Posts about encouraging and instructing our worship

Quieting My Soul

O LORD, my heart is not proud, nor my eyes haughty; Nor do I involve myself in great matters, Or in things too difficult for me.
Surely I have composed and quieted my soul; Like a weaned child rests against his mother, My soul is like a weaned child within me.
O Israel, hope in the LORD From this time forth and forever. Psalm 131:1-3 (NAS)

My oldest is back at college, which means my youngest is feeling a little lonesome. In the evenings, she likes to get her pajamas, have a glass of chocolate milk then head to my bed with me to read or watch television for a little while. In that quiet snuggly time I hear her heart. Sometimes it’s frustrations with the big kids, but more often it’s about what she and her Welsh corgi puppy, Watson, will do, whenever she actually gets a Welsh corgi puppy. Occasionally, she’ll fall asleep nestled against me. No question, it’s the most relaxing part of my day, too.

This is the picture I get of Psalm 131. This Psalm is one of the Songs of Ascent, sung by the worshippers on their way to Jerusalem for the feasts. Now imagine yourself in the middle of the hectic Christmas rush, with a million and seven things to do. You know that feeling? Anticipation mixed with anxiety seasoned with exhaustion. The Israelites could have easily been overtaken by the same type of frantic preparation. They were traveling, often in large family groups, plus there were sacrifices to secure, and rituals to observe.

But in this psalm, David gives some guidance on how to approach that time of worship, how to prepare our hearts and minds to enter God’s presence.

Humility
He starts with declaration of what worship is not about. He is not proud or haughty. It is not about him, his preferences, his comfort.

Reality
David says, “I don’t worry about things that are out of my hands. I know my limitations.” He sets aside all other concerns.

Tranquility
This is good part. He has taken the time and effort to compose and quiet his soul. He’s like a child who isn’t demanding his needs be met but just wants to be near his mother, comforted by her presence, not by what he gets from her.

Security
The results: hope, and trust in God. When we come away from the quiet time in His presence, we leave knowing He is God, He is good, and He is in control.

I know the weekends are often busier than the work week, but I hope you carve out some quiet moments to simply be in God’s presence. It’s time well-spent.

Morning and Evening

By Paula

[T]o declare Your steadfast love in the morning, and Your faithfulness by night. Psalm 92:2

How would things change?
How would my attitude change if …
Every morning (especially Mondays) I took time to say out loud
That God loves me with an unchanging, unshakeable love,
A love that doesn’t fade and isn’t dependent on how well I perform.

How would things change?
How would my attitude change if …
Every evening I took time to say out loud
That God has faithfully seen me through another day,
And His word, His promises to me are steadfast and sure.

I might begin to trust Him more.
I might risk showing His kind of love to others.
I might rest assured in Him.

Of course nothing says I have to wait for morning or evening.

The Duty of Thanksgiving

By Paula

[B]ecause their duty was … to stand every morning to thank and praise the LORD, and likewise at evening. 2 Chronicles 23:28, 30

We don’t like to think of any aspect of our Christian life -especially giving thanks and praise- as being a duty.
It sounds forced.
We serve God because we choose to, not because He forces us.

Then there’s the issue of sincerity.
When we give thanks, when we offer up praise, they should come from the heart, right?
How can our thanks and praise be sincere if they are reduced to a duty?

But if we’re being honest, if I’m being honest, the real problem isn’t that thanks and praise are a duty…
It’s the fact that I don’t do it.

See, a duty is a service, an obligation, rendered to someone seen as a superior.
As long as I think I can handle things on my own …
As long as I think I can work hard enough …
As long as I think I can be good enough …
I won’t see the need to thank and praise God each morning and each evening.

But when I recognize HIS worthiness and not my own,
I recognize my debt.
When I recognize that debt, then I see what an amazing privilege it is to be given the duty to thank and praise Him morning and evening.

Enter with Thanksgiving

By Paula

Enter into His gates with thanksgiving, And into His courts with praise. Be thankful to Him, and bless His name. Psalm 100:4

Thanksgiving.

