​Happy July 1st!  As Americans, we are getting ready to celebrate our nation’s birthday and the freedom upon which it was built.  July 4th is a monumental day is many ways.  However, no human organization is perfect, and we have seen our nation’s shortcomings in many ways these past few months.  Yet the truth is that true freedom is only found in Christ.  We cannot manufacture or guarantee it as a people, government, organization, or movement.  Only Jesus Christ can give it to us.  Therefore, as we celebrate freedom this weekend, I want to bring our attention to the freedom we have in Christ by sharing a worship song on this topic.

​We are at the end of June.  How the time has flown by these last couple of months!  It seems that even with the sheltering and chaos in our world, time keeps marching on at a blinding pace.  But God is still sovereign.  And as we hurtle through time and space—drawing ever nearer to Christ’s return—I have a worship song for us that will remind us of God’s faithfulness and the fact that though our world is changing, our God is the same yesterday, today, and forever.

Welcome to another week on “Here I Am to Worship”! I hope you were able to catch the powerful message I shared with you last week from Passion City Church.  Worship is an important part of our Christian walk.  Therefore, understanding and learning how to do it well is vital to walking in the abundant fullness of God’s intended design.  So I hope you were challenged to offer to God an extravagant, unrestrained response to His goodness in your life through worship. 

This week I’m going to share something a little different.  Instead of introducing you to a new song, I want to share with you a powerful message on worship. We are living in crazy times and deep darkness.  And sometimes, it can be difficult to remember the “why” behind our worship.  It can be difficult to remember to worship in the midst of trial.  However, worship is an important part of our Christian walk.  In fact, it is vital and necessary in order for us to walk in the joy and fullness God has intended for us. Therefore, this message from Passion City Church on “Extravagant Worship” is timely and much needed.

​We’re living in crazy times.  Just when we thought things couldn’t get much worse, they did.  However, in the midst of the crazy, in the middle of the uncertainty and chaos, we have a refuge we can run to.  Proverbs 18:10 assures us that, “The name of the LORD is a strong tower; the righteous man runs into it and is safe.”  Therefore, as we face a season where fear and anger abounds, let us run to our place of safety, the name of the Lord.

​Following along the same vein as last week’s song, today we’re going to focus on a beautiful story song that will rouse our hearts to worship our great Creator and Savior.

​A new week and a new day to celebrate what God has done in our lives.  While it may seem like everything in life has hit pause, God is working in us to shape and refine us.  If anything, He’s doing more work in each of our hearts during this season because we have time to focus on Him.  So don’t be afraid of the extra quiet.  Don’t resent the refining moments as you share close proximity with those you’re sheltering in place with.  Don’t tune out the still, small voice of God as He whispers truth and correction into your heart.  Embrace it, and use this time to grow in the Lord.  

​While many things may seem to be falling apart and on hold, the Church has been growing during this global pandemic in ways that haven’t been seen in years.  While it may seem like the Church is closed since the buildings are mostly empty, God is working through His Church in mighty ways.  As the people of God lean into the Spirit of God and shine brightly during this season, many are coming to the truth.  The Lord is working and moving through His Church, and the gospel is spreading during this time of crisis.  In light of all this, it is appropriate that our worship song for today focuses on the history and purpose of the Body of Christ.

​Welcome to a new month!  May is officially a month of new life and new growth.  Trees are blossoming, flowers are blooming, gardens are being planted, and sunshine basks the landscape.  Birds sing their songs of praise to God and fly about looking for food and fun, while butterflies flutter on the gentle breezes.  It’s a time of freshness and new beginnings.  While for many of us this is a different spring than we could ever have imagined, it can be a season of new beginnings for us too.  This month, we will continue to lift our eyes off our situations and circumstances and fix them on our precious Lord and Savior—the One who knows and holds the future, and the One who sees and knows exactly what we’re going through.  

​During this season of COVID-19, worship has been a big part of keeping believers united and focused on the main thing:  Jesus Christ.  From this extra focus on music, there has arisen several anthems for the Church.  Songs that are resonating deeply in the hearts of people across the country and around the world.  One such song is “Way Maker” which we covered at the beginning of this month.  Now, I want to focus on another song that has become a coronavirus anthem during these days.