- araratchurch
- Jul 21, 2022
- 4 min read
“Then Moses and the children of Israel sang this song to the Lord, and spoke, saying: “I will sing to the Lord, For He has triumphed gloriously! The horse and its rider He has thrown into the sea!”
Exodus 15:1 NKJV
I was about 18 months old when I sang my first solo in church. The song was, “Then I met the Master” (Mosie Lister). Here are the lyrics:
(Verse)
Like a babe when it cries for it's mother. Like a child I was helpless, alone. Then I met the Master. Now I am one of His own.
(Chorus)
For all things were changed when He found me. A new day broke through all around me.
For I met the Master.
Now I belong to Him
(Verse)
Like a blind man who walks in the darkness, I had longed, I had searched for the light.
Then I met the Master. Now I walk no more in the night.
I list the lyrics to this song, first of all, because it describes the awesome miracle of transformation that comes at the revelation of Jesus Christ in the heart of every believer. Also, I list the lyrics because this song is very important to me having marked the beginning of decades of singing for the Lord.
I began to be a regular part of a trio with my sister and brother starting at around seven years of age. I have continued to minister to the Lord—and to His people—in song since that time.
I have sung at times when it took every bit of strength I had to get the notes out. I have sung with tears of sorrow running down my cheeks. I have sung within the context of great stress. But through all of this I have found that the Lord loves it when we sing to Him.
I regret every time that I may have sung from a heart looking away to my own agenda. Our songs to the Lord should have nothing to do with self aggrandizement or come from a heart fixed on anything but the Lord. Our songs to the Lord should come from the overflow of a heart so thankful and overwhelmed with the goodness and faithfulness of God, that words alone do not suffice; the words must take flight on the vehicle of singing.
Did you know that we are actually commanded to sing to the Lord? That’s right, it’s not just for worship leaders. As a matter of fact, whereas the word “sing,” in some form or another, is mentioned around 400 times in the Bible, at least 50 of those times are in the form of a command. Additionally, the longest book in the Bible (Psalms) is a song book. As well, we are instructed to sing psalms, hymns, and spiritual songs, in the New Testament (Ephesians 5:19, Colossians 3:16).
Indeed, Paul and Silas were singing to the Lord when He brought a jailbreak!
“But at midnight Paul and Silas were praying and singing hymns to God, and the prisoners were listening to them. Suddenly there was a great earthquake, so that the foundations of the prison were shaken; and immediately all the doors were opened and everyone’s chains were loosed.”
Acts 16:25-26 NKJV
Today we find Moses singing a wonderful song about the goodness of God as demonstrated in the Red Sea miracle. As a point of interest, this song of Moses is mentioned in the psalms, with portions of it also being quoted elsewhere.
“The waters covered their enemies; There was not one of them left. Then they believed His words; They sang His praise.”
Psalms 106:11-12 NKJV
In the Revelation we see the song of Moses still being sung at the end of days.
“And I saw something like a sea of glass mingled with fire, and those who have the victory over the beast, over his image and over his mark and over the number of his name, standing on the sea of glass, having harps of God. They sing the song of Moses, the servant of God, and the song of the Lamb, saying: “Great and marvelous are Your works, Lord God Almighty! Just and true are Your ways, O King of the saints! Who shall not fear You, O Lord, and glorify Your name? For You alone are holy. For all nations shall come and worship before You, For Your judgments have been manifested.””
Revelation 15:2-4 NKJV
Moses was special to the Lord and I believe that his song set the standard for all songs to the Lord going forward.
You may not feel like singing. You may not think that you’re a very good singer; indeed, you may not be a good singer. But make no mistake, your song matters to the Lord.
Several years back I was struggling with my voice; having sung for so long, I had actually nearly blown out my vocal cords. During this time, I was singing a song that has a line that says, “May I be a sweet, sweet sound in Your ears.” In my heart I said, “Lord, this is not a sweet sound coming out of my mouth.” He clearly spoke to me and said, “You don’t hear what I hear.”
When we sing to the Lord, He hears more than the vibrations that hit an eardrum; He hears our heart. And—in our songs—we speak directly back to His heart. To use another line, from another song: “Now my soul begins to sing out, back to the source from which it came.”
For today let us discover what Moses discovered:
The Lord wants us to sing to Him.
- araratchurch
- Jul 19, 2022
- 4 min read
“Then Moses stretched out his hand over the sea; and the Lord caused the sea to go back by a strong east wind all that night, and made the sea into dry land, and the waters were divided. So the children of Israel went into the midst of the sea on the dry ground, and the waters were a wall to them on their right hand and on their left. And the Egyptians pursued and went after them into the midst of the sea, all Pharaoh’s horses, his chariots, and his horsemen. Then the Lord said to Moses, “Stretch out your hand over the sea, that the waters may come back upon the Egyptians, on their chariots, and on their horsemen.” And Moses stretched out his hand over the sea; and when the morning appeared, the sea returned to its full depth, while the Egyptians were fleeing into it. So the Lord overthrew the Egyptians in the midst of the sea. Then the waters returned and covered the chariots, the horsemen, and all the army of Pharaoh that came into the sea after them. Not so much as one of them remained. Thus Israel saw the great work which the Lord had done in Egypt; so the people feared the Lord, and believed the Lord and His servant Moses.”
