Hey Everyone!

We pray that the Lord is blessing each of you in your daily walk so that you may help to spread His word and bring blessings and glory to His name by touching others in your lives!

Our demo song, "Up On the Cross" which we uploaded when we joined this site has now been replaced by a studio recorded version. We have been pleased with the feedback receieved thus far on other sites and venues and are excited about the blessings our Father continues to shower down on us as we bring His message through our music! Praise His name! We also invite you now to have a listen to this track in a more polished format! Please feel free to let us know what you think! Thanks and may God bless you all!

Your brothers in Christ!

EF

Every year about this time we hear "Happy Thanksgiving" from friends, loved ones, and even strangers, but what does the word of God say about thanksgiving? Here are a few of the scriptures where thanksgiving is used. Enjoy!

Lev 22:29 And when ye will offer a sacrifice of thanksgiving unto the LORD, offer it at your own will.

Neh 12:46 For in the days of David and Asaph of old there were chief of the singers, and songs of praise and thanksgiving unto God.

Psa 26:7 That I may publish with the voice of thanksgiving, and tell of all thy wondrous works.

Psa 50:14 Offer unto God thanksgiving; and pay thy vows unto the most High:

Psa 69:30 I will praise the name of God with a song, and will magnify him with thanksgiving.

Psa 95:2 Let us come before his presence with thanksgiving, and make a joyful noise unto him with psalms.

Psa 100:4 Enter into his gates with thanksgiving,and into his courts with praise: be thankful unto him, and bless his name.

Psa 147:7 Sing unto the LORD with thanksgiving; sing praise upon the harp unto our God:

Isa 51:3 For the LORD shall comfort Zion: he will comfort all her waste places; and he will make her wilderness like Eden, and her desert like the garden of the LORD; joy and gladness shall be found therein, thanksgiving, and the voice of melody.

Jer 30:19 And out of them shall proceed thanksgiving and the voice of them that make merry: and I will multiply them, and they shall not be few; I will also glorify them, and they shall not be small.

2Co 4:15 For all things are for your sakes, that the abundant grace might through the thanksgiving of many redound to the glory of God.

Phi 4:6 Be careful for nothing; but in every thing by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known unto God.

Col 4:2 Continue in prayer, and watch in the same with thanksgiving;

Rev 7:12 Saying, Amen: Blessing, and glory, and wisdom, and thanksgiving, and honour, and power, and might, be unto our God for ever and ever. Amen.

This list is not all of the scriptures where thanksgiving is used in the word of God. But a closer examination of these scriptures reveal where the true spirit of thanksgiving belongs. This thanksgiving, please take a moment away from the food preparation, the football games, the planned shopping trips for the big sales, and tell our Heavenly Father how thankful we are for His loving grace and for the ultimate gift of salvation He gave us through His Son Jesus Christ! Now THAT is truly what thanksgiving is all about!

Worship


You're at the dinner table with your family. The children are whining about what’s been served to them. The one in the highchair pummels food on the floor. The meal has turned cold... and you feel like you've just about had it!

Then, suddenly, one of the children spontaneously breaks into song. And it’s not just any song, it’s a song to you about how much he loves you! The tune is so simple and the words are sweet, and he sings it just like a lullaby he’s heard you sing to him so often, “I love you mommy, I love you so much, thank you for being my mommy.” Even though his voice is soft, you can hear it above the din of the others. It sounds so good, not because of the quality of his voice, but because of the peacefulness in it.

Now imagine all the children, who have been bickering noisily all this time, suddenly stop. It’s totally silent, they look at each other, and then at you, and then all together they burst into, “We love you mommy, we love you so much, thank you for being our mommy." All of their eyes are focused on your face and they really mean it! How would that make you feel? I know you’re probably wondering what you might have accidentally put in their food, but the grins on their faces, and the twinkle in those little eyes tell you it’s for real.

This is a picture God recently gave me of our worship and what it means to Him. Can you imagine how it makes God feel when we use our unheavenly voices with our limited human language to tell him how we much we adore Him?

Two paths to worship

Worship means two things to me. First, Romans 12:1 comes to mind: “in view of God’s mercy, offer your bodies as living sacrifices, holy and pleasing to God -- this is your spiritual act of worship.” What God really wants is to help us take our everyday, ordinary life -- our sleeping, eating, working-outside-the-home or working-inside-the-home life -- and place it before Him as an offering. Embracing what God does for us is the best thing we can do for Him. That is worship in the broad sense.

