you, my God the King; I will praise your name forever and ever.  Every day I will praise you and extol your name forever and ever."  The collection ends with a beautiful psalm of the highest praise.

Praise the Lord.  Praise God in his sanctuary; praise him in his mighty heavens.  Praise him for his acts of power; praise him for his surpassing greatness.  Praise him with the sounding of the trumpet, praise him with the harp and lyre, praise him with tambourine and dancing, praise him with the strings and flute, praise him with the clash of cymbals, praise him with resounding cymbals.  Let everything that has breath praise the Lord.  Praise the Lord.  Psalm 150

So what does this mean to us as modern day Christians in our age of technology, streaming video and dazzling lights and sound?  Regardless of what is going on in the corporate worship setting, there is a call to us as His individual children to come before Him and lay everything down at His feet.  Anything that is plaguing our minds and distracting us from entering into communion with our Heavenly Father must be totally given to Him.  By letting go of the cares of this life that the enemy uses so diligently and effectively to keep us separated from our God, we allow God to clear out the "junk" therefore freeing us to enter into sweet fellowship with Him.  This is the fellowship that God longs to have with us as His children, and there is no sweeter existence for us as His people than when we worship in His presence free from the cares of the world. 

So, the next time you enter into personal and/or corporate worship, spend some time in prayer giving to God all your cares, worries, anxieties, and fears.  Prepare your heart and mind to enter into worshiping the Creator of the Universe, King of Kings, and Lord of Lords.  Your experience with Him will amaze you!

Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest.  Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls.  For my yoke is easy and burden is light.  Matthew 11:28-30

The Power of the Cross

Genesis 1-3; Matthew 26-28; Mark 14-16; Luke 22-24; John 13-21

The relatively short early ministry of Jesus Christ (three to three and a half years) culminated in the most beautiful act of undeniably selfless love that the world has ever known.  While reading scripture can give us knowledge of Jesus' death, burial and resurrection, it is still difficult for our human minds to fully comprehend all that Jesus accomplished during those few days that marked the end of His earthly ministry.

To gain a greater understanding of what Jesus did, we must go back to the Garden of Eden and take a look at what was lost so very long ago.  The very first words that we read in the book of Genesis explain that God created the heavens and the earth.  As we read from there, we see over the next six days that God created every living creature, every living plant and every other thing that exists to make the world complete.  At the end of each day, God looked at all He created and saw that it was good.  On the sixth day, God created man and woman, and His opinion on the sixth day was that it was very good.

Adam and Eve had it all!  The whole of creation was theirs to enjoy, but even more than that, we see in Genesis 3, that Adam and Eve could walk and talk in the Garden with God.  At the point in time when they both chose to mistrust their Creator and believe the lies of the serpent, they separated themselves from the close, intimate contact that had been theirs to enjoy with God.  I am sure if Adam and Eve had realized the full weight of their choice, not just for them, but for those that would come after them; they may have made a very different decision, but then again, maybe not, because just like you and me, they were human.

After the Israelites escaped Egypt, God instructed them to build a tabernacle (sanctuary), as a place for God to dwell.  "Then have them make a sanctuary for me, and I will dwell among them.  Make this tabernacle and all its furnishings exactly like the pattern I will show you." (Exodus 25:8-9)  Within the tabernacle was the Holy of Holies, the place where God dwelled and the only furnishing was the Ark of the Covenant.  The Holy of Holies was separated by a veil or curtain and once a year the high priest would enter the Holy of Holies on the Day of Atonement to make atonement not only for his own sins, but also the sins of the people.  The Holy of Holies was replicated in the Temple in Jerusalem.

On the day of Jesus' crucifixion, Matthew, Mark, and Luke all record that at the moment of His death, the veil was torn. And when Jesus had cried out again in a loud voice, he gave up his spirit.  At that moment the curtain of the temple was torn in two from top to bottom.  The earth shook, the rocks split and the tombs broke open. (Matthew 27:50-51)  Not only did Jesus take our sin from us so that we can appear before God as righteous, He also removed the barrier that separated us from God.  No longer must we rely on a high priest to make atonement for us, Jesus did it once and for all.  From that moment on, we have been enabled to go to God on our own through Jesus ~ there is nothing separating us!  We can live in communion with God our Father.  We can experience His presence daily, see His hand in our lives and listen for His tender voice speaking to our hearts.  As Paul spoke to the Corinthians, he explained it this way: Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, the new creation has come: The old has gone, the new is here!  All this is from God, who reconciled us to himself through Christ and gave us the ministry of reconciliation. (2 Corinthians 5:17-19)  That is very good news for all those who believe on the name of Jesus Christ!