Exodus 14:21-23, 26-28, 31 NKJV
The Lord recently brought a well-known Bible story to my mind and revealed in it something I had not seen before. But first the first story:
Jesus had just finished feeding a multitude with the humble lunch of a little boy. In His hands five loaves and two fish was enough to feed over 5000 men (not counting women and children). Immediately after this the Lord sent the disciples on to cross over the sea. However, he stayed to go up on a mountain and pray. When He was finished praying the disciples were already in the middle of the sea, facing an awful storm. Jesus walks out on the water. Seeing Him, they think He is a ghost and become very afraid. He calls out to them, telling them not to be afraid. Now, when Peter hears the Lord, he does something none of the other disciples did:
“And Peter answered Him and said, “Lord, if it is You, command me to come to You on the water.” So He said, “Come.” And when Peter had come down out of the boat, he walked on the water to go to Jesus.”
Matthew 14:28-29 NKJV
Going further in the story we find that—as Peter became distracted by the turbulence of the storm—he began to sink. But Jesus immediately lifted him up. When they got in the boat the storm ceased.
What the Spirit spoke to me concerning the story was that we must notice that the Lord did not choose a day to line the disciples up on the seashore to give them walking-on-the-water lessons. Rather, He allowed a storm to be the context in which He would show them what He could do, giving them the opportunity to follow suit. Also, take note of the fact that the storm immediately ceased when they got in the boat. So, whether or not the Lord commanded a storm on the sea that night, He certainly used it for their good and His glory.
Nobody wants adversity; to say otherwise would be disingenuous. But what if the only way we can come to understand the power of God, and by extension, what that means for us, is to see His power up close and personal? Wouldn’t we then welcome the storm, knowing what would be the outcome?
Oh, but we may not yet know what the outcome will be. But, the ability to look beyond the scary circumstances to focus on the power and faithfulness of our Lord, should come as we walk in communion with Him, trusting (and seeing) that His word is true.
“When you pass through the waters, I will be with you; And through the rivers, they shall not overflow you. When you walk through the fire, you shall not be burned, Nor shall the flame scorch you.”
Isaiah 43:2 NKJV
“For He Himself has said, “I will never leave you nor forsake you.” So we may boldly say: “The Lord is my helper; I will not fear. What can man do to me?””
Hebrews 13:5b-6 NKJV
Today we find Moses facing the Red Sea. Now this predicament was no accident (as we have discussed earlier in our time with Moses). The Lord actually sent them on this particular path. But now—when all hope seems lost—the Lord commands Moses to use his rod to command the waters to part, and they do. Then, when it seemed that the Egyptians were going to be able to use this miraculous event to still be able to apprehend them, the Lord uses Moses to command the water to return to its place. At this point the whole army of Egypt was destroyed in one fell swoop. You see, on that night, the Red Sea was not meant to be the reason the people would be destroyed; rather, it was meant to do a far greater work they couldn’t have even imagined.
For today let us discover what Moses discovered:
The trouble you are facing may not be meant to destroy you, but to empower you.
- araratchurch
- Jul 19, 2022
- 3 min read
“Then they said to Moses, “Because there were no graves in Egypt, have you taken us away to die in the wilderness? Why have you so dealt with us, to bring us up out of Egypt? Is this not the word that we told you in Egypt, saying, ‘Let us alone that we may serve the Egyptians’? For it would have been better for us to serve the Egyptians than that we should die in the wilderness.” And Moses said to the people, “Do not be afraid. Stand still, and see the salvation of the Lord, which He will accomplish for you today. For the Egyptians whom you see today, you shall see again no more forever. The Lord will fight for you, and you shall hold your peace.””
Exodus 14:11-14 NKJV
I remember that in one of the Rocky movies (weren’t there like 20 of those?), in the boxing match, Rocky had taken some bad hits and his eyes were nearly swollen shut. The bell rings and he goes back to his corner. It seems he can’t go on. But his trainer is there encouraging him that he could do it; and sure enough, he did!
Now let’s be real, that Rocky scenario makes a good story line, and it is true that having someone to encourage you when you think you can’t go on, can make all the difference. But what if you go back to the corner and all you’re facing are people telling you that you’re done for?
The fact is that there are times you must encourage yourself! Now I’m not talking some “positive vibes” mumbo jumbo; I’m talking about turning to the Lord by seizing upon His word and letting it be your life raft in a troubled sea.
At one point in time David and his men returned to their homes to find everything they had was taken by the Amalekites; that included their families. The men were so distraught that they actually were going to stone David!
“Now David was greatly distressed, for the people spoke of stoning him, because the soul of all the people was grieved, every man for his sons and his daughters. But David strengthened himself in the Lord his God. Then David said to Abiathar the priest, Ahimelech’s son, “Please bring the ephod here to me.” And Abiathar brought the ephod to David. So David inquired of the Lord, saying, “Shall I pursue this troop? Shall I overtake them?” And He answered him, “Pursue, for you shall surely overtake them and without fail recover all.””
I Samuel 30:6-8 NKJV
Rather than joining in the hysteria, David turned to the Lord and the encouragement that comes from His very presence. Part of the process of that encouragement was seeking the Lord as to what he should do. The Lord instructed him and he did what the Lord said, with great success.
Today we find Moses in a scary predicament (the armies of Pharaoh were pursuing after them), made worse by the fact that the people were freaking out and taking their angst out on him. We find that Moses speaks with confidence concerning the fact that the Lord was going to bring them victory and that they wouldn’t even have to fight in the process. Now imagine if Moses had joined in the hysteria, don’t you think the story might have gone very differently?
Yes, it’s good to have cheerleaders around us. Indeed, the word of God tells us that we need to be encouraging to one another; it is an essential part of our functioning as the body of Christ. However, there are still going to be times when it seems that you are the only one in the room who sees hope and who remembers the word of the Lord.
By the power of the Lord, His presence, and His word, you can be encouraged even when the cheerleaders have already left the stadium.
For today let us discover what Moses discovered:
Sometimes you have to be your own cheerleader.