THE GATEWAY TO WORSHIP

God has two dwellings:

one in heaven, and

the other in a meek

and thankful heart

Izaak Walton

How do we become a lifestyle worshiper? Where is the starting point? Worship begins with saying, "THANK YOU." Psalm 100:4 says, "Enter His gates with thanksgiving ..." In other words, GRATITUDE is the gateway to worship. We enter the gates with thanksgiving, then we cross the courts with praise. Hebrews 12:28 says, "Be thankful, and so worship God acceptably." It all starts with saying THANKS.

"Thank you." Two simple words that can be, at times, oh so difficult to say. THANKFULNESS IS A DISCIPLINE. It is a learned BEHAVIOUR. Giving thanks is a way for us to declare the glory of God. It keeps us in a heart-posture of surrender and humility. It reminds us that our lives are in someone else's hands. THANKFULNESS helps us recall God's wonderful acts of mercy and grace, and to recognize that these very acts are born out of His unchanging nature.

God's actions are demonstrations of His character. He does what He does because of Who He is. He saves because He is the Saviour. He creates because He is the Creator. He heals because He is the Healer ... As we thank God for what he does, we soon begin to worship God for Who He is.

The are 137 verses of Scripture about offering thanks to God. