Joy and Strength (Christian life and music)

Continuing my study of Nehemiah, we learned that he finished the physical labor of building the wall around Jerusalem.  But wait, there's more! Once his work was done, there was the work of maintaining what he had built. Isn't that just like our lives?  We think we have "arrived" in some area, finished a task, only to find that it isn't really over.  And though the building process is difficult and wrought with challenges, maintenance brings its own set of issues. We cannot rest on our laurels, as tempting as it may be.  There is always  some more work to do.   In chapter 8, we read that Ezra read God's Word to God's people.  There was much rejoicing and worshiping.  However, there was also weeping and grieving. It does not say why the Jews were weeping, just that they did so while hearing God's Word read aloud to them. "For all the people had been weeping as they listened to the words of the Law." Nehemiah 8:9 My guess is that they were conv

I came across a reference to this familiar verse this morning in my quiet time.  I then asked the Lord to reveal to me what that means - how to do this in my daily life.  He brought another Scripture to mind: "...for the kingdom of God is not eating and drinking, but righteousness and peace and joy in the Holy Spirit."  Romans 14:17 It really whittles it down very practically. If what I am seeking at any given moment is righteous, keeps me in God's peace, brings me His joy, then I am seeking His Kingdom in that moment! On the other hand, if what I am seeking leads me to idolatry, or anxiety, or any other fleshly thing, then in that moment, I am not  seeking His Kingdom - putting Him first. As Christians, we do both of these on any given day.  Our flesh is constantly waging war against the Spirit. It comes down to choice.  Will we choose  to seek Him first - His righteousness, His peace, His joy - and in so doing enter into His Kingdom right here and how - or will we choos

Day 1 of practicing my songs in obedience to the Lord. I ended up having fun!  This is one that I wrote for the kiddies.  It's chock full of Scriptural truths and Bible characters in a catchy melody. So what I'm re-learning about obedience is this: when I obey God, though what He tells me to do may seem daunting or make no sense, I end up enjoying myself.  There may still be hard work involved, but it becomes filled with God's Presence, which equals joy, because obedience is a form of worship. The minimum time slot I have alloted to practice my song-per-day is 10 minutes.  Since most songs are around three minutes long, that's running through them approximately three times.  I set this time for myself knowing that some days are busier than others, and I may only have ten minutes on a given day. But today is Saturday!  I started practing around 9:30 in the morning.  I played from memory and also checked myself against my sheet music that I self-published.  In this case,

I know this may sound cray cray, but I have not allowed myself to be joyful or happy for whatever reasons.   I could list a long list of problems, and seemingly neverending situations that I wish were different, but Jesus is showing me that His joy is in me 24/7!  Why haven't I allowed myself this treasure!  For the joy set before Him Jesus endured the worst imaginable.  He remembered the joy in His Father's Presence and He was going back to it!!!! Anyway, today is my birthday and I can't stop smiling! Nothing around me has changed much at all. But Jesus' joy inside me is bubbling over with gratitude for life!  This life He decided to create - my life - for His glory and His joy! I was in the habit of seeing only darkness - oy!  The enemy did a number on me. But I believe this will be my new way of operating in life.  JOY JOY JOY!!!! Thank You, sweet Jesus!  I cry once again (i am a cryer!) but now, tears of joy!!! No demon in hell, no circumstance in life, no person or

Waiting.  No one likes it.  I don't care how patient you are, waiting is a pain.   As Christians, we are to wait on God.  We also wait for God.  We wait for Him to answer prayer and not take matters into our own hands (hopefully!).  We wait for Him to reveal truth to us about a situation, to give us His wisdom because we simply don't know the truth as He does. I have been waiting on God for about ten years now to answer a very vital prayer in my life.  He has yet to budge.  Oh maybe a tad, but not completely in the way I expect Him to. "You get what you expect."  No, you don't.  You can "claim" Scripture, believe in "manifesting" answers for yourself, but the truth is, when God is not doing something that only He can do, it ain't happening. Now most would say I have a very strong faith.  And I do.  But when my unanswered prayers cause me pain, disappointment, and heartache, it's like a hammer and chisel taking a chink out of my faith. T

"When life gives you lemons, make lemonade." "Zip-a-dee-doo-dah, zip-a-dee-ay,  My, oh, my, what a wonderful day, Plenty of sunshine headin' my way." If you've lived any length of time, you have figured out by now that all the aphorisms in the world are powerless to really help or change you from the inside out.  It's like putting on a brand new outfit.  It may make you "feel" better for a while because you look better on the outside.  But on the inside, you're still you.   Perhaps past hurts still haunt you.  Perhaps you are addicted to worrying.  Perhaps you've read all the "self-help" books and still, you come up empty. Why can't we just muster ourselves into a better self?  Because that is not how any of us are designed. We are designed for a personal, intimate relationship with our Creator.  And, alleluia, this is possible through Jesus Christ.  We can now come close to God because of Jesus' sacrifice on the cross

We can build all sorts of things in life.   A legacy A family   An empire   A home  A career   A network A fortune Building God's Kingdom is not like building anything else we can build.  Not everything that is God's Kingdom is visible yet.  Also, the Kingdom of God is within you.  So we learn that it is both a physical place yet to be, but also inside our spirits. "For, behold, the kingdom of God is within you."  Luke 17:21 How do you build a spirit?  And how do you measure its progress?  It is not that specific a science.  Only God fully knows each human heart. So building the Kingdom is more than merely "winning souls for Christ," though that is a good thing.  But how do those "won souls" turn out in the end?  Do they go on to grow in Christ as one of His intimates, willing to follow wherever He leads?  Or are they merely good churchgoers, complying on the outside while their inner "house" may be a total wreck? That's why our faith