Tag: Worship God

Reasons To Praise The Lord

On By Ed AlgreenIn Answered Prayer, Appreciation, Needs, Praise, Recognize God, WorshipLeave a comment

DATE POSTED Thursday, 2022-08-11
WRITTEN AT: O’Brien, FL

SCRIPTURE FROM: Psalm 104:1; 33-35
TRANSLATION: New Living Translation (NLT)

BIBLE TEXT: 1 Let all that I am praise the Lord. O Lord my God, how great you are! You are robed with honor and majesty.
33 I will sing to the Lord as long as I live. I will praise my God to my last breath!
34 May all my thoughts be pleasing to him, for I rejoice in the Lord.
35 Let all sinners vanish from the face of the earth; let the wicked disappear forever.
Let all that I am praise the Lord.
Praise the Lord!

APPLICATION: As I read through Psalm 104 today, I felt God tugging at my heart about my level of praise to Him versus what I discerned from David’s walk with, and worship of God. My first conclusion was that Satan has put so much in our lives that distract us from God, that if it wasn’t for the church/worship service that some of us schedule into our busy calendars, we may not be disciplined enough to worship our Creator at all. To understand where I am coming from with this wild thought, please take a moment to slowly read through Pslam 104 – just 35 short verses, but try to read it without distractions – just a time with you and God. I saw David spending time outdoors and being blessed by all that he was reminded that his Creator put together to draw him to God. We see expressions and descriptions of clouds, trees, light, the starry skies, wind, mountains, valleys and floods, animals, streams, trees and their branches, grass, plants that produce food, olive trees and the uses of Olive Oil, night and the animals that come alive in the darkness, lions as they sought their prey, dusk with the purpose of drawing attention to a time to shut themselves down for the day, the ocean and how it contains seafood for our tables and provides a base for vessels to move along on. Oh my dear friends, do you see why David had so much to converse with God about and sing endless praises to Him! Now, compare that with the choices you made yesterday! Did you have time to look around and enjoy God’s creation during your commute to work? Did you look for God’s character in your coworkers, or did Satan distract you with their flaws? Did you get outside for lunch, or was that your time to catch up on social media? Did you take time to sit with your family and enjoy an evening meal, or you just couldn’t miss your favorite television show? Did you choose something to watch on TV that helped to draw you to God, or were the other shows much more entertaining? At the end of such a wild and busy day, what were you able to kneel and thank God for that day? Were you able to celebrate and praise Him for His involvement in your life, and the sweet communion you had with Him? Did you deliberately look for, and experience God through something, or someone that He created? I believe that in much the same way that we map out time in our day for our spouse, children, sports, church, school, etc. we must also keep high on our priority list – intimate time with the Lord – time to hear from Him through His written Word; time to talk with Him through prayer; time to praise Him through spending time admiring His handiwork and His provisions for us. Let us learn from the Psalmist and the way he started and ended Pslam 104 ‘Let all that I am, praise the Lord’! Perhaps if we started and ended our day with similar words, we will draw closer to God than we are today!

BLESSING(S) NOTED: Let all that I am praise the Lord! A goal that we could set to change our outlook on every day, while teaching us to fix our eyes on Jesus, the Author and Finisher of our faith!

PRAYER: Lord, I believe You must look at us – Your creation, Your children, and shake Your head while saying to us ‘enough with the excuses. I created you to honor and praise Me, and I pour out my blessings on you every day so that you will force yourself to honor Me with your praises, yet you refuse’. While challenging to imagine a God who reaches a frustration stage with us, I believe You have every reason to. Thank You Lord for Your mercies on me, Your sacrifice for me, Your provisions for me every day, and for Your unconditional love extended to me – even when my earthly friends turn away. You are God, and beside You there is no other. Please Lord, teach us to truly love, sincerely pray, and to worship You with all our heart, soul and mind each and every day. Each day You remember to wake us up and without failing in the least, You provide so much for us to enjoy. The reasons to worship and praise You are unlimited, if we set aside earth’s distractions and concentrate on You. Lord, we love You. Please help us to show that love in meaningful ways today! AMEN!

