Tag Archive | Music and Worship

There’s Power in the Name of Jesus!

Feb10

images[5]  musicnote[1] Do you believe in the statement, “There is power in the Name of Jesus”? Have you ever thought about even singing that Name to the Enemy of our souls, who has to flee?

I just read an amazing story that I was unaware of, but it is well documented.  It has to do with the old hymn we all know and sing in our churches, “All Hail the Power of Jesus’ Name.”   The lyrics, written in 1779 by Rev. Edward Perronet, a British minister and close friend of John and Charles Wesley, have been translated into almost every existing language and the song has often been called the “National Anthem of Christendom.”

In the early 1800’s a missionary by the name of Reverend E. P. Scott was living in India attempting to reach the native people for Christ.  At the prompting of the Holy Spirit, but against the advice of his fellow missionaries, he set out alone to visit a remote village, determined to share the Gospel with a dangerous savage tribe.

After a journey of a few days, Scott was met by a large group of warriors who quickly surrounded him, each one pointing a spear towards his heart.  The missionary expected that he would die, so he made a decision to use his last few breaths to glorify God, while hopefully stirring something within the hearts of his captors.  He was a musician who always carried his violin with him, so he took it out, closed his eyes, and began to play and sing “All Hail the Power of Jesus’ Name” in the native language of the warriors.  He fully expected to feel the agony of the spears being plunged into his heart at any second.

Amazingly, after singing the first verse, the second, the third and then beginning the fourth, Rev. Scott realized he was still standing, and that the angry warriors around him had become peacefully quiet!  As he slowly opened his eyes, he saw every spear lowered!  There stood those mighty warriors, with tears in their eyes.   The power of the Name of Jesus had just been demonstrated once again!

The warriors invited Rev. Scott to stay with them!  He lived among them for over two years, sharing the love of God with them and leading many of them to Christ!  The power of just one song sung in a moment of crisis changed the lives of many that day, accomplishing what a hundred sermons may never have been able to do!

The Apostle Paul writes in Philippians 2 9-11, “Therefore God also has highly exalted Him and given Him the name which is above every name, that at the name of Jesus, every knee should bow, of those in heaven, and of those on earth, and of those under the earth, and that every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.”  (NKJV)

There is ultimate power in the Name of Jesus!  I challenge you to speak and sing that Name against the onslaughts of the Enemy in your life, whether it be for a physical, spiritual, financial, emotional or other need in your life. He responds when we call His Name out in prayer and praise….He is ever present to hear and answer us, even when things seem darkest.  I hope you will sing the words of this song in praise to our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ!

All hail the power of Jesus’ Name, let angels prostrate fall;

Bring forth the royal diadem, and crown Him Lord of all;

Bring forth the royal diadem, and crown Him Lord of all.

*****

Ye chosen seed of Israel’s race, ye ransomed from the Fall;

Hail Him who saves you by His grace, and crown Him Lord of all;

Hail Him who saves you by His grace, and crown Him Lord of all.

*****

Let every kindred, every tribe on this terrestrial ball,

To Him all majesty ascribe, and crown Him Lord of all.

To Him all majesty ascribe, and crown Him Lord of all.

*****

O that with yonder sacred throng we at His feet may fall!

We’ll join the everlasting song, and crown Him Lord of all;

We’ll join the everlasting song, and crown Him Lord of all.

A Word About Worship

Jan30

As I was going through some of my old “stuff” the other day (you know, the ever-present need to throw some things away!), I ran across an issue of “The East Texas Christian Monthly” newspaper from January 1996.  I used to do a regular monthly column on worship in it and, sure enough, after thumbing through the pages I found the following which I wrote 18 years ago!  I decided to share it with you as I think it is as relevant today as it was back then.  I hope you will be blessed by it:

A Word About Worship

As I was contemplating what type of New Year’s resolutions to try and make (or better yet, try to keep!), I thought of ways in which my worship times with the Lord could become more meaningful this year.  I know that our quiet times alone with God can mean the difference between being productive in His Kingdom, and never really accomplishing what He intended us to do with our lives.

With this in mind, I wrote down four guidelines that I feel are essential to true worship—things that mean the difference between knowing the Father’s heart and will for us, and just haphazardly wandering through life never knowing God’s perfect will and plan for our lives.  Here are the four guidelines to help in developing a worship time with the Lord:

1.  Be consistent.  Make time each day for worship.  This is not easy to do in our hectic “rat race” type lifestyles, but it can be done if we determine it as a priority in each day.

2.  Make quality time for the Lord.  The quantity, or amount, of time is not as important as the way in which we spend it.  Some days we may be able to sit in His presence for an hour or more, reading the Word, meditating, worshipping, singing to Him, letting Him speak to us, etc.; and then, there may be those days where we have only a few minutes while driving to work or getting ready for our day in which to talk to our Lord and listen to His voice in our hearts.  However, if we are sincere, He will speak to us, and we can commune with Him even while going about our work.  We can catch quiet moments alone with Him that are precious beyond description!

3.  I must realize that to be truly effective in ministry to others, I must first worship privately.  I am only as effective publicly as I have been privately in my worship time.

