Natural Praise

Ex 15:2 "The Lord is my strength and song, and He has become my salvation; He is my God, and I will praise Him; My father's God, and I will exalt Him." (NKJV)

I have been blessed for many years in that God has given me the opportunity to help lead our church in worshiping God through music. I am not the most talented guy. I certainly don't have the best voice in the world. But the Lord has surrounded me with a group of people who are very talented and who know what it means to exalt Christ together. It is my privilege to be involved with this group. It is a privilege to help lead Lake Ridge in songs of praise and exaltation.

Moses had a chance to do this. After "the horse and its rider (were) thrown into the sea" he couldn't help it. He had to sing. "I will sing to the Lord, for He has triumphed gloriously!" v1. And he did not do this alone. "Moses and the children of Israel sang this song to the Lord." v1. It was something that was natural. It was something that just came out. Why? Because they realized something. Moses had just encouraged them to not fear. Moses had just encouraged them to stand still and see the salvation of the Lord…and it happened. God let the children of Israel cross the Red Sea on dry ground and when the Egyptians tried to follow, they sucked down a ton of water. Now they realized it wasn't up to their strength. It wasn't up to them to figure out how to fight their battles. "The Lord is my strength…and He has become my salvation." And I will sing. I will praise (make beautiful). I will exalt Him.

Heartfelt, real, honest, genuine praise is what God wants. He doesn't want a show. He doesn't want a concert. He doesn't care about style. He doesn't care about talent. He cares about our hearts. And when my heart grips the reality that God alone is my strength, that God alone is my salvation, that I am helpless and hopeless without Him, but He is there to rescue and save and give power…then it impacts my heart. And that impacts my voice. And that impacts my song. I will praise. I will exalt. I will make His Name great. I will lift Him up above all else.

May that be what I do…may that be what we do every time we stand in front of people with a song to sing.

Confident Leadership

Ex 14:13 "Do not be afraid. Stand still, and see the salvation of the Lord, which He will accomplish for you today."

Fear is a stinky thing. I know that if there is anything that paralyzes me and causes me not to act, it is usually fear. Fear of the unknown. Fear of what might happen. Fear that this is not going to work out. Fear that I might fail. Fear that it will lead to bad news. Fear that this might hurt. The reason I don't take risks, the reason I like to stay in my comfort zone is fear.

I am thinking that the children of Israel were there. They saw the Egyptian army descending on them with nowhere to go. What were they going to do, build a bridge over the Red Sea and escape within a day? No way. They did not see any way out of this dilemma. They were dead. And they were going to die a horrible death in the desert. This is not what they wanted. In fact, this is what they feared. This was not going to work out. This was total failure. This was bad news. This would definitely hurt. They took the risk to leave Egypt and they ran away from any comfort zone that they may have had (even though it was not that comfortable) and they went out into the unknown. And here they were, the Red Sea in front of them and the Egyptian army behind them pursuing them.

And Moses? Moses said: "Do not be afraid." How could he say that? Why was he so confident? Because, even though the people forgot what they had just experienced, even though the people forgot that God had just delivered them in a miraculous way, (how in the world were they going to teach their kids this when they had such short memories?), Moses did not forget. He knew the power of God and that God would not lead them out here to die. He knew that they were going to the land of the Hittites and Amorites and Canaanites. He knew their destiny and realized that nothing stood in their way because it was the Lord who would bring their salvation...on that very day. All the people had to do was watch. All the people had to do was stand still and see what God was going to do.

As I think of Moses in this situation I think of leadership. I think of good leadership. Moses displayed it here. He was confident in his God and went forward in that confidence...not in fear.

I wonder if I can say that about me? As God has given me the opportunity to help lead people, what do they see in me? Confidence or fear? Assurance or hesitance? Moving forward or holding back? I want to be a leader that can say with Moses: "Do not be afraid. Stand still, and see the salvation of the Lord, which He will accomplish for you today."

Pictures

Ex 12: 24 "And you shall observe this thing as an ordinance for you and your sons forever."

This is a continuation of what was emphasized yesterday. All the Dad's in Israel had the responsibility to teach their children. How? By telling them the mighty things that God had done…and through pictures.