FOOTNOTE: There are two more pages on my blog that will provide you with additional information, one of them being ‘To Know Jesus’. If you have been challenged to make a decision today after reading this devotional, please click on the above page, or speak with a local Bible Teaching Pastor, or contact me at NuggetsFromGodsWord@outlook.com. Please allow someone to pray with you and give you help and/or encouragement as you begin, or continue your walk with Jesus. Words underlined in my blog might indicate a link to a song that came to mind as I wrote the devotional. Feel free to click on the link and listen as you continue to read or pray. If this devotional was forwarded to you and you would like to see more, please go to Nuggets From God’s Word and read more, or you may freely subscribe for a daily email conveniently containing each day’s devotional. You may also visit me on Spotify and listen to Nuggets while you’re out and about. I would encourage you to find a church home near by your home, and attend as frequently as you could. Get to know God, and allow His people to encourage and strengthen you in your Christian walk, while making every effort to be a blessing to them. God is at work among His people! Please consider growing in your faith, as you worship with fellow believers!

Your Response to a Word From The Lord

On By Ed AlgreenIn Answered Prayer, Appreciation, Needs, Praise, Recognize God, WorshipLeave a comment

DATE WRITTEN: Saturday, 2021-03-20
WRITTEN AT: Avon Park, FL

BIBLE REFERENCE: Exodus 12:26-28
TRANSLATION: Easy-to-Read Version (ERV)

BIBLE TEXT: 26 When your children ask you, ‘Why are we doing this ceremony?’ 27 you will say, ‘This Passover is to honor the Lord, because when we were in Egypt, he passed over the houses of Israel. He killed the Egyptians, but he saved the people in our houses.’” Then the people bowed down and worshiped the Lord. 28 The Lord had given this command to Moses and Aaron, so the Israelites did what the Lord commanded.

OBSERVATION: I believe that most of us will think of our response to a good Sunday morning sermon when we read the theme of this devotional. But for the follower of Christ that reads their Bible daily, you will know that this could actually occur at any time that you are deeply in the Word of God. But regardless of when we receive a word from God, I want us to think deeply and sincerely about what we do with that word. Hang in there as we look deeper into what the Israelites did.

APPLICATION: After church services each week, you might see the pastor standing at the back of the church greeting parishioners as they leave the building. But some pastors don’t do that, because they dread hearing about how he looks, or about how awesome his sermon was for those hypocrites out there. You see, it is very easy to sit and apply the spoken word to others around you, or to your relative that couldn’t be bothered to attend church with you that day. It is easy to make the preacher feel good by praising him up for his fiery sermon, even though you may have napped through most of it. But my friends, whether you read the Word personally, or if you hear a very challenging sermon, it is critical that you recognize that it is the Word of the living God that is being proclaimed. Yes, when the Word is declared it could be especially applicable to the lifestyle and sins of those you know, but know that it is always pronounced in your presence for your good. God has ordained it for you to be in that place at that time for that particular word that is being shared with you. Notice that the Israelites heard the word proclaimed by God’s messengers, Moses and Aaron, and they didn’t bow down before them, but their heads, bodies and hearts bowed before Almighty God for directly sparing their lives at a time that their neighbors were seeing death and destruction in their families. Yes they saw mere men standing before them sharing a word from God, but they knew without a doubt that it was God who sent the word for them, because they had seen His hand at work in their families. Let me encourage you friends: do not go to church this weekend out of habit or because it is scheduled each week, or because of who is teaching or preaching, but go expecting a word from God specifically for you. In our world, God has chosen to give wisdom and knowledge to pastors who will listen intently to Him as they study His Word and then expound on it to small and large congregations. Be like the Israelites, and listen closely to what God has to say to you. Know that He has your pastor in place for a time such as this, for he is God’s messenger with a special word for you. Yes, he is human, and he has flaws just like you and I, but know that God is his judge and not you and I. In the Bible we are told that God uses the foolishness of preaching to speak to His children. So listen to what God has to say to you – even through the mortal man He is delivering it through. Then act on the Word just like the Israelites did. Bow before God and praise Him for His message given just for you, then move on to obey what God has ordered you to do. Your children will probably ask why you are doing what you do each day, each week and on each religious holiday. Try listening to the word of Moses in what he told his countrymen – be ready to explain the mysteries of God.

PRAYER: Oh that we might learn to listen closely to Your word for us, instead of picking Your messenger apart for every misspoken word or for every flaw He might have as a fellow human. Lord, I believe that still today You work in our lives, protecting us from harm like You did with Your people, the Israelites. Please help us to look for and celebrate our blessings each and every day, especially through our worship to You and our praises in thanksgiving for Your goodness. We are truly a blessed people who are honored, protected and guided by an awesome God. All glory to our loving Lord for all Your wondrous works. AMEN!

