The world needs hope right now and the words of this song are just so powerful! Please join in with all of God’s children and sing out loud about the love of God! #HappyEaster #Heisrisen #BecauseHelives
“Because He Lives” by Matt Maher
I believe in the Son
I believe in the risen One
I believe I overcome By the power of His blood
Amen, Amen
I’m alive, I’m alive
Because He lives
Amen, Amen
Let my song join the one that never ends
Because He lives
I was dead in the grave
I was covered in sin and shame
I heard mercy call my name
He rolled the stone away
Amen, Amen
I’m alive, I’m alive
Because He lives
Amen, Amen
Because He lives
I can face tomorrow
Because He lives
Every fear is gone
I know He holds my life my future in His hands
Amen, Amen
I’m alive, I’m alive
Because He lives
Amen, Amen
Were you there when they crucified my Lord?
Were you there when they crucified my Lord?
Were you there when they crucified my Lord?
Sometimes it causes me to tremble, tremble, tremble
Were you there when they crucified my Lord?
Were you there when they nail Him to the tree?
Were you there when they nail Him to the tree?
Were you there when they nail Him to the tree?
Sometimes it causes me to tremble, tremble, tremble
Were you there when they nail Him to the tree?
Were you there when they pierced Him in the side?
Were you there when they pierced Him in the side?
Were you there when they pierced Him in the side?
Sometimes it causes me to tremble, tremble, tremble
Were you there when they pierced Him in the side?
Were you there when the sun refused to shine?
Were you there when the sun refused to shine?
Were you there when the sun refused to shine?
Sometimes it causes me to tremble, tremble, tremble
Were you there when the sun refused to shine?
Were You there when they laid Him in the tomb?
Were You there when they laid Him in the tomb?
Were You there when they laid Him in the tomb?
Sometimes it causes me to tremble, tremble, tremble
Were You there when they laid Him in the tomb?
And just like that, another #ChristmasEve has come and gone. Welcome to our world Lord Jesus! Merry Christmas everyone! Maligayan Pasko! What songs did you sing at church this Christmas Eve?
I am so thankful that a member of the congregation captured this on their phone. I love how the congregation sang in harmony!!! #OHOLYNIGHT#Christmasmusic
I wrote this song a few years ago for my friend who had just graduated from seminary and was ordained for her first call in the ministry of the ELCA in Seattle, Washington. Her favorite hymn is “Be Thou My Vision,” so I created a contemporary reflection on the text of this most beloved hymn. She is also of Japanese descent so I found this chord progression from Japanese pop music.
I always pray to follow God’s vision and not my own, even if/when it may not be what I am comfortable with. Pray, listen and follow the direction that God has for your life because our vision does not allow us to see what God has in store. I hope you like the song and if you do, then please share this post! To God be the glory!
“Take the shackles off my feet so I can dance!
I just want to praise You! I just want to praise You!
You broke the chains now I can lift my hands!
I just want to praise You! I just want to praise You!”
This song by Mary Mary has been one of my all time favorite praise songs since I was in high school! As the years go by, the words have taken an even deeper meaning for me as I had to journey through life’s challenges and valleys.
“Everything that could go wrong
all went wrong at one time
so much pressure fell on me
thought I was gonna lose my mind
but Lord I know You wanna see
if I will hold on through these trials
but I need you to lift this load
cause I can’t take it no more”
We’ve all been there right? When everything thing that could possibly go wrong does. But you know what? Even then, in our darkest hour, God is is with us. Even when we feel alone and abandoned, the Lord is right there beside us.
“Been through the fire and the rain
bound in every kind of way
but God has broken every chain
so let me go right now”
Revelations 2:10 (NIV)Do not be afraid of what you are about to suffer. I tell you, the devil will put some of you in prison to test you, and you will suffer persecution for ten days. Be faithful, even to the point of death, and I will give you life as your victor’s crown.
James 1:2-3 (NIV) Consider it pure joy, my brothers and sisters,whenever you face trials of many kinds,3 because you know that the testing of your faith produces perseverance.
In these past 6 months, I had to leave all that I have ever known because I was not safe there. And the Lord has provided for me and my family beyond what I could ever have imagined. I did not step out in faith. I leapt. I jumped because I had to and the Lord caught me and has kept me safe. This is what it means to trust in the Lord and not rely on your own understanding or knowledge.
