Quick Praise (Ps. 106:12)

Then they believed His promises and sang His praise. (Psalm 106:12)(HCSB)


What does God have to do for you to believe and praise His name?

Quick Praise (Mk. 11:33b)

And Jesus said to them, "Neither will I tell you by what authority I do these things." (Mark 11:33b)(HCSB)

Jesus doesn't answer to us, but all of us will answer to Him one day.

The Rock that Rolls My Blues Away

Enter his gates with thanksgiving; go into his courts with praise. Give thanks to him and bless his name. (Psalm 100:4)(NLT)


He lifted me out of the pit of despair, out of the mud and the mire. He set my feet on solid ground and steadied me as I walked along. (Psalm 40:2)(NLT)

As I read Psalm 100 one day, something struck a chord with me about worship. When I read verse 4, it spoke to me of a necessary ingredient for real worship and a possible hindrance to our worship experience. You see, God is looking for a thankful heart and an attitude of thanksgiving as we enter into worship.

As we enter into worship in an effort to bow before His throne, we are to enter His gates. Notice how the verse says to do it---with thanksgiving. So we're trying to arrive at the feet of Jesus and worship before His throne, but we're held back at the gates because we don't have the "key" to gain entrance. Without a thankful heart we cannot really continue to His courts because we are to enter those courts with praise. If we don't have that attitude of thanksgiving we probably will not praise Him. We must travel through those courts in order to come before Him in worship, but without thanksgiving leading us to praise we won't truly arrive. We will not be able to worship in spirit and in truth because we are still stuck outside the gates wondering why we don't feel a worship connection with the Lord.

So I would encourage us all as we come to worship services to do it the way Psalm 100:4 outlines it for us. Let's enter the gates with the key of thanksgiving. Put aside distractions before church. Before or on the way to corporate worship services, listen to some worship music and get your mind into a frame of worship before you step through the church door. Think of all the ways God has blessed you and what Jesus went through for you on the cross.

Let's then continue with a thankful heart into God's courts with praise. I mean truly enter into worship! As a worship leader, it saddens me when I see people not participating in singing the worship songs and hymns. It's like some are there just to warm a pew, and no matter what song is being sung they just refuse to enter in and sing along. Don't be one of those who says, "I'm not singing because I don't like that new praise chorus!" or "I'm so tired of that old hymn, I'm not gonna sing that!" Remember we are commanded to worship with "psalms, hymns and spiritual songs" in the New Testament (Eph. 5:19), and it's not about what you (or we) like. It's not about us at all--it's about Jesus! So lift up your voice in song and praise! God doesn't care if you can carry a tune in a bucket or not--your joyful noise is beautiful to His ears (Ps. 33:1) What matters is that you praise Him with sincerity and with your whole heart behind it!

Then we can proceed to fall at the foot of God's throne in true, sincere worship!

I wrote a song with some of these ideas in my head. I thought about calling it "Thank You Lord" but ultimately ended up with the title "The Rock that Rolls my Blues Away". It is based on Psalm 100:4 and Psalm 40:2. Here's the lyrics:

The Rock that Rolls My Blues Away

vs. 1) I say I want to enter Your courts with praise

but I can't even get past the gates

'Cause Lord You're looking for a thankful heart

and this ol' heart's not making the grade

I've been feeling blue like I'm in the dump

I've got to remember where You've brought me from

'Cause Lord You pulled me out of the miry clay

You set my feet on the Rock I'm standing on today

chorus) Thank You Lord for what You've done inside my heart

I thank You for salvation and Your blood that covers me

Thank You Lord for You are worthy of the praises I lift up

You flood me with forgiveness and a peace I've never known

You are the Rock that rolls my blues away

vs. 2) Now we have got so much to be thankful for

with His love and grace how could we want more

But Lord sometimes we take our eyes off You 

and we lose sight of the One that we adore

We need to realize just who we are

children of the King and heirs with Christ

And then when the devil tries to bring us down

we have a Friend who's the Way the Truth and the Life

chorus) Thank You Lord for what You've done inside my heart

I thank You for salvation and Your blood that covers me

Thank You Lord for You are worthy of the praises I lift up

You flood me with forgiveness and a peace I've never known

You are the Rock that rolls my blues away

(repeat chorus)

copyright 2009 Heart of Praise Music

So remember to bring the "key" to church with you so that you can enter His gates. Bring a thankful heart because of what He's done for you--for your salvation--for His blood that covers your sins--for His forgiveness and peace and grace!

Singing His Praises,

Joey Culpepper

Quick Praise (Mk. 10:45)

"For even the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give His life---a ransom for many." (Mark 10:45)(HCSB)

Jesus came to serve. Do you?