I’m much more likely to enter His gates with the exhaustion of a poor night’s sleep
With aggravation at the empty gas tank
With distraction by that appointment tomorrow
With hurt over a stray remark
With concern over a test result
With the burden of an unexpected expense
Than I am with thanksgiving.

When I enter His courts,
I expect my mood to be lifted,
My grievances validated,
And my problems solved.

In short, I expect it to be about me.
Sincere thanksgiving changes that.

Thanksgiving is a practice, not an event.
When I practice it, then I find I’m able to enter His courts with praise.

With gratefulness for His shelter
With thankfulness for His provision
With security because of His sovereignty

Bless His name.

Misunderheard

By Paula

O earth, earth, earth, hear the word of the Lord! Jeremiah 22:29

The other day I asked my youngest a simple question and she gave me a reply that made no sense. So I repeated the question. “Oh,” she said, “I misunderheard you the first time.”

Misunderheard. Hearing, but not engaged, not listening. Sound familiar? My son is a master, but I do it more than I’d like to admit, and not just in conversations. I am inundated with information and often haven’t internalized what I need before the next wave hits. Distracted and deluged, things fall through the cracks. (I think the cracks are wider than they used to be, but that’s another issue.)

But this happens in worship, too. We take prayer requests, and I’m counting how many doses of allergy medicine I have left. Is that on automatic refill or do I actually have to order it? The lyrics of a hymn like whiter than snow, trigger a reminder to soak the football pants when I get home so I can wash them before practice tomorrow. The pastor gives a reference in Matthew- Matt… Wonder if Matt are Cindy will be in this weekend. Now Gretchen has had her birthday but Harrison’s isn’t til next month, right? Maybe we should take a gift anyway… Before I know it, we’re singing the invitation, and I’ve misunderheard everything God said.

I’m not the only one, am I? It’s not that I mean to dishonor the Sovereign God of all creation who saved my soul and loves me in ways I don’t understand. And I promise my spirit is willing, but the flesh in charge of keeping me mentally on track is pathetically weak. So what can I do?

Confess and commit
I know this is a weakness. Admitting it and seeking help is an important step, but I don’t want to misunderhear again. I have to follow through. On a daily basis (sometimes more often). However, one key to following through is knowing if it’s all on me, it’ll be a spectacular failure.

If not there, somewhere
Maybe my brain is not always totally engaged in the worship services, but during my Bible study, things are different. And my prayer time is much less distracted than it used to be. That’s progress, and it encourages me.

Give it to Him
God orders my days and my appointments, so He knows. Sometimes, the easiest thing is simply to say, “All this silly stuff is distracting me. Help me remember it later, so I can let it go now focus on being in Your presence in this moment.”

How do you stay focused on God?

Study Tip: Mount Moriah

By Paula

Often times when we study, we focus on the who and the what, rather than the where with good reason. Who and what are usually the two most important pieces of information. Besides that, the place names in Scripture can be tricky and confusing. However, sometimes the where gives some tremendous insight. Let me give you my favorite example.

In Genesis 22:2, God tells Abraham to go to the land of Moriah and offer Isaac as a sacrifice on one of the mountains there.

In 2 Chronicles 3:1, we read “Now Solomon began to build the house of the Lord at Jerusalem on Mount Moriah, where the Lord had appeared to his father David, at the place that David had prepared on the threshing floor of Ornan the Jebusite.”

The same place.

God provided a substitute for Isaac in the same spot the nation would offer their sacrificial substitutes. In the intervening years, they would live as slaves and nomads until God brought them back to that place.

Then at the opposite end of that same ridge is a place called Calvary, the spot where the sacrifices would end and the debt paid by Christ. He fulfilled the promise Abraham affirmed so many years before. And Abraham said, “My son, God will provide for Himself the lamb for a burnt offering.” (Genesis 22:8)

Details like this show us that nothing is random, but God orders every event to tell His redemption story. Take a few moments to consider the parallels in the events that happened at Moriah. What lessons can you take away about sacrifice, and about worship?
(If you want to read more, check out the story of David purchasing that piece of ground where Solomon built the Temple. It’s in 2 Samuel 24.)