Setting the Mind and Mouth | Thoughts About Worship

Life is crazy and at any point each of us will be in some sort of struggle. More likely, we’ll have a great number of struggles in varying degrees throughout our lifetime. In each, when it becomes our turn, there’s often another underlying free and annoying companion that invites a whole separate not-so-fun party of its own. The struggle of the mind.

I’d like to share with you a little glimpse from Jehoshaphat’s life that I’ve been meditating on lately. Jehoshaphat is a King of Judah that you can read about in 2 Chronicles. For the most part he was a good King. He was usually quick to seek the Lord and he has been marked as a powerful prayer warrior. So grab your Bible and follow along.

In 2 Chronicles 20 we see that the Moabites and Ammonites came to wage war on Jehoshaphat. Jehoshaphat goes straight to the Lord full of praise and faith that the Lord will save him and his people. (v6)

In (v10) He reminds God of what the Lord asked of him and his people and how they obeyed.

And I have to stop here for a second because there’s another nugget that I’ve gleaned recently from Philippians 4:6 that says “Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God.” Petition as in defending why and why not something should happen. And here we see one of the most powerful pray-ers of the Bible doing this very thing.

Read (v10) again.

Okay moving along.

(v11) He explains what he can’t handle and doesn’t understand. Then he tells God, “we don’t know that to do but our eyes are on you!” They have an encounter with the Lord (v13) and he tells them not to be afraid and this is where the popular verse “the battle is not yours, it’s the Lord” comes from.

(v18) Jehoshaphat bows down and then goes into praise. Then watch what happens the next day when they go into war against the Moabites. (v20)

Early in the morning they left for the Desert of Tekoa. As they set out, Jehoshaphat stood and said, “Listen to me Judah and people of Jerusalem! Have faith in the Lord your God and you will be upheld; have faith in his prophets and you will be successful.”

Then in (v21) as they go into battle, “Jehoshaphat appoints his men to sing to the Lord and to praise him for the splendor of his holiness as they went out at the head of the army saying Give thanks to the Lord, for his love endures forever.”

(v22) As they began to sing and praise, the Lord set ambushes against the men of Ammon and Moab and Mount Seri who were invading Judah and they were defeated.

I don’t know how those verses strike you but who sings going into battle? In all seriousness, aren't we usually trying to get everything to quiet down just so we can concentrate, ahem think! hmmm. Could dying to the mind and singing instead be our very best weapon; a song of worship in praise, in any battle that we face of our own?

If that’s not thought provoking enough, check out this link to 7 Reasons Why Singing Matters.

And let me switch to another popular scene in the Bible. Do you remember when Jesus tells the Samaritan Woman “that true believers worship in Spirit and in Truth”? I don’t know about you but I believe that every single one of us has “that worship song” even if you haven’t found it yet. 

I'm talking about the song that you connect with in an intensely personal way and when it gets your eyes on our Father and all that he’s done for you, SUDDENLY you feel his presence all over! The sensation is so strong and so moving, it is easy to walk in love and be patient and “believe” in the power of God or his plan for you. It’s easy to just act in all the ways that you know that you’re supposed to. And heck that's another struggle in itself, walking in love, in all situations. Am I right?

Talk about power!

Anyway, so hold that thought and let me switch gears again.

I am currently leading an online group and we're studying the book, “The Power of a Praying Wife”. This week’s chapter is about the mind. Each week we also pick a verse to meditate on. By the end of the week, I make a few notes and I am trying to practice tying the topic and verse together, in the way that each speak to me.

Our verse this week is on Romans 8:12-13 “Therefore, brothers and sisters, we have an obligation—but it is not to the flesh, to live according to it. For if you live according to the flesh, you will die; but if by the Spirit you put to death the misdeeds of the body, you will live.”

As I sit down to study the mind and how we can live "by the spirit", I can see in the passage just above it that it says we must first set our mind. But how? I can barely walk into one room to get something without forgetting why I walked in there.

Certainly spending time in the Word will be the best way to do this. Knowing what the Word says and getting it in your mind should be first and foremost. 

Hebrews 4:12 tells us that the Word of God is alive and active. Sharper than any double edged sword. It penetrates even to dividing soul and spirit, joints and marrow, it judges thoughts and attitudes of the heart.