Walking Worthy

We exhorted and comforted and charged every one of you...that ye would walk worthy of God, who hath called you unto his kingdom and glory" (1 Thessalonians 2:11-12)(ASV)

This devotional, about how a Christian should "walk", is by Dr. James B. Chrichton.

Walking Worthy

The word walk is very often used in the Scriptures for the life of the Christian. It is a very appropriate symbol. Life, as we know it, is not usually spent in running or flying, but more in walking. The word suggests the steady, patient, daily living for Christ. The Christian walk is one step at a time.

A right Christian walk, however, is the result of a full appreciation and appropriation of our blessing and position in Christ. We do not walk in order to become worthy, but because we have been made worthy by Him (Col. 1:12). A prince does not live like a prince in order to become one, but because he is one. Even so a Christian walks like a Christian, not to become one, but because he is a Christian. His conduct is influenced by his appreciation of his position on Christ.

Thrice in this Epistle to the Thessalonians Paul speaks of the Christian walk--2:12, 4:1, 4:12. What, therefore, is the worthy walk to which Paul exhorted the believers?

• The Walk is in Faith--Its Principle--Rom. 4:12
• The Walk is in the Spirit--Its Power--Gal. 5:16
• The Walk is in Good Works--Its Practice--Eph. 2:10

A visitor was once watching a group of slaves, slouching and shuffling off to their work. One tall, broad-shouldered fellow strode on, head erect and with the gait of a man. "How's that?" the visitor asked. "Oh, he's the son of an African king," was the reply. "He never forgets that." Alas! we forget, amid the drudgeries of earth, that we are sons and daughters of the King of kings.

"It is not in man that walketh to direct his steps" (Jer. 10:23)
"Order my steps in thy word" (Ps. 119:133)

Forsaken Roots

Today, as so many people teach that our nation was not founded on Christian beliefs and principles. As our society continues to try to remove any mention of God, the Cross, the Ten Commandments, Scripture, etc., from public view, it's good to look back at the facts of how our nation began and became the greatest nation on earth. There is no doubt that God and Christianity has played a major role in the success of our country. In fact, they are the very roots of our nation.

The following is an excerpt from Floyd McElveen's book, "Faith of an Atheist".

In the Mayflower Compact, it was clearly stated that spreading the Gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ, as well as freedom to worship without being under a mandated State church, was their purpose.


Patrick Henry endorsed and emphasized this, when he wrote in 1776, "It cannot be emphasized too strongly or too often that this great nation was founded not by religionists, but by Christians, not on religion, but on the Gospel of Jesus Christ. For that reason alone, people of other faiths have been afforded freedom of worship here."


This information and some following truths were taken from a booklet on the internet, "Forsaken Roots," but I also have many more historical facts about the founding of our country in books David Barton wrote.


Page 1 of "Forsaken Roots" asks, "Did you know that 52 of the 55 signers of the Declaration of Independence were orthodox, deeply committed Christians?"


Page 2 informs us, "It is the same congress that formed the American Bible Society. Immediately after creating the Declaration of Independence, the Continental Congress voted to purchase and import, 20,000 copies of Scripture for the people of this nation."


George Washington said in part, on September 19, 1796 (pg. 7), "It is impossible to govern the world without God and the Bible."


John Adams, our second President, was chairman of the American Bible Society. On pg. 10 of "Forsaken Roots," he observantly and astutely comments, "Our constitution was made only for a moral and religious people. It is wholly inadequate to the government of any other." How true that has proven to be. The further we get away from God and the Bible, the more corrupt our government, society and schools become, so that now we have virtually no standard of right and wrong, and tremendous moral deterioration is taking place.


On pg. 14 of "Forsaken Roots," we find that in 1782, the United States Congress voted this resolution: "The Congress of the United States recommends and approves the Holy Bible for use in all schools."


The McGuffey Reader, a powerful Christian book, was used in our schools for over 100 years. Over 125 million copies of this book were sold.


Hospitals worldwide were largely a result of Christians and the Christian message.


Page 16 informs us that, "Of the first 108 universities founded in America, 106 were distinctly Christian, including the first." On. pg. 19, "For over 100 years, more than 50% of all Harvard graduates were pastors." We owe our Constitution, our wonderful and free American Nation, and our educational and judicial system to the Bible, Christians and the Christian faith.


Yet a godless nation, Russia, inundated by Atheistic Communists, provides a stark contrast between atheism and Christianity. With the collapse of Communism and the chaos, corruption and criminal activity, which were unleashed, many Russians became Christians. When the rigid dictatorial regime glued together by fear, disintegrated, they turned to Christ.


