singing

Singing is a Step of Faith

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Praise the Lord! Sing to the Lord a new song, his praise in the assembly of the godly! Let Israel be glad in his Maker; let the children of Zion rejoice in their King!                      Psalm 149:1-2 ESV

Singing is more than music it is a step of faith. When we open our mouth to sing we both connect back to our first childlike step of faith and strain forward towards our heavenly goal.

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We cannot see what heaven will be like, but the accompaniment of heaven’s songs can draw us towards home. I am reminded of one dear elderly saint who was found passed out on the floor by her sister. The ambulance was called and Florence was taken to the hospital where after several days she regained her strength and returned home. Florence told us that while she was unconscious she began to hear the angels singing and felt them coming closer. She said that the song grew louder and louder but then suddenly it faded and then she opened her eyes and woke up. Since she had grown up in the Polish church I was interested to know if God would have His angels singing in her childhood language or in English. But Florence said it was in neither language rather in some heavenly tongue which was completely different from anything she knew! I have never forgotten Florence’s angels and their heavenly song. God has given us songs as wings to our faith. Just as faith without works is dead, faith without words is unborn. What mightier wings of faith can there be than the words of our worship in song?

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Living Hope – Everlasting Arms

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This week I am dedicating the devotional and song to our good friend Carl Carey who is now leaning in the Everlasting Arms of Jesus. Those of us who knew him are sad today but on the other side there is only singing! May God bless you as you listen and find for yourself God’s wonderful living and everlasting hope!

Farther Along

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“In God we trust” stated a sign printed over the lunch counter where I often stopped for coffee. Just under that phrase in smaller print it said, “All others pay cash!” As a young man I decided to trust God for my salvation and I felt confident that I now understood how God wanted me to handle life’s problems. But I was puzzled that many people at my church seemed to act as if they didn’t seem to share my calm assurance.

After getting married and becoming a father it began to dawn on me that lots of things were a just little more complicated than I had realized. Today, I am entering my senior years with many inabilities I can only overcome with the help of others and I am learning that only God knows most of the answers. The good news has been that rather than feeling that this is a personal failure it has been a relief because to realize that I don’t need to figure it all out. God is okay with me simply trusting Him! I hope that my simple rendering of this song, “Farther Along” will bring some hope, comfort and a smile to someone else who is also holding tightly to God’s hand through the changing seasons of their life. Blessings…

 

For in this hope we were saved. Now hope that is seen is not hope. For who hopes for what he sees? But if we hope for what we do not see, we wait for it with patience. Likewise the Spirit helps us in our weakness. For we do not know what to pray for as we ought, but the Spirit himself intercedes for us with groanings too deep for words.  Romans 8:24-26