Encouraged to Praise
Now unto him that is able to keep you from falling, and to present you faultless before the presence of his glory with exceeding joy, To the only wise God our Saviour, be glory and majesty, dominion and power, both now and ever. Amen. Jude 3:24-25
When was the last time you felt totally discouraged? You felt like giving up. Things were not going as you had so carefully planned, you prayed and nothing seemed to change, you praised, you worshiped, you stood on the Word of God, all you had to hold onto was your faith, but you yet felt discouraged. Today's passage was good news for me because I've been there. Many of you have been there too. Some of you reading this devotional right now are there. And you may have been there for some time. But I want to encourage somebody on this Friday.
We can unpack today's passage in so many ways because there is so much in there. But we can shout on the ". . .able to keep you" part. No matter how much disappointment, rejection, and discouragement we may experience, God is still able to keep us. This may have been a year of transition for you on many fronts, but guess what? God's promises never change. And His promise to us in today's scripture is that He is the only wise God, and power belongs to Him and Him alone, no matter what our circumstance. My pastor, in His sermon on this past Sunday spoke to us that we must make the promises of God bigger than our problems. And when we focus on His promises, (and His Word is full of them) then our perspective changes in a most positive way.
God is not only our God, He is our Saviour. He not only provides relief, but He provides salvation! Relief is temporary, but salvation is eternal! I can call up a friend or prayer partner and get "relief" to make me feel a little better, but only God provides salvation. We can quote a scripture or two and "feel better" about a thing, but when we have set our minds and hearts on the only wise God, and meditate on Him day and night, and spend time with him on a regular basis, and order our lives according to His plan and purpose, then we are candidates for salvation in our circumstances, not just relief.
God is a God of justice, and He will get justice for us when we place Him, not second or third in our lives, but FIRST! Please be encouraged, and don't be afraid to open your mouth with praise. You may not see your solution with the physical eye, but as long as you can see God, He will see to it that you come out alright.
Used by churches all over the world to help teach worship, the Experiencing Worship study can help your worship team too.
Your team will learn why we worship and gain a better understanding of how to worship.
One user said..."Your 5 week study course has made a tremendous impact on my life in the study of worship... I would like to express my thanks for a well written study course that leads into a higher realm of praise and worship."
This is the debut album by EXW friend Paul Langford. Paul is a Chicago based singer, arranger, keyboardist, producer and conductor. Paul has a career that spans 14 years. Paul's work includes arranging for groups like GLAD, Voices of Liberty, VoiceTrek, The Chicago based "Caroling Party" and Day of Discovery Singers. His arranging has appeared on recordings side by side with greats like Gene Puerling and David Maddux, and he has sung with Don Shelton, Bonnie Herman and Bob Bowker, among others.