Shortly before His death, the Gospel of John records Jesus praying, not only for His disciples but for all the people that would come after them and believe on Him.  In other words, right before His death, YOU were on His mind.  "My prayer is not for them alone.  I pray also for those who will believe in me through their message, that all of them may be one, Father, just as you are in me and I am in you.  May they also be in us so that the world may believe that you have sent me. I have given them the glory that you gave me, that they may be one as we are one - I in them and you in me - so that they may be brought to complete unity.  Then the world will know that you sent me and have loved them even as you have loved me." (John 17:20-23)

Over the next few days the world will celebrate Easter.  Retail stores will sell mountains of candy and plastic eggs.  Children will hunt eggs and there will be appearances of the Easter Bunny.  All across America, churches will be filled to overflowing as folks make their way to visit one of the two most highly attended services of the year, Easter and Christmas.  But the real truth is this: Bunnies, eggs and candy have nothing at all to do with the death, burial and resurrection of Jesus Christ.  Setting aside one day a year to celebrate seems cheap compared to His sacrifice.  As Christ followers, we have the joy and privilege to celebrate all He has done and continues to do each and every day until that glorious day when we shall see Him face to face!

May the Lord bless you as you seek Him!

I'm on My Knees Begging You to Notice Me . . .

There is a popular song currently playing on Christian radio called "Hold My Heart," by Tenth Avenue North, and these are the lyrics to the first verse:


How long must I pray, must I pray to You?
How long must I wait, must I wait for You?
How long 'til I see Your face, see You shining through?
I'm on my knees, begging You to notice me.
I'm on my knees, Father will You turn to me?


Do we really need to beg God to notice us or to hear us when we pray? Will begging God somehow make our prayer more effective? I am sure that most of us at some time or the other have found ourselves in a desperate situation which led us to beg God to answer our prayer. Quite often, when we are doing our begging, the only answer we are seeking is the one we desire. We are not begging Him for His answer, but our answer. But in those times when you have found yourself begging, have you received the answer you were seeking? Maybe, but maybe not, and that kind of posture befoe God will often lead us to feelings of emptiness and mistrust of the very One who created us!


What did Jesus say about such things? When the disciples asked Jesus to teach them how to pray, He gave them what we commonly refer to as "The Lord's Prayer," but He did not stop there. He went on to explain how we should approach God: "So I say to you; Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find, knock and the door will be opened to you. For everyone who asks receives; the one who seeks finds; and to the one who knocks, the door will be opened." (Luke 11:9-10) Prayer is not a complicated process; it is simply conversing with the Father. While He knows what is on our hearts, He wants us to bring it to Him and say it with words out of our own mouth.


Are there other things to consider when we pray? Prior to Jesus' teaching on prayer, Matthew records His teaching on worrying. Jesus teaches His followers not to worry, because our Heavenly Father knows what we need and He will meet all of our needs. One of Jesus' final statements in this teaching is this: "But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well. (Matthew 6:33) So there's the catch, seek God, His righteousness and those things that you need will be provided, not just some of the things, but Jesus said ALL things. Here are some questions to consider when you feel like your prayers are in vain: Are you seeking God's Kingdom and His righteousness? Are you seeking His will for your life or are you asking Him to bless your plans and your agenda? Who do you think has the best answers for your life, you or God?


"For I know the plans I have for you," declares the Lord, "plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future. then you will call on me and come and pray to me, and I will listen to you." Jeremiah 29:11-12

Who is Making Your Plans?