If you’re a fairly new believer that verse might be a hard one to follow. A glimpse of how it breaks down in my life, is that when I am thinking something that I shouldn’t be thinking, if I can find the right scripture, the conviction from it comes along like a sword and completely cuts off the things that don’t line up with the Lord. It helps me divide right and wrong, separating my soul (flesh) from my spirit.

That’s where the power of memorization comes in. Making sure that even when you are not with your Bible, the Words of God are still inside of you. Scripture that you didn’t even realize you knew can surface at just the right time!

I know, I know…. Your mind is fried already. How can you force in one.more.thing? You’re exhausted. I get it. Me too.  –But check this out.

I attended a prayer class last winter and the speaker brought her guitar and before every session she sang a few songs. Several of which were scripture songs.  Some of them seemed kind of corny but there was still something about them.  Especially the little one that she did on “Greater than He that is in me.” It was just so catchy and I found myself singing it even by accident.

AH-HA YES! Singing!

But not just any singing. Singing worship, praise and scripture! Genius! And isn't memorization easier when there is a rhythm to it, like a song?!

So I googled it.

I must first confess that I am more into folk and blue grass than pop or anything else. I’d also prefer traditional hymns to a full flavor worship song. So, if you don’t like these links please search for yourself scripture and the genre that you prefer. Also know that my search is just getting started!

I’ve been listening to them this week and I believe that they’re already making a difference. I’m not really in any sort of struggle right now but they are SO relaxing. My personal favorite (so far) is found on Spotify by Sherri Youngward. Just search scripture songs. Heck get your Bible and read along. 

Anyway, If you’re new to Spotify, just sign up for the free Basic trial (not premium) and it will stay a free account. Then you can simply search for Scripture Songs.

But if singing and worship is your best weapon in battle and if scripture is the best weapon of your mind…. I’d say that once you marry the two and put them into practice, you might just have a life changing “cocktail”.

Finally, if you just can’t get into Christian music, know that there is hope. I was very much like you. In fact I couldn't listen to the local station in big doses. I cringed. I prayed that God would show me something that I could listen to and he answered. Again, googling different genres helped and so did Spotify. There are even a couple of Christian Coffeehouse stations on there, if you're into the same mellow sounds as I am. Eventually, after a little practice of listening to the songs and even the same local station, I grew to love it. -But I also realized that there was a heart problem. My taste for the music had to be driven by my desire to grow closer to the Lord, not the musicians. -And before I knew it, I was acclimating nicely. **Praise**

If you can only find one song that really moves you for the Lord, I encourage you to wear it out while you are searching for more. When all else fails, make up your own. I am sure Jehoshaphat didn’t have a station, he just “tuned in” from his heart and his mind.

May this be a blessing to you.

P.S. If you've come back to re-read this post, thanks! I had to tweak the end...  :)

Photo Credit: http://thevirtuousgirl.tumblr.com/post/68284264020/colossians-316

Trust in the Lord

Do you ever get to that point where life is just too much? The regular day in and day out has so many tasks on its own. Add to it extracurricular activities, family changes, job changes, sickness, special projects and hobbies and the next thing you know, life starts spilling over... If you are passionate about any of it, or if you are a worrier or a perfectionist, you may easily wear yourself out trying to keep up with it all so that nothing is left undone. You are not alone.

It is so easy for us to take scripture and think that we are doing the Godliest thing by trying to do it all and do our best at every bit of it. I mean after all, cleanliness is Godliness, right? And whatever we do, we should do it will ALL of our heart as if we are working for the Lord, right? We show love by helping others and Godly women [and men] aren't idle are they?

Well... maybe.

This last year has had me on overload as well. The more that things changed, the faster the pendulum of time seemed to pick up momentum. And for some reason the faster it went, the harder I tried to hang on. Until I felt caught between the throws of back and forth and could hold on no longer. The only solution in sight was to quit something. ...Several somethings actually. So I did!

I might touch on all of them another time but the next thing that I knew, I found myself in Target test driving lawn chairs. I am serious when I tell you that I opened every single one to make sure that the one that I bought was a good one. (I highly recommend this, by the way. That is, if you’re looking for lawn chairs.) 

Then I set a goal to stop for at least FIFTEEN minutes, THREE times a week on the way home, BEFORE picking up kids; just so that I could sit and practice waiting. (I mean it, no cell phone, no book and not even really praying. In fact, I try not to even think! I just sit and wait as if I've got all day and I enjoy the view!)

