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Music Ministry

Posted on September 21, 2006 ...

Wow, we serve a great and mighty God! My heart is filled with joy and thanksgiving to our Holy Father and I want to shout His praises from the rooftops. ?¢‚Ǩ?ìBut you are a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people belonging to God, that you may declare the praises of him who called you out of darkness into his wonderful light.?¢‚Ǩ¬ù(1 Peter 2:9 NIV)
He has chosen us to be His royal ambassadors, if you please, to spread the good news of His grace and love to everyone. We are made to declare His praises.
Some of you may be asking what does that mean? Well, I know that many of you do not have any trouble declaring the praises of your children; you tell everyone what little Johnny has done. Or when your sports team is winning, you talk about them constantly, wear their colors, and brag on their progress. We are to be the same way about God, for He has done much more than our children or our favorite sports team ever has. He always arises as Victor. He has never lost. Sometimes, we may not feel like we have won the battle, but we still need to praise God through the storms of life because ?¢‚Ǩ?ìHe will never leave you or forsake you.?¢‚Ǩ¬ù
David is a great example of giving God the glory even when times were tough. In Psalm 3, David was being pressed from every side as his son, Absalom, was coming after Him with an army. Yet, David still praised God. ?¢‚Ǩ?ìMany there be which say of my soul, there is no help for him in God. But thou, O Lord art a shield for me; my glory, and the lifter of my head. I cried unto the Lord with my voice, and He heard me out of his holy hill. 5I laid me down and slept; I awaked; for the LORD sustained me.?¢‚Ǩ¬ù (Psalm 3:2-5 KJV) David was being told, ?¢‚Ǩ?ìGive up! There is no hope for you.?¢‚Ǩ¬ù But even in the midst of it all, he still found time to give God the praise.
Do we praise God in the hard times? Do we praise God for all of the things that He has done? Do we place God in higher priority than our daily activities? So many times we are more likely to talk about our favorite sports team while neglecting to talk about how great God is and how He is moving in our lives. We will make fools of ourselves at the football game but we won?¢‚Ǩ‚Ñ¢t even move or acknowledge God?¢‚Ǩ‚Ñ¢s presence in church. I want to challenge you to think about God and all that He has done for you and your family. I believe that you will find a reason to praise Him and get as excited about God as you do about the fleeting things of this world. Because that is what we are supposed to do as people belonging to God. We are to declare the praises of Him who called us out of darkness into His wonderful light. God bless and keep you, Lanny