John 6:14-15

After Jesus fed the multitude of 5000 plus people, the crowd was amazed at the miracle. They were so amazed that they thought Jesus must be the prophet they had been awaiting. After the people saw the sign Jesus performed, they began to say, “Surely this is the Prophet who is to come into the world.”  Jesus, knowing that they intended to come and make him king by force, withdrew again to a mountain by himself. (John 6:14-15)

The people were not looking at Jesus for who He was, but rather they saw what He was capable of and wanted Him to fulfill their own expectations. They wanted to force Him to be king. He already was King, but because He didn’t fit their idea of a king they could not see it. Jesus didn’t hang around and try to argue with them or convince them of His ideas; scripture simply says that He withdrew from them. Jesus would not allow them to deter Him from God’s plan for His life. No matter what the crowd thought or wanted, Jesus was not willing to conform to their desires, so much so, that He felt the need to withdraw from them so that He could continue down the path that God intended for Him rather than meet the unrealistic expectations of a people who truly did not understand His purpose.

Even today, Jesus does not force His will on us, nor does He allow us to force our will on Him. He has a plan and a purpose for our lives and His desire is for us to join with Him and follow after Him rather than expecting Him to meet and bless our plans. Consider the words of the Lord in the book of Isaiah, “For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways,” declares the LORD. “As the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways and my thoughts than your thoughts.” Isaiah 55:8-9

The prophet Isaiah spoke not only of God’s greatness, but also asked the question, “Who can fathom the Spirit of the Lord, or instruct the Lord as his counselor?” (Isaiah 40:13) Surely, no human being living, dead or yet to be born can instruct the Lord!  He is the Creator of the universe, the Alpha and Omega, and we belong to Him, not the other way around.

So how do you approach God? Do you make your plans and ask Him to bless them? Do you get frustrated or maybe even angry when things don’t work out the way you think they should? Do you feel like God has abandoned you? Have you tried seeking Him for His will for your life? Do you think it would make difference if you were following after Him rather than expecting Him to follow after you? May we all seek God and His ways just as King David who put his hope and trust in God.

Show me your ways, LORD, teach me your paths. Guide me in your truth and teach me, for you are God my Savior, and my hope is in you all day long. Psalm 25:4-5

Love & Provision of the Father

Matthew 14:13-21; Mark 6:32-44; Luke 9:10-17; John 6:1-15

The story is familiar to those of us who spent time in Sunday school growing up; Jesus takes 5 loaves of bread and 2 fish and feeds five thousand people. Of course that head count only included the men that were there that day, and if you added the women and children who were also in attendance the count would have most likely soared to over ten thousand people! It is a miracle of epic proportions recorded in the Gospels. In fact it is the only miracle recorded in all four of the Gospels. When we see something repeated in scripture then it is a clear signal to pay attention. There is something important that God wants us to see, know and understand.

So what is it that God is speaking to us through this miracle? What was He speaking to the people of that day that were there to witness it? The message today is much the same as it was then: God’s ability to provide for our every need is beyond anything that we can imagine. The Gospel of John records a question that Jesus asked of Peter, “Where shall we buy bread for these people to eat?”

Jesus did not ask this question because He was looking for an answer that was unknown to Him. Scripture records that He already had in His mind what He intended to do. He asked Peter this question because He wanted Peter and the other disciples to fully understand who He actually was and what He had come to do. Peter’s response to Jesus only confirms that in spite of the time he had spent with Jesus he was still pretty clueless in his understanding.

Jesus had no intention of letting these people leave His presence hungry. He knew that they could not receive the spiritual food He longed to give them if their physical needs were not met. Not only did His plan include feeding the multitude, but His plan also included doing it in such a way that demonstrated not only who He was, but how much He loved and cared for everyone around Him.

After everyone ate, scripture states that Jesus told His disciples to gather up any leftovers. It is hard for us to imagine that 5 loaves and 2 fish could stretch to feed some ten thousand people and pretty much beyond our comprehension that there could be leftovers! The leftovers were not gathered until everyone had their fill. In other words, no one left that day hungry and scripture says that the disciples gathered twelve baskets full of pieces left over from the original meal of 5 loaves and 2 fish. This is not just love and provision, but this is extravagant love. Jesus showed the people that were there that day a love that is more than enough to meet their daily physical, spiritual and emotional needs. And throughout history, He has continued to show us over and over that He is more than enough, and He is all we need!

Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or drink; or about your body, what you will wear. Is not life more than food, and the body more than clothes? Look at the birds of the air; they do not sow or reap or store away in barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not much more valuable than they?  Matthew 6:25-26

How Well Do You Know the Father?

John 5:19-30, John 14:6-11

When we look back over the Old Testament the picture we tend to develop of God is one who is angry and ready to strike a person down the first time they make a mistake. Even the Children of Israel pleaded with Moses, “Speak to us yourself and we will listen. But do not have God speak to us or we will die.” (Exodus 20:19) When Jesus arrives on the scene, we breathe a sigh of relief in hopes that this kind and gentle Son will somehow protect us from the wrath of an angry God.

If we listen to the words of Jesus we quickly realize that we do not need protection, but in truth, God Himself is our protection and He provides that protection through His Son Jesus. Jesus says of Himself in John 5:19, “I tell you the truth, the Son can do nothing by himself; he can do only what he sees his Father doing, because whatever the Father does the Son also does.” Jesus is not just a representative or a reflection of the Father, but He says He only does what He sees His Father doing. Jesus acts on the Father’s behalf only doing what He has been shown to do. When Jesus heals the sick, then we can assume that is exactly what God desires to happen. When Jesus shows compassion to people, we know by His own self description that is also what His Father would do.

On the other hand, when we see Jesus clearing out the money changers in the temple, He was not in there politely asking them to leave. Scripture says that he made a whip, overthrew tables, scattered their coins and drove them out. (John 2:15) We also see Him as he dealt with the teachers of the law and the Pharisees. They used the law to abuse people, yet valued themselves above others and Jesus did not hesitate to speak plainly to them. Over and over again, He called them hypocrites and even referred to them as white washed tombs ~ beautiful on the outside but full of dead man’s bones and everything unclean on the inside. (Matthew 23:27) We can also assume that these words and actions are exactly what God has instructed Jesus to do.

If we want to know the Father, we must know Jesus! By examining the Gospels and the life of Jesus, we not only learn about Jesus, but we also get a clearer picture of our Father. God’s desire is for us to come closer to Him, to know Him, to spend time with Him, and to trust Him with our lives. God’s very own words to Moses while on Mt. Sinai are a beautiful description of who He is and how He loves us as His children. Now, doesn’t that make you want to know Him better?

And he passed in front of Moses, proclaiming, “The LORD, the LORD, the compassionate and gracious God, slow to anger, abounding in love and faithfulness, maintaining love to thousands, and forgiving wickedness, rebellion and sin. Exodus 34:6-7

Do You Want to Get Well?

John 5:1-14

Jesus was traveling to Jerusalem and while on His way He stopped at the Pool of Bethesda. Surrounding the pool was a group of disabled people who believed they could receive healing if they were able to be the first in the water when it was stirred.

There was a man lying by the pool who had been an invalid for 38 years. When Jesus saw him, He asked him, “Do you want to get well?”

Why would Jesus ask such a question? Wasn’t the fact that this man was lying by the pool proof enough that he wanted to get well? After all, he had been that way for 38 years; would he not want to be healed? Would he not want the change in his life that a physical healing would bring?

Not necessarily, and that is why Jesus asked the question. If, as scriptures say, this man had been an invalid for 38 years, then this was a life to which he had become accustomed. The man had learned to adapt to his circumstances and his life was familiar to him, after all it was his life. Healing would bring about dramatic change in his life. Was he ready for that?

The man does not answer Jesus with a simple “yes” or “no.” He explains to Jesus that he has no one to help him get in the pool when the water is stirred.  Jesus takes that as a “yes,” and tells the man to “Get up! Pick up your mat and walk.” Scripture says that at once the man was cured. In an instant, this man’s life was forever changed!

And that is what it is like to come face to face with Jesus! Our lives can be a mess. We can be so familiar with our own mess that it becomes a place of comfort to us. We can complain about it, say we don’t like it, but still do nothing to change it or make it better.  Change means stepping out of our comfort zone, letting go of all that is familiar and allowing Jesus to heal our broken and wounded hearts. There is so much that He wants to do for us if we just let Him. He still stands at the door of your heart and asks, “Do you want to get well?”

Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you. For everyone who asks receives; he who seeks finds; and to him who knocks, the door will be opened.  Matthew 7:7-8