After all, the Bible says that those who wait on the Lord will renew their strength, right? You and I are not meant to be responsible for it all (or to be multi-task-aholics)! While I know that truth, I seem to find myself repeatedly caught up in the “hurry”. Never being bored. Never driving below the speed limit. Never waiting. Period. Everything feels so urgent.

Since I’ve started stopping with the lawn chair, I’ve caught some amazing skies and landscapes (although my smart phone doesn’t do it justice). But do you know what else? The “time out” is working. The “high emotion” is taming. I am able to see a little more clearly. Allowing myself to pause even when there is no real time to do it, is building a deeper pause within.

I’m sure that having such an obvious physical reminder (like a lawn chair) might seem showy or weird. But if you look at our examples in the Bible, Moredecai wore sackcloth and ashes; Jacob built an altar; Joshua laid stones. In fact, even in communion, we partake in bread and wine as a physical acknowledgement of a spiritual change or reminder. Because you and I need that reminder, lest we forget again.

I need to practice sitting in that chair to remind me that I should be letting things go elsewhere too! While I practice sitting longer and how to apply this in every area of my life not just on the side of the road for a few minutes; I am seeing an immediate improvement!

There is a little verse in Proverbs 16:3 that says “Commit to the in the Lord and HE will establish your plans.” The more we run with the plan or list, the more that plan seems to grow. Allowing yourself to stop and sit, displays a trust that the Lord is capable of helping you work this thing out! 

Re-read that last line again.

I didn’t catch that tidbit until I was willing to wait! "Allowing yourself to stop and sit, displays a trust that the Lord is capable of helping you work this thing out!" If that's not convicting enough, consider how that might affect your worship. Sometimes being willing to let go and let God be the one who handles it, might very well be the best form of worship that we can offer. That list or circumstance that is consuming you is not meant to get all of your words and thoughts and attention. BAM! Right?

Your welcome! haha.

Oh and as it turns out "Cleanliness being Godliness" isn't even in the bible... Whew!!!

Have a beautiful day giving it to God this morning! 

~~~~~

Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways submit to him, and HE will make your paths straight. - Proverbs 3:5-6

Tuesday Challenge #27 | Worship

I listened a new preacher this week. Jeff Maness from Element Church. He gave a great sermon on Worship. It is based of the Chapters 17-20 of 2 Chronicles when Jehoshaphat sent his men into battle against the Moabites and Ammonites. I don't want to give his message away but I needed to write the notes down and well what better way to document them than here.

His point was that God doesn't need our worship but we need what God does in our worship!

There are four reasons why:

1. He unites his people.
2. He ushers his presence, meaning that he descends when we lift up.
3. He unveils his promises.
4. He unleashes his power.

Your challenge this week is to listen to the message, read the chapters, consider what area(s) in your life you also need to give over to worship so that God can reign!

This week's verse: God is enthroned on our praises. - Psalm 22:3


Do you have a testimony about this challenge or a suggestion for another one? I'd love to hear it! Comment here!

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Picture Credit [then modified]: Superbwallpapers.com

Tuesday Challenge #4 | Worship

Sometimes in service on Sundays, I think about running up on stage just as worship starts and telling everyone that for this next song they all have to lift their arms and close their eyes. After all, if everyone does it, (and if no one is looking) they might not feel so awkward that first time.

It occurred to me that I have these little challenges so why not challenge you to do it here. I know it's an awkward thing to start. You could poke someone in the eye or knock yourself off balance. And if you close your eyes, you won't see the words to the music. -But if it's an assignment, you kind of have to do it. You can just blame me if there are any injuries. It is only one song...

There are several reasons that people do it but a co-worker once told me that the expression of lifting hands up to God, is like a child asking to be lifted up closer or higher to their mother or father. I love that image. I can't help but think of my children when they were young "Get me. GET ME mama." After all, isn't that what we hope for? -That God sees us; That he wants us; That we might become closer?

So, if you give it a go, don't think about what everyone else might be thinking. Instead focus on being lifted and what that contact might be like. If you can't sing because your eyes are closed, it's all good. Imagine what you'd tell God if you got that close.

Do you have a testimony about this challenge or a suggestion for another one? Comment here!

What's this about? | Other challenges

Picture Credit [then modified]: http://www.superbwallpapers.com/nature/sunrise-over-the-mountains-14501/