That's Why We Praise Him

Psalm 22:3"Yet You are holy, enthroned on the praises of Israel."

Israel's worship songs were both an act of remembering & an act of praise. It's amazing to me how many of Israel's songs remembered God's saving acts on their behalf. Psalm 30:11-12, Psalm 107, & Psalm 116:1-9 are great examples. Israel would be called to worship with "Hallelujah" or Praise (Hallelu) Yahweh (yah). And the call to praise the name of God would flood their memory with all the wonders God had done, all the blessings God had given, & all that God meant to them.

And when Israel worshiped, it elevated Yahweh above all other God's. So that God truly was "enthroned on the praises of Israel." Yahweh was elevated above Baal, Dagon, Marduk...above all other gods.

So too with our worship. When our worship experiences truly result in praise, God is lifted up above our gods. Above popularity, money, power, esteem, inclusion & all the rest. Or has our praise become routine. Perhaps we need to create, if even for our own personal times of worship, songs that reflect God's saving work in our lives. It is through remembering that praise is born. What is praise that is not born from experience? Cheap? Empty? Hopefully our praise can have the full meaning & call to mind all that God is in our lives as well so that the God who is worthy of praise may actually recieve praise from our lips, hearts & lives.

May Yahweh be lifted up in our praise.
Praise Him.

courage to speak

This weekend our youth group went to Winterfest in Gatlinburg, TN & joined 12,000 other teens in a wonderful experience as we all grew in our relationship to Father God. The picture you see here is of my friend Taylor. Taylor is a junior in our youth group. He is a great servant who has a humble heart. There's nothing Taylor won't do for you if you ask him. He's just one of those guys that doesn't need a lot of press, doesn't require a lot of thanks or recognition. He just wants to be a servant & bless the kingdom. And he's been doing that for as long as I've known him.

I've been praying for Taylor for quite some time. For whatever reason, Taylor has been holding out to be baptized. To make that commitment to the Lord where he steps into the water & becomes a child of God. Retreats have come & gone where I've talked to Taylor, prayed for Taylor, & still nothing has happened...as far as I could see.

But this weekend was different. It was the last night at Winterfest. And they were offering an invitation. One of our adults had gotten up & positioned himself where he could see Taylor. According to him, Taylor never flinched, never moved the whole time the invitation song was being sung. But Taylor's good friend T.J. was talking to Taylor the whole time the song was going on.

After the song was over, I was a little disappointed that Taylor had not walked forward. And then to my surprise, Taylor & T.J. walk right up to me. With chins quivering & tears in there eyes. Then Taylor reached out, gave me a big bear hug & told me he wanted to get baptized.

I told him I loved him & was proud of him. People started gathering around to hug Taylor. So I stepped aside & asked T.J., "Did you get a chance to talk to Taylor this weekend about being baptized?" He said he had. I asked him what made him decide to talk to Taylor. He said, "He's my friend & I didn't want to lose him."

I later asked him what he said to Taylor during that invitation song. He said, "I asked him if he believed Jesus was the Son of God, cause that's all he needed to know,"

May we be the T.J.'s in the lives of those friends we love & don't want to lose.

A-mazing

Have you seen this guy?

One of the things Alisha & I love to do together is watch American Idol. And we're no fair weather fans. We even watch these early, painful episodes where so many horrific singers are paraded in front of the judges. We just believe you have to be in all the way or not at all. So you can imagine our surprise when this smiley 18 year old cowboy stood in front of Simon, Randy & Paula & blew us away with his amazing voice.

Garet Johnson got his gold ticket & was ready to make his way to Hollywood. Singing in front of the judges was the first time he had ever sung in front of a human audience. Before, he had only sing in front of the turkey's he fed every morning. It would be the first time he would ever fly on an airplane. In fact, there were a lot of firsts for Garet.

He's nickname now is the "Crying Cowboy." Whenever they interview Garet, he's so overcome with emotion just to have this opportunity. You can see how pure his soul is. He's genuine through & through. And it's so nice to see the good guys get a chance like this.

After arriving in Hollywood, the contestants would get a tour. It's a chance to see the sites & take it all in. I was particularly touched when they took Garet's group to the beach. You see, this was his first time to see the ocean. He stood forever just looking at it. And then, fully dressed in his cowboy boots, wranglers, button down western wear hat & all...Garet began to walk into the ocean. He slapped at the waves. Laughed with joy in the splendor of it all. And he kept walking till the ocean waves washed completely over him. And he loved it.

May you too be so overwhelmed & completely amazed by the awesome love of YAHWEH.

Your unfailing love, O LORD, is as vast as the heavens;
Your faithfulness reaches beyond the clouds.
Your righteousness is like the mighty mountains,
Your justice like the ocean depths.
Psalm 36.5-6

creatures in His presence

(disclaimer: sorry, i'm on this psalm kick)

it's hard for me to get my mind around Your holiness
and Your otherness
i don't know that i will ever understand who You are
Your nature & Your character are so far beyond me
and yet you come & call me by name
and still you hold my life in Your hands

we're not a people worthy of such all sustaining love
all forgiving love
we cannot pretend to deserve Your presence in our lives
Your nature & Your character, it speaks to who we are
for we are as the image of You
creation reflecting the Creator in You

creatures in You presence, calling You by name
may we all live a life that glorifies Your fame

a psalm

for all the things You do & all the things you are
for all the times You hear my cry & answer when i call
creation sings Your praise, the stars they light Your way
and how i want to join the song that sings of Your great Name

to sing of Your unfailing love, Your unending grace
You are merciful & You are in this place
You are worthy of praise