This was it. This was the end of Israel's captivity in Egypt. Pharaoh and the people in Egypt were going to personally observe the power of God and they were all going to experience the result of one leader's decisions. It is a shame when a whole nation suffers because of one leader's poor decision making. It is a shame when an entire nation has to bear the burden of one person's disobedience. Kind of makes you pause for a moment. It should result in us begging God to put godly men and women in places of responsibility…in our country, in our businesses, in our homes because Presidents and CEO's and Dad's all have an impact on those who rely upon them.

This is where the Dad's come in. "Observe this thing as an ordinance for you and your sons forever." Observe the Passover. How? During a week of observance. During a week where you do not eat any bread with leaven in it. During a week that begins with a holy meeting and ends with a holy meeting. And when your kids ask you why you do this (v26) you can tell them all about how God rescued Israel by passing over them. The picture you draw for your kids that week will prompt them to ask questions and open doors for teachable moments.

This still goes on today. My boss, who is Jewish, still observes the Passover. He and his family still celebrate for seven days and he does not eat anything that has leaven in it. And his kids know why this is done.

I wonder what I did that allowed my kids to ask questions about my faith? I wonder what pictures I drew for them that caused them to wonder. Communion is a picture. Baptism is a picture. And they understand those pictures because of our teaching and what our church has taught them. Observing Christmas and Easter are pictures as well. I just wonder how effective my artistry was? Can it get better? What can I do where they will still ask questions and my grandkids will ask questions? A natural curiosity about my faith is what I would love to see.

And So On

Ex 10:2 "and that you may tell in the hearing of your son and your son's son the mighty things I have done in Egypt, and My signs which I have done among them, that you may know that I am the Lord."

I am thinking that God is really trying to get something into Moses' brain. Just look at this pattern: "I AM, I will, I am the Lord, I am the Lord, there is no one like the Lord our God, I may show My power…my Name may be declared, I am the Lord."

The unique Name of God. LORD. I AM. And everyone is going to know it. Moses, the Egyptians, Pharaoh, all the earth, and now your children and your children's children. This was not only going to be for Moses' generation. This was going to proceed throughout all generations. From Moses, to Moses' kids, to Moses' kids kids, and so on, and so on, and so on…to this very day and beyond.

And how does it happen? How will the next generation know that "I am the Lord"? Moses had to tell his kids and grandkids. I have to tell my kids and grandkids. This is how it happens. It isn't something that happens automatically. It isn't something that we can just assume will happen. This requires intentionality. It requires planning. It requires opening our mouths and telling our kids and our grandchildren the mighty things that God has done in our lives.

This is really starting to hit me. The need for us to disciple our children and our grandchildren. The need for dads to embrace this responsibility is huge. The thing is, I don't see it happening a lot. I know that as Georgann and I raised our girls, we lived our lives. We opened our mouths. And thank God my wife had a plan. She grabbed resources and used them. And hopefully I was able to build into the girls lives with my love and my words of encouragement (and sometimes correction) and my example. And thank God, He has blessed us with amazing godly women. Yet a plan? An idea of how to go? Intentionality?

The plan is this: Open your mouth. The plan is this: Tell what God has done. Over and over and over again. To multiple generations. For me now, to Maddie and whatever other grandchildren God blesses us with. I need to write out my story so that my kids and my kids kids can see the amazing things that God has done.

Why? So they all may know that God is the Lord.

Glory (cont.)

Ex 9:16 "But indeed for this purpose I have raised you up, that I may show My power in you, and that My name may be declared in all the earth."

What is my purpose on the earth? Ever wonder about that? Why am I here? To make money? To raise a family? To help people? What is my purpose?

God sure had a purpose for Pharaoh. To show His power and that God's Name, I AM, would be declared over all the earth. That is quite a purpose. It seems like it is a purpose that Pharaoh should embrace. It seems like a purpose that anyone should embrace. Pharaoh had a different idea. He was trying to mess up God's plan. He was trying to thwart God's desire. The thing is, Pharaoh did not know that he was not in charge. With all of his conniving, with all of his deception God was still in control of the entire situation. And God was going to reveal His glory throughout the whole earth because of what Pharaoh did. Even in Pharaoh's rebellion, God was going to glorify Himself.

It is hard to understand, but God even uses the rotten things in this world to reveal Himself because, as I wrote yesterday, all of time, all of history, all of His creation, all of the people that God has created are here for one purpose…to show His power, to declare His Name, to reveal His glory. Look at what Paul says: "For by Him all things were created that are in heaven and that are on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or principalities or powers. All things were created through Him and for Him." Col 1:16 God/Jesus has made it all and He has made it all for His own purposes.