4.  Be obedient to His voice and the impressions given by the Holy Spirit during my worship times.  We can gain much direction for our lives and ministries through His Word and that “still small voice” speaking to our spirits during these quiet times.  This will often be the beginning of direction from God for the plan He has for us and the way in which He wants to use us in some area of ministry.  Always be sensitive to His leading in this way!

I challenge you to begin to have a quality worship time with God this New Year.  Your Christian life will never be the same!

Hope

Dec10

The word “hope” is often used casually in day-to-day conversation as a word which conveys a desire for something to happen in the future.  Merriam-Webster Dictionary defines it this way, “To cherish a desire with anticipation, to desire with expectation of obtainment, to expect with confidence; trust“.

I would like to share a few words today of how this word “hope” has played a role in my own life!

I was thinking back the other day on my earlier life, particularly my teen-age years…awhile ago!!  I have fond memories of many things, some not so pleasant, some wonderful…but sandwiched in between each memory is a little thing I can only define as “hope”.  What made those years so special and poignant in my mind today is the fact I was looking forward with anticipation and hope to my adult life, where I “hoped” to fulfill all of my dreams and ambitions!  I could hardly wait to get out of school, to begin my career, to get married, to start a family, on and on.  I could see my music career blossom (I hoped!), my handsome husband and adorable children, my gorgeous home, lots of travel, lovely clothes, lots of money to spend, and on and on!  Did all of my hopes materialize?  Well, you probably know from your own life that rarely do things turn out the way you “hoped” they would!  Did that mean I was a failure?  Or did God perhaps have a slightly different plan in mind for my life than I had “hoped” for?

Sure, many of the things I hoped would happen certainly did, but not always in the way I had envisioned. Was my life a success?  “Hopefully” in God’s eyes it has been.  Certainly, in my mind, I have failed to achieve the great dreams of my youth.  However, maybe a far more important goal has been reached; that of being a blessing to even one person who needed to receive a touch from the Lord; encouraging even one person in their walk with God; leading someone to Christ; blessing someone with the gift of music; teaching a young child to play an instrument or sing God’s praises! Did it always involve the big stage or worldwide adulation?  Hardly!  However, God, who is the final judge on success and achievement sees us all on a completely different scale than the world does.  It is by His standards that I hope to someday be judged and hear Him say, “Well done, you good and faithful servant!”

So, how does “hope” play into my life now that I am older and have much of it to look back on? I look to the Psalmist David, who said in Psalm 37:25, “I have been young, and now am old, yet I have not seen the righteous forsaken or his children begging for bread.”  (ESV)  In Psalm 42:5 he says, “Why are you cast down, O my soul, and why are you in turmoil within me?  Hope in God; for I shall again praise Him, my salvation and my God.”  (ESV)

Even as we get older (and we are all on that path!) we should never give up on “hope“, which is really trust in God!  Hope for the future; hope for our nation; hope for our children and grandchildren; hope that the ministry God has destined for us to fulfill will be brought forth in our lifetime; hope for abundance in every area of our lives, spiritual as well as material!  Hopelessness brings despair, which leads to despondency.  At this time of year many people are deeply lonely as the holiday season conjures up old, painful memories.  Some even resort to taking their own lives during this time, listening to Satan’s lies that there is no hope for them and therefore they should end the misery they are feeling.  Some have chronic pain and health concerns in their physical bodies that make them want to give up and “throw in the towel”, so to speak.  Today, I would like to encourage everyone who feels a sense of hopelessness in their lives to look up and let God bring you into joy and victory through His Word and your praise and worship to Him!  Proverbs 10:28 says,, “The hope of the righteous brings joy….”  (ESV) and Paul writes in Romans 12:12, “Rejoice in hope, be patient in tribulation, be constant in prayer.”  (ESV)

Should we lose hope as we grow older and realize that some of our dreams did not transpire and our lives turned out quite differently than we anticipated?  Absolutely not!  We need to continue to hope for the future, realizing that if we had received everything we thought we wanted, our lives would probably be a big mess in many ways!  Our Sovereign God knows best what (and who) we need in our lives, and even as we look backward with fond memories, being careful not to “live in the past”,  we can also look ahead to even better days, days of fulfillment of God’s promises to us, our children and grandchildren, rewarding days filled with the benefits of a life lived for the Lord and confidence achieved through valuable lessons learned!

Perhaps you are waiting on God for the fulfillment of a dream or the ability to carry out the ministry you believe He has called you to!  Perhaps you are waiting for that special someone to love, one who will become your spouse!  Never give up hope….God has a timing for all things as you trust Him!  Just give your circumstances to God and watch Him work as you leave them in His hands!  By way of personal testimony, I became a widow over seven years ago when God called my husband home after he was diagnosed with an inoperable brain tumor.  I really never knew what loneliness was until I was forced to come home to an empty house night after night.  Even though I looked for love and found some romantic relationships during this time, I did not find my “Mr. Right” immediately.  When I had all but given up hope of ever finding my “life’s companion”, God brought my wonderful husband to me and we have been happily married for almost three years now!  He knew just the right person was there for me and He knew the right time for us to meet!  So, never give up hope!

What does all of this have to do with music?  Well, I would start singing songs about “hope” to the Lord….you might start with the old hymn, “The Solid Rock”,  which says,  “My hope is built on nothing less than Jesus’ blood and righteousness!”  Never lose HOPE, and don’t forget that FAITH goes along with hope!!