Second, worship is the activity of glorifying God in His presence with our voices and hearts. I don’t know about you, but this is one of my favorite ways to worship. I feel as though I can best let Him know how I really feel about Him by singing songs to Him. I also love to watch others sing, especially when they aren't inhibited by the sound of their own “not-so-perfect” voices, or how they look. I am always inspired when I see the same young man down at the front of our church in the first pew week after week. He attends every service in the morning, even though all three are the same. He sings his heart out and he dances around like nobody’s looking. The joy I feel when I watch him probably doesn’t compare to the joy and pleasure God feels.

God delights in you

The amazing truth of Scripture is that God is delighted! When God first made the universe, He looked on all of it with delight, and saw that “it was very good” (Genesis 1:31). God takes special delight in human beings whom He has created and redeemed. I have always treasured the reminder Isaiah has given us, so much, that I had it printed on my wedding invitation:

You shall be a crown of beauty in the hand of the Lord…
you shall be called My delight is in her…
for the Lord delights in you…
as the bridegroom rejoices over the bride, so shall your God rejoice over
you (Isaiah 62:3-5).

The same theme is echoed in this verse that my mom gave me when I was a teenager:

The Lord, your God, is in your midst,
a warrior who gives victory;
he will rejoice over you with gladness,
he will renew you in his love;
he will exult over you with loud singing (Zephaniah 3:17).

We should be encouraged by this truth, for as we love God and praise Him we realize that we are bringing great joy and delight to His heart. And the deepest joy of love is the joy of bringing delight to the heart of the one you love, isn’t it?

We delight in God

The awesome thing about worship is that it goes both ways. Not only does God delight in us, but when we worship God, truly giving Him glory in our hearts and with our voices, we delight in God. He created us not only to glorify Him but also to enjoy Him and delight in His excellence. We probably experience delight in God more fully in worship than in any other activity in this life.

The Psalms became dear to my heart while I was in college. I was away from home for the first time and began experiencing a genuine need for God. My worship of Him became more passionate. David’s feelings echoed my sentiments exactly. The “one thing” that I will seek for above all else is “that I may dwell in the house of the Lord all the days of my life, to behold the beauty of the Lord, and to inquire in his temple” (Psalm 27:4). He also says “In your presence there is fullness of joy, in your right hand are pleasures for evermore” (Psalm 16:11). Another verse that resonates with me is “Whom have I in heaven but you? And there is nothing upon earth that I desire besides you” (Psalm 73:25). And one of my favorite passages which has recently become a popular worship song that I love to sing says:

How lovely is your dwelling place,
O Lord of hosts!
My soul longs, yea, faints
for the courts of the Lord;
My heart and flesh sing for joy
to the living God…
Blessed are those who dwell in your house,
ever singing your praise!…

For a day in your courts is better
than a thousand elsewhere (Psalm 84:1-2, 4, 10).

God likes the sound of your voice

I can’t think of anything other than worshipping God that would make me feel more deeply that I am doing the thing for which I was created. Can you? I especially feel this way when I sing. Even if you don’t like the sound of your own voice, God does, especially when it is being directed to Him! Whether it’s in the car while you sing along to the radio, at church during the congregational singing, or in the shower, God hears us in all the moments of our day. Go ahead and try it! Bring Him delight with a song of love today and you will see how much you can delight in God.

During my illness I have become rather isolated. Having time off work for a time and not encountering the regular contacts that I once had enjoyed daily. I was feeling a bit down. Joy seemed in short supply in my heart. A few doubts about my own walk with God were playing at the edge of my mind. Then God brought a wonderful man in my life, and many new friends. we pray together and read the scriptures together. I was reminded how much we need each other.

Isolation comes at various times in our lives. Sometimes after the birth of a baby, sometimes with a move, with being off work, or sometimes after the death of someone we love or even a relationship change. When these things happen in our lives we can often find an unexpected hardness creeping in at the edges of our heart as we struggle with the change.

Whatever the reason for the subtle heart changes we feel, we need to be aware that God has instructions for us in these times of life.

