Joy and Strength (Christian life and music)

  My devotional on Knowing God's Presence is available as an ebook on Amazon.  Download it today and be encouraged!  Keep it open on your Kindle or phone throughout your day and stay close to Jesus always! Download here:   https://a.co/d/2kcy6gl Thank you for supporting the ministry the Lord has given me! Love, Elizabeth

Hot off the press!  My new e-book devotional, "Knowing God's Presence," is available on amazom for only $2.99.  Click here to download:   Knowing God's Presence I promise it will be a blessing to you! Love, Elizabeth

We are ever in God's Presence.  We cannot hide from Him no matter where we go or what we do.  To some, this is a tremendous comfort and grace.  To others, not so much.   Read through Psalm 139 for more encouragement on this subject.   My song reiterates the same sentiment as the Psalm - we are never lost to God's Presence.   

  So I got a bit behind in my "every day" practicing.  I could give you a thousand excuses, but I can't blame "busyness" because we can always make time for what we are called to do, right? Anyway, here's what happened when I sat down to sing my song, "Fill Me, Holy Spirit." As I sang, the Holy Spirit did fill me. I felt His beautiful warmth and Presence, more real than anything you could imagine. I felt His peace flood my soul.   I felt His pleasure. I felt at home. So beautiful.  So faithful and generous of Him to meet me as I sang to Him. Then, at the end, I heard the birds outside my window, which is directly over my keyboard, singing, singing, singing at the top of their little lungs!  They were joining me in praising God, I know it! I guess the takeaway is this:  God told me to practice all of my songs.  I obeyed.  What felt at first like an overwhelming task has actually become a joy!  It lightens my spirit and heart.  It brings me joy. So w

How many of us truly wait on God simply just to get closer to Him?  Usually, our daily to-do lists and other distractions tug so strongly on us that we can't sit still for anyone for too long - even God.  And everything claiming to make our lives easier - technology - has only complicated them and made for the most distracted people ever! What or who has a hold on us?  This is an important question to ask ourselves if we really want to know God more deeply and experientially. Waiting on God brings so many rewards.  We feel His peace.  We experience His love.  We can truly listen to what He is speaking to our hearts.  There is no other relationship like it! And yet when my concerns and worries crowd in, I find myself seeking Him more for His answers, His provision, His deliverance than I do for Him . This can happen when a long-unanswered prayer has been gnawing at us.  Oh we let it go as best we can.  And we persevere in prayer about the matter.  But even this kind of prayer can ca

I asked the Lord why I don't always stay in His Presence, feel it.  He spoke clearly.  "You don't practice it." Right. He went on to tell me that it is not a given.  We don't naturally feel or seek God's Presence - even as Christians.  Because we're still in this flesh! It is a supernatural quest.  It is something we practice. And like anything that I practice, it should become more naturally supernatural(!) with time. I am a classically trained pianist with my Master's Degree in accompanying.  Before completing my degree, I'm guessing I logged in tens of thousands of hours of practice, if you count all the years I'd been at it, since age six.   Yes, I am a natural. It is a gift from God and therefore comes easy to me.  However, I still had to practice  the piano if I wanted to become the best pianist I could be. But I never practiced more than four hours at a time.  Maybe that sounds like a lot to you, maybe not.   I was disciplined about it. 

I once heard that when we are in the Lord’s Presence, there is no want – we have no needs.   It’s all  there  – in Him.   And then – a few weeks later – I actually  experienced  this truth.    I was leading worship for a new Small Group.  After we sang praises to God, there was a powerful silence.  God was among us in a very tangible way.   We simply sat there, unable to speak for what seemed a very long time.  We sat in silence totally comfortable, without any awkwardness.  There was no need for speech.   It felt so  right .  We simply  were .  We ministered to God and let Him minister to us.    It was beautiful.    Then, someone in the group passed around the prayer requests sheet.   AND THIS IS WHEN I KNEW DEEP IN MY SOUL THAT THERE IS NO WANT IN GOD’S PRESENCE.   I could not think of a single prayer request to write.    Mind you, I had MANY very crucial needs during this time in my life.    But in that moment, there was no prayer request to write because I HAD NO WANT. I felt no ne