Praise And Worship
This is the day the Lord has made. We will be glad and rejoice in it.
This Is Today Praise God
1 Chronicles 16:23-31
Sing to the LORD, all the earth;
Proclaim the good news of His salvation from day to day.
Declare His glory among the nations,
His wonders among all peoples.
For the LORD is great and greatly to be praised;
He is also to be feared above all gods.
For all the gods of the peoples are idols,
But the LORD made the heavens.
Honor and majesty are before Him;
Strength and gladness are in His place.
Give to the LORD, O families of the peoples,
Give to the LORD glory and strength.
Give to the LORD the glory due His name;
Bring an offering, and come before Him.
Oh, worship the LORD in the beauty of holiness!
Tremble before Him, all the earth.
The world also is firmly established,
It shall not be moved.
Let the heavens rejoice, and let the earth be glad;
And let them say among the nations, “The LORD reigns.”
Dead In The Flesh
I heard a sermon recently regarding the nature of dying in the flesh and living in Christ and it left me devastated. The gravity of what was being asked hit me so hard that I felt defeated. How am I supposed to be totally dead to this fleshly world and live only through Christ.
Hebrews 8:13
For if you live according to the flesh you will die; but if by the Spirit you put to death the deeds of the body, you will live.
Romans 6:11-14
Likewise you also, reckon yourselves to be dead indeed to sin, but alive to God in Christ Jesus our Lord.
Therefore do not let sin reign in your mortal body, that you should obey it in its lusts. And do not present your members as instruments of unrighteousness to sin, but present yourselves to God as being alive from the dead, and your members as instruments of righteousness to God. For sin shall not have dominion over you, for you are not under law but under grace.
Think about it for a moment, being dead in the flesh.
Never being disappointed in yourself or others.
Never feeling hurt, dishonored or disrespected.
Never yearning for worldly possessions.
Never seeking praise, recognition or validation.
Never lusting with fleshly desires.
Never letting the world govern your steps.
Ever!
How oh how do I do this?
I buried myself in scriptures, praying for revelations, repenting and renouncing and seeking advice from others. I was desperate for an answer and did not receive one. The line to my Lord was silent and the Holy Spirit was quiet.
I fell literally in despair so quickly that I felt like a charlatan and my cover was blown. I was just playing Christian all along and the truth was that I could never be dead in the flesh. A feeling of unworthiness enveloped me and I fell flat.
So much that I did not want to attend the first connect group meeting of the year, the one that my wife and I lead. I didn't even want to show up for MAGH. Can you imagine this.
MAGH has been on fire this year with such amazing teachings and revelations and I was feeling left behind, like a car that wouldn’t start at the beginning of a race.
The Phone Call, The Turning Point
Then last Sunday I received a call from someone I hadn’t spoken with for about one year. His name is also Barry and he and his wife had just returned from New Zealand after attending his son in laws 50th birthday.
Barry had so much joy in his voice that he sounded like a child at Christmas after unwrapping his gifts. He then described an anointing that he and his wife carried throughout their stay in New Zealand.
In their spare time over five weeks they saw 55 people give their lives to Christ through random conversations on the streets, in cafes and shops.
How did you do it I asked. Barry just answered, we love God so much that all we do is worship and praise His name and He does all the rest in our lives. It’s that simple.
Was praise and worship of our Lord the answer I was looking for. Was burying all my troubles and cares in thanksgiving to the Lord the panacea?
Barry had shared that he called after an overwhelming tug in the spirit that I needed something. At that time I was despairing and exhausted about so many things in my life. This man had just turned 82 and his wife is 80 and he sounded so young that I mentioned it and thanked him for being obedient in the spirit.
I felt a shift in my spirit, a hope, a way out and this past week has been miraculous for me. Utterly miraculous.
My Lord has revealed a simple plan. Let me share this with you all.