While our schools are pandering to the Atheists and Agnostics, lest we offend some, and doing everything possible to get God out of the schools, according to Olga of the Kindness Foundation, Russian schools are now asking that Christianity be taught in their schools. (end of excerpt)

Lord help us to turn back to You as a nation. Help us to put You back in our schools and back in our public square. Instead of focusing our attention on shutting up our faith for fear of offending the non-believers, let us turn our eyes to Jesus so that our land can be healed.

Quick Praise (Ps. 55:22)

Cast your burden on the Lord, and He will support you; He will never allow the righteous to be shaken. (Psalm 55:22)(HCSB)

Bring whatever's weighing you down to God; He'll lift you up.

I Love You, Lord

This is an excerpt from Beth Moore's book, A Heart Like His.

The Book of 2 Samuel is not the only place David's words of victory are found. Psalm 18 contains an almost identical  set of verses to those God placed in 2 Samuel 22. One of the exceptions is too precious to miss. Verse 1 of Psalm 18 simply declares, "I love you, O LORD, my strength."

"I love you, Lord." No demands. No despair. Just "I love you." The words might seem more fitting as the grand finale rather than the opening line. Their sudden appearance suggests they were words that could not wait. The psalmist considered his delivered state and his Father's stubborn love, and he burst forth with the words: "I love you, LORD."

The One who delivered David from his enemies was no distant deity. He was the object of the psalmist's deepest emotions, the One with whom he shared authentic relationship. David deeply loved God. David was a man after God's own heart because his desire was also the sheer pleasure of the Father. The Father's deepest desire is to be loved--genuinely loved--by His child.

If 2 Samuel 22 and Psalm 18 compel us to see one thing, it is that God is a personal God we each can call our own.

• He is my strength when I am weak.
• He is my rock when I am slipping.
• He is my deliverer when I am trapped.
• He is my fortress when I am crumbling.
• He is my refuge when I am pursued.
• He is my shield when I am exposed.
• He is my Lord when life spins out of control.

A heart that makes Him its own--one that can state, "He is mine"--is a heart that cannot help but love. I love you, Lord.

Quick Praise (Ps. 4:3)

Know that the Lord has set apart the faithful for Himself; the Lord will hear when I call to Him. (Psalm 4:3)(HCSB)

God hears the prayers of the faithful.

Solomon

 He prayed, "O Lord, God of Israel, there is no God like you in all of heaven and earth. You keep your promises and show unfailing love to all who obey you and are eager to do your will." (2 Chronicles 6:14) (NLT)

This is a worship profile of Solomon taken from the Praise and Worship Study Bible published by Tyndale House. It is a wonderful study bible, and I highly recommend it to all who want to learn more about biblical worship.

Solomon

Solomon, the third king of Israel and son of David, ruled Israel during its golden age. He united the kingdom economically, politically, and religiously (1 Kings 4-9). Solomon was known for collecting proverbs, composing songs, and cataloging plants and animals. But his greatest achievement was building the Temple in Jerusalem, the place of true worship. It became the symbol of God's presence in Israel--the place where God could be encountered. At its dedication, the Temple was filled with the could of God's presence, just as the Tabernacle had been generations before. God's presence in the Temple indicated that Israel had a future and that their covenant relationship with God remained intact.

Solomon the Worshiper

Solomon orchestrated a Temple dedication ceremony that celebrated the theme of God's covenant with Israel. He began his prayer of dedication by proclaiming God's work among his people, from the Exodus to his own reign, and by thanking God for fulfilling his covenant promises to Israel. Solomon humbly acknowledged God's decision to dwell among his people. He believed fervently that God, from his heavenly throne, would answer the prayers offered at this holy place of meeting. Solomon also challenged his people to remain faithful. If they should stumble, they were to return to the Temple to confess their sins. Solomon's prayer of dedication should give us direction as we seek to worship at our places of meeting.

Learning from Solomon

Worshipers today come before the throne of God much as Solomon did, although in more diverse and universal settings. The places we worship today are locations for an encounter between God and his people. God's community and Kingdom are not limited to these places, but sanctuaries are a helpful, visible sign of God's rule in our life. As we worship, we are reminded that God has granted us his covenant and that he upholds it with the same faithfulness that he once displayed to Solomon.

Following the Example

As God's people gather to hear him and worship him at special places, they share a rich tradition with God's people of the Old Testament and the historic church. That tradition is embodied in the psalms. Particular psalms provide an orderly response for worship, especially the so-called psalms of Zion (Psalms 46, 48, 76, 84, 87, and 122). These beautiful songs focus on the glory of Jerusalem and the holy mountain, Zion, which God chose as his dwelling place. Reading and meditating on these psalms over the course of a week will give you a greater understanding of how we should approach God in his dwelling place.