FOOTNOTE: There are two more pages on my blog at https://NuggetsFromGodsWord.org that will provide you with additional information, one of them being ‘To Know Jesus’. If you have been challenged to make a decision today after reading or listening to this devotional, please go to the above page, or speak with a local Bible Teaching Pastor, or contact me at NuggetsFromGodsWord@outlook.com. Please allow someone to pray with you and give you help and/or encouragement as you begin, or continue your walk with Jesus. If this devotional was forwarded to you and you would like to see more, please go to Nuggets From God’s Word and see all of my posts, or you may freely subscribe for a daily email conveniently containing each day’s devotional. I would encourage you to find a church home near by your home, and attend as frequently as you could. Get to know God, and allow His people to encourage and strengthen you in your Christian walk, while making every effort to be a blessing to them. God is at work among His people! Please consider growing in your faith, as you worship with fellow believers!

Give To God What Belongs To Him

On By Ed AlgreenIn Answered Prayer, Appreciation, Needs, Praise, Recognize God, WorshipLeave a comment

DATE WRITTEN: Friday, 2021-03-19
WRITTEN AT: Avon Park, FL

BIBLE REFERENCE: Matthew 22:18-21
TRANSLATION: The Passion Translation (TPT)

BIBLE TEXT: 18 Jesus knew the malice that was hidden behind their cunning ploy and said, “Why are you testing me, you imposters who think you have all the answers? 19 Show me one of the Roman coins.” So they brought him a silver coin used to pay the tax. 20 “Now, tell me, whose head is on this coin and whose inscription is stamped on it?” 21 “Caesar’s,” they replied. Jesus said, “Precisely, for the coin bears the image of the emperor Caesar.[k] Well, then, you should pay the emperor what is due to the emperor. But because you bear the image of God,[l] give back to God all that belongs to him.”

OBSERVATION: It seems like Jesus was consistently challenged by the Pharisees and the Jews, because His arrival into their world really upset their whole belief system. We may tend to be as challenged as the Pharisees when we are corrected on our evil thoughts and our conniving ways. So let us ask God’s grace as we meditate on this passage today. Are we truly giving to God everything He deserves from us in return for all His gracious blessings towards us each day?

APPLICATION: I once heard a prominent leader challenge his staff in response to a new law that would have a grave impact on his business. He asked, what is the minimum we could do and still be compliant with this new law? Doesn’t that sound much like us when we feel a certain obligation to give of our time or money to the work of the Lord? Isn’t attending church once in a while enough? Do we really need to also attend Bible Study or perhaps help in a children’s class? And don’t challenge me on giving, for the church is very liberal in spending the hordes of money it raises through offerings each Sunday! But for those who get caught up in those things, do you suppose that they ever take time to study the Word of God on either of these subjects? In our Scripture today, the Pharisees were getting really on edge with all that Jesus was teaching. Can’t you imagine the feeling they must have had seeing the crowds gather around this newcomer? Who does He think He is? Why not trap Him into saying something that might get Him arrested and punished from ever teaching again? But just as God knows the thoughts and actions of each reader today, He also knew the same of the Pharisees and the evil they were plotting. Notice that Jesus didn’t argue with them about their misgivings in paying taxes, but instead challenged them to do something for God, after all He loves them unconditionally; He created the means of salvation for them, by sending His only Son as a sacrifice for their sin; He has been patiently awaiting their heartfelt songs of praise and their personal worship of the God that created them and provides for them each and every day. Instead of worrying about the taxes they pay to Caesar, they should be concentrating on the God who cares for them and created them so that they may come to Him with thankful and praiseworthy hearts. What about you, my friend? Would God be happy with all that you devote your time to, or would He also challenge you to consider the Creator of all mankind, more than anything else in this world? Only you can assess that, and even then it may take a provoking thought from your Maker to be truly honest with yourself. I believe our challenge from this passage is still very much like Jesus challenged the Pharisees with: Give to God what belongs to Him – in honest response to everything He has blessed you with.

PRAYER: Lord, I have no doubt that still today we tend to question things with You that are really intended to distract from the main challenges of our life. May we all learn to give You our hearts, our lives and our earthly belongings – including our money, for You were the ultimate giver of life, health and everything that makes up our lives here on earth. There’s no time for distractions, for You alone are worthy of our praise and You deserve our praises. Please challenge us regularly so that we may stay on track and never lose sight of whose we are, and from whom our blessings originated. You deserve it all oh King. Thank You for loving even us – unconditionally! AMEN!