So when I look at things like Presidential elections, when I see people who are raised up to positions of leadership, I have to remember that God put those people on the throne for only one thing: So His power will be revealed and so that His Name would be known in all the earth. I shouldn't get all bent out of shape when certain people rise to certain positions because God's plan is being worked out.

And, God made each one of us for that purpose and someday the entire scheme will be revealed and His glory will be over all. Some people know it and some people don't. Some people think they are in control and some people realize that God is orchestrating it all. I really want this to be something that I have in the front of my brain all the time. I really want this to be something that I am reminded about constantly…it is all for His glory, for His power, for His Name. When I do that I can relax as I watch His story (history) unfold.

The Glory of God

Ex 8:10 "Let it be according to your word that you may know that there is no one like the Lord our God."

Pharaoh thought he was a pretty sneaky guy. He would pretend that he was giving in and letting the children of Israel go, but after he was out of the heat of the moment, he would change his mind, harden his heart and go back on his word. God knew this. This guy was not outsmarting God. God knew that Pharaoh was going to keep doing this which would eventually lead to more plagues.

Human nature is really interesting. I know that I think this way as well at times. Once I am out of the woods, once I am out of the heat of the moment, once the threat passes, I go back to my same old ways of living. And this is dumb, because it will eventually lead to more difficulty. This is obviously what happened after 9-11. We turned our faces toward God in the time of desperation and when it passed, we went back to living the same old way we always lived. Talk about history repeating itself. And God knows. This does not take God by surprise. He knows how fickle the human heart is.

And what is the overriding thought that is going through God's mind? "I AM", "I will", "I am the Lord", and "there is no one like the Lord our God." God's glory is paramount. The one thing that everyone, Moses, the children of Israel, the Egyptians and Pharaoh will get out of this experience is this: God alone is the LORD.

And what is the overriding theme throughout all of history? God alone is the LORD. He is the One, the Only. Everything else throughout all of time dwarfs in comparison to who He is. The one thing that we all will get out of our experience is that He is LORD. He is Jehovah. He is I AM. There is no one, and there never will be anyone like Him.

I heard James MacDonald say the other day what the three themes of the Bible are. Now, I was thinking that the overriding theme was the redemption of man through Christ. That is a theme…in fact it is the second theme. But the major theme in the Bible is the glory of God. This world was made for His glory. We were made for His glory. Pharaoh was made for God's glory. All of history is being played out for God's glory…because He is…that is all we need to know…and that should be the theme of my life.

Pharaoh Again

Ex 7:5 "And the Egyptians shall know that I am the Lord…"

What is so different about yesterday's verse and today's verse? Why did this verse jump out at me today? I think it is because in Ex 6, God was impressing on Moses the fact that He was the Lord. He was trying to get into Moses' thick skull that He was the eternally existing One who was in charge of it all.

In chapter 7 this changes. It isn't just Moses who is going to come this realization, it is those who are in opposition. It is those who do not want the children of Israel to leave. It is those who are going to be impacted negatively because of dumb decisions made by their leader, Pharaoh. The Egyptians were eventually going to come to the conclusion that there was one God, one Lord, one Controller of all things…Jehovah… I AM.

This hit me today because as I woke up this morning, the news was blaring in my clock radio. One item on the news was a pastor in New York City who was trying to convince Mayor Blumberg to reinsert prayer in the 9-11 commemoration coming up. How quickly we forget. We have short memories. After 9-11 it seemed like all people could do was pray. They flocked to churches and temples and the National Cathedral to pray. For some reason people's hearts and heads were turned toward God…for a short period of time. Now, we have the 10^th anniversary of this horrible event. And Mayor Blumberg has said that there will be no prayer. No acknowledgement of God. No confession that we are still in need. No admission that we rely on One who is greater than we are. All because of political correctness. All because of this alleged separation of church and state. What it is, is an elimination of all that is spiritual. It is a hostility toward God. It is Pharaoh all over again.

But…Mayor Blumberg does not have the last word. Our President does not have the last word. The Supreme Court does not have the last word. God does and someday everyone, everywhere will "…know that I am the LORD."