"Beware then of your own hearts, dear brothers , lest you find that they too are evil and unbelieving and are leading you away from the living God. Encourage each other about these things every day …so that none of you may be hardened by sin's deceitfulness" (Hebrews 4: 12 & 13).

Find someone to encourage you in God's ways regularly. Keep your heart soft. Get comfortable with praying over the phone with a Christian friend. Seek out encouragement and find those who need the encouragement you can give.

Encouragement in the things of God helps keep the ground of your heart tilled up. It helps you guard against unbelief and that subtle deceitfulness that leads us away from the Living God.

Seek out encouragement in God's ways today….both to give and to receive! It is essential and oh so refreshing!

Keep The Change


Romans 12:2 And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, that you may prove what is that good and acceptable and perfect will of God. (NKJV)

A Christian's life should be marked by constant change. No matter what level of discipline, maturity or victory we reach, while living in this sin-cursed world, we will always be far short of being completely Christ-like.

Is this a frustrating "dangle the carrot" situation? Hardly. Far from that, it gives us a truly worthy purpose each day and lays in front of us a lifetime of fulfilling work and a bottomless well of potential personal growth. Knowing that there is beneficial, eternally profitable change that we can make in our life every day, should make each day
an exciting spiritual adventure but in order for that to be your reality, you have to think about "change", understand "why?", and do it with a purpose.

A Christian's life should be identifiable by and marked with:
CHANGE

Of course we could write volumes about what and how to change, so I'll just give you quick list of a few things to think about. Christianity should change you. It should change your attitudes. It should change your behavior. The fact that we are total dependent on God (and thanks heavens we are!) should saturate every aspect of our "person" and begin to change us from the inside out. Here's a few things to consider:

Complaining: what is there to complain about? God has saved you, forgiven you. You have eternal life. Complaints? They only show our lack of understanding and selfishness. You were headed to hell. Now you're headed to eternal life with joy unimaginable. Complain? About what????? (Phil 2:14)

Critical spirit: what do you have to be critical about? The people are you are criticizing are just as helpless as you. Apart from God, you would be just as bad as the worst person. Who are we to criticize anyone when we are totally dependent on God to do one good act? (Rom 12:15)
Patience: we are all equally dependent on God and each have plenty of struggles. We should graciously exercise the same patience with others as God as shown to us. Which one of us would not freely admit that God has been MORE than patient with our feeble attempts and failures? (James 1:4)

Compassion: God chose us, drew us, saved us. We had no hope, facing eternal death and punishment. Every person is in the same predicament. God has shown eternal and undeserved compassion towards us. How much more should we show the same to others? (1Pet 3:8)

Forgiveness: The next time you hold on to unforgiveness for even a moment, remember what God forgave you of… and what he continually forgives you for each day. Be honest. You know… that sin you keep committing over and over. Imagine God's forgiveness being as stingy and grudging as ours. Learn to forgive like God forgives. Quickly, honestly, repeatedly. (Eph 4:32)

Optimism: We should begin to cultivate a practice of seeing the good in others and in our circumstances. Our lives should be marked by seeing God's work and purpose in everything that comes our way, regardless of the nature of the circumstance. (Romans 15:13)

Serving heart: our lives should transform into loving, caring, serving, and preferring others over ourselves. Christ gave up infinitely more for us. In gratitude to our Saviour, our least response should be that of demonstrating Christ in our life by sacrificial service. (Phil 2:4)
Praise & thanksgiving: should not the ultimate gift produce the ultimate "thank you"? (Psalms 149:5)

What are you changing today? God doesn't expect us to be able to change everything all at once, but He does expect us to be working on changing SOMETHING each day.

Lord God, Help us find out what Jesus is like, and change our life to match. In Jesus' Name, Amen.

Contemplation: What are you changing today? Do you REALLY think there is much to change in your life? Do you really want to change it? Do you think you CAN change? If you're friends and family were asked, would they describe you as a person who is trying to change your life constant to become more Godly?

Application: God doesn't expect us to be able to change everything all at once, but He does expect us to be working on changing SOMETHING each day. A Christian's life should be marked by change. A Christian's life should be identifiable by change.

James 1:22 - But be doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving yourselves. (NKJV)

What is the most obvious Bible truth you have learned today?
What change in your life needs tbe made concerning this truth?
What specific thing will you do today to begin that change?