FOOTNOTE: There are two more pages on my blog at https://NuggetsFromGodsWord.org that will provide you with additional information, one of them being ‘To Know Jesus’. If you have been challenged to make a decision today after reading or listening to this devotional, please go to the above page, or speak with a local Bible Teaching Pastor, or contact me at NuggetsFromGodsWord@outlook.com. Please allow someone to pray with you and give you help and/or encouragement as you begin, or continue your walk with Jesus. If this devotional was forwarded to you and you would like to see more, please go to Nuggets From God’s Word and see all of my posts, or you may freely subscribe for a daily email conveniently containing each day’s devotional. I would encourage you to find a church home near by your home, and attend as frequently as you could. Get to know God, and allow His people to encourage and strengthen you in your Christian walk, while making every effort to be a blessing to them. God is at work among His people! Please consider growing in your faith, as you worship with fellow believers!

Hearts and Lips Filled With Praise

On By Ed AlgreenIn Power of Prayer, Praise, Praise-worthy, Prayer, WorshipLeave a comment

DATE WRITTEN: Thursday, 2020-10-01
WRITTEN AT: Okeechobee, FL

Bible Reference: Psalm 63:2-4
Translation: The Voice (VOICE)

Bible Text:  2 I have seen You in Your sanctuary
    and have been awed by Your power and glory.
3 Your steadfast love is better than life itself,
    so my lips will give You all my praise.
4 I will bless You with every breath of my life;
    I will lift up my hands in praise to Your name.

OBSERVATION: David was in the wilderness at the time that he wrote this Psalm. In spite of his loneliness, David was still filled with praise and still looked to God in awe and with thanksgiving. I believe that we have a great lesson to learn from this experience…..

APPLICATION: Generally if the atmosphere is right, the musicians top notch and the praise team in complete harmony, most church attendees would consider that they have been led to worship God. David may have been alone, but he was reflecting on his times with God – in the temple/sanctuary and in his times of prayer and praise. Without the distraction of all this world throws at us, I believe that David had uninterrupted time to reflect on the God of the universe that he was enjoying. Friends, I believe that we have to constantly be reminded that God is everywhere, and our minds could never contain all that we can praise Him for. Don’t you see that God’s people who are filled with worship and praise throughout the week, they will explode into praise by the time their weekend services rolls around? I believe that we must also learn that we don’t need to wait before praising God for His miraculous work in our lives. His Word declares that we are assured only the very moment that we find ourselves in, and nothing more. Furthermore, if someone blesses us in some way, wouldn’t we very quickly thank them and praise them for their kindness? Why then should God be any different? I believe that a sobering thought for us to consider, is that if we need any of the people or things I first mentioned above, to lead us into worship to our Father, then we should ponder if we are we truly worshiping God out of personal appreciation, and recognizing God for who He is to us personally, or are we simply being obedient to the worship leader, or ‘turned on’ by the music? Let’s remember that we have a heavenly Father who loves us more than anything that we could even comprehend (Ephesians 3:19). Can you imagine this means that in spite of our weaknesses or sin or lack of praise, He still loves us any way? Knowing this, and knowing that He has prepared a place for us to spend eternity with Him in glory, why on earth would we be bashful about praising Him for the miracles we see in our own lives and all around us. Wouldn’t it be neat for us to arrive at church early and find someone there praising the Lord – long before the service begins, because their heart is so overfilled with gratefulness? Would it have an influence on friends and coworkers if they knew us for our praise and thankfulness that we express to God everyday? They might begin to think that there is something real about this God we sometime talk about! They might begin to believe that we have a true and intimate relationship with our Lord!

PRAYER: Lord Jesus, thank You for Your faithfulness, and thank You for the hope that we have in You. Please open our hearts and minds to be fully connected to You, so that we will be faithful in our worship and praise of our Savior and Lord! May others be impacted by this and desire to know You personally. May our hearts be so filled with praise and worship that we easily burst forth in praise even at the mention of Your name. AMEN.

