I led worship with my shoes on tonight.
It was the weirdest thing... I took them off to go get onstage and I felt ... I don't know, I just felt like I should put them back on. So I did. And I went to war.
I had a couple of personal wars to wage tonight, one for a friendship that's a bit on the fritz, and one for my freedom from something with which I am wrestling. But mostly I went to war for our people. We sang a song tonight called "The Lord Is Gracious and Compassionate" and I felt in my soul a conviction that we were not really believing that. So I challenged that, and declared God's Word to be the truth, and asked our people to stand and to go after it - and we sang at the top of our lungs that as far as the east is from the west, that's how far God has removed our transgressions from us.
Do you know how far that is? You can't get there - it's so far, it doesn't exist.... that's where God puts our sin. It's gone. How incredibly freeing is that?!?! Whatever it was that separated you from the Lord today - or whatever tried to - it can't, because it doesn't exist anymore. All our sin is atoned for - it's done, it's finished. He is gracious and compassionate, slow to anger, and rich in love.
I am told that there was a good deal of freedom in the room tonight. I hope so. :) I was rather caught in the haze of battle... but it was good to be there. With my boots on. Going to war.
Check out 2 Chronicles 20:1-30 today, if you get a chance. It's a cool story - and one that I want to meditate on. What drew me to it tonight was the idea that as the musicians went out at the head of the army and sang and praised the LORD, God went to war for His people. And He was so successful that while the army marched to war - when they got there, there was nothing left to do. "You will not have to fight this battle. Take up your positions, stand firm, and see the deliverance the LORD will give you, O Judah and Jerusalem. Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged. Go out to face them tomorrow, and the LORD will be with you." (v. 17)
I took my place tonight, and I am watching now to see His deliverance. Praise the LORD, o my soul; praise the LORD.
1 comment:
the LORD set ambushes against the men of Ammon and Moab and Mount Seir who were invading Judah, and they were defeated. 23 The men of Ammon and Moab rose up against the men from Mount Seir to destroy and annihilate them. After they finished slaughtering the men from Seir, they helped to destroy one another.
You know . . . I would love to have seen what that looked like from Ammon and Moab's POV. What sort ambushes set off this chain of events that caused allies to decide to just slaughter each other?
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