Isaiah 55:11 (MSG) “I don’t think the way you think. The way you work isn’t the way I work.” God’s Decree. “For as the sky soars high above earth, so the way I work surpasses the way you work, and the way I think is beyond the way you think. Just as rain and snow descend from the skies and don’t go back until they’ve watered the earth, Doing their work of making things grow and blossom, producing seed for farmers and food for the hungry, So will the words that come out of my mouth not come back empty-handed. They’ll do the work I sent them to do, they’ll complete the assignment I gave them.
So, whoever you are and wherever you are in this life, all that I can say to you, from one child of God to another, is that God is there for you now and forever. Amen.
Gracious and Almighty God, we’re here because, “relying on God has to begin all over again every day as if nothing had yet been done” (C.S. Lewis) and we “receive (our) nourishment by serving the will of the One who sent (us)”(John 4:34). Speak to us. Say something that compels us to hear truth that forces us to stop looking down on others and start looking above ourselves. We’re all sinners. And that’s ok because Grace covers all. So call us out from death and shame and encourage us to step out in faith onto the solid ground of the Living Word of God.
It’s time to release our fears and to be the church; “a community of healing not hiding, embracing not excluding, of life and not death” (Rev. Mike Kinman). “And do this, understanding the present time: The hour has already come for (us) to wake up from (our) slumber, because our salvation is nearer now than when we first believed” (Romans 13:11). We do all of this, in the name of the Living God, Amen.
Lord, invite us into a new journey today, a journey where we can see the parallels and connections to our life and Your Word. Reanimate our faith, and stir in us the desire to be guided by Your truth. Raise our consciousness by building our vision on the strength of Your Word because we were never meant to be self-sufficient. We don’t have it all together. That’s why we’re here. Our limitations are only a reminder on why we need community with You and with each other.
“(You) Lord are close to the brokenhearted. (You) save us when we are crushed in spirit” (Psalm 34:18). Impact how we live, how we lead and how we love so that we “may we be fearless and excited for all the newness that is to come” (Rev. Jon Dephouse).
Lord God, “You are near to all who call on You” (Psalm 145:18). And we will sing of Your love from one generation to the next. (Psalm 89:1). So many memories flood our minds as another year closes and a new one begins. We pray that You would continue to bless us beyond imagination.
Don’t let us stare too long at doors that have been closed, but instead prepare us for the doors that will be opened to us because “we will not find peace by rearranging the circumstances of our lives…” (Eckhart Tolle) We have peace because Love found us right where we are, and God was born as one of us.
Faith tells us that no matter what lies ahead, God is already there. “Love has a name; Jesus. Love has a place; our hearts. Love has a story and it’s not finished yet.” (DAYSTAR)
It is hard to believe that a year has gone by since my church’s 10th anniversary concert last year. This year’s production will focus on reaching out to people beyond the walls of our church building and the confines of our community.
I have been a part-time adjunct faculty member for the Musical Theater department at the local high school for the performing arts for the past 3 years. I work with the most talented students and staff in the district. Two years ago, I was shocked to find out that one of the students that I worked with was homeless. This news forced me to face the reality that this issue affects all of us.
It is easy to say words of faith but it is harder to live by them and to follow the greatest commandment that Jesus gave us “‘Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.’38 This is the first and greatest commandment.39 And the second is like it: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’40 All the Law and the Prophets hang on these two commandments.” (Matthew 22:36-40)
This year our church is joining forces with a local non profit that supports homeless youth because we stand united as one community to eradicate this problem that plagues our city. As the body of Christ, we have to make a difference in the lives of our children and community because no one else will. This life isn’t meant to be routine, and in the blink of an eye everything can change. But the Son of God reveals to us who we are and whose we are because He makes everything new.
It is through our faith in God, God’s word and God’s grace that we know that God so loved us all that God redefined what love is in the life, death and resurrection of His only Son. Love is sacrifice, messy and painful. But in the end love wins.
So as another year passes, I pray that we will all understand that the way in which we live our lives could be the only bible or church that the people around us will ever experience. So I pray that we will all live a life full of the joy and the hope that comes only from an authentic relationship with the Savior who gives us the gifts of His grace, mercy, forgiveness and love. Through Him all things are possible.
odes4hg 