FOOTNOTE: There are two more pages on my blog at https://NuggetsFromGodsWord.org that will provide you with additional information, one of them being ‘To Know Jesus’. If you have been challenged to make a decision today after reading or listening to this devotional, please go to the above page, or speak with a local Bible Teaching Pastor, or contact me at NuggetsFromGodsWord@outlook.com. Please allow someone to pray with you and give you help and/or encouragement as you begin, or continue your walk with Jesus. If this devotional was forwarded to you and you would like to see more, please go to Nuggets From God’s Word and see all of my posts, or you may freely subscribe for a daily email conveniently containing each day’s devotional. I would encourage you to find a church home near by your home, and attend as frequently as you could. Get to know God, and allow His people to encourage and strengthen you in your Christian walk, while making every effort to be a blessing to them. God is at work among His people! Please consider growing in your faith, as you worship with fellow believers!

Reasons To Praise God!

On By Ed AlgreenIn Power of Prayer, Praise, Praise-worthy, Prayer, WorshipLeave a comment

Post Date:

 Saturday, 2017-09-30
SCRIPTURE

From:

 Psalm 63:2-4 (Voice)

Text:

  2 I have seen You in Your sanctuary
    and have been awed by Your power and glory.
3 Your steadfast love is better than life itself,
    so my lips will give You all my praise.
4 I will bless You with every breath of my life;
    I will lift up my hands in praise to Your name.
OBSERVATION:
David was in the wilderness at the time that he wrote this Psalm. In spite of his loneliness, David was still filled with praise and still looked to God in awe and with thanksgiving. I believe that we have a great lesson to learn from this experience…..
APPLICATION:
Generally if the atmosphere is right, the musicians top notch and the praise team one in harmony, most church attendees would consider that they have worshiped God, especially during that part of most weekend services. David was reflecting on his times with God – in the temple/sanctuary and in times of prayer and praise. Friends, I believe that we have to constantly be reminded that God is everywhere, and we have things to praise Him for that will often be forgotten by the time our weekend services rolls around. I believe that we must also learn that we don’t need to wait before praising God for His miraculous work in our lives. His Word declares that we are assured only the very moment that we find ourselves in, and nothing more. Furthermore, if someone blesses us in some way, wouldn’t we very quickly thank them and praise them for their kindness? Why then should God be any different? I believe that a sobering thought for us to consider, is that if we need any of the things I first mentioned above, to prompt us to worship our Father, are we truly worshiping God for something personal, or are we simply being obedient to the worship leader, or ‘turned on’ by the music? Let’s remember that we have a heavenly Father who loves us more than anything that we could even comprehend (Ephesians 3:19). Can you imagine this means that in spite of our weaknesses or sin or lack of praise, He loves us way more than we could understand. Knowing this, and knowing that He has prepared a place for us to spend eternity with Him in glory, why on earth would we be bashful about praising Him for the miracles we see in our own lives and all around us. Wouldn’t it be neat for us to arrive at church early and find someone there praising the Lord – long before the service begins, because their heart is so overfilled with gratefulness? Would it have an influence on friends and coworkers if they knew us for our praise and thankfulness that we express to God everyday? They might begin to think that there is something real about this God we sometime talk about!
PRAYER:
Lord Jesus, thank You for Your faithfulness, and thank You for the hope that we have in You. Please open our hearts and minds to be fully connected to You, so that we will be faithful in our worship and praise of our Savior and Lord! May others be impacted by this and desire to know You personally. May our hearts be so filled with praise and worship that we easily burst forth in praise even at the mention of Your name. AMEN.
FOOTNOTE:
There are two more pages on my blog that will provide you with additional information, one of them being ‘To Know Jesus’.  If you have been challenged to make a decision today after reading this devotional, please click on the above page, or speak with a local Bible Teaching Pastor, or contact me at NuggetsFromGodsWord@outlook.com. Please allow someone to pray with you and give you help and/or encouragement as you begin, or continue your walk with Jesus. Words underlined in my blog could indicate a link to a song that came to mind as I wrote the devotional. Feel free to click on the link and listen as you continue to read or pray. If this devotional was forwarded to you and you would like to see more, please go to Nuggets From God’s Word and read more, or you may freely to subscribe for a daily email conveniently containing each day’s devotional. If you are anywhere near the Highlands County, Florida area and do not have a church home, I would be thrilled to welcome you at Bible Fellowship Church, located at 3750 Hammock Rd, Sebring, FL 33872! Click the link to check out service times and/or other special activities. God is at work among us! Please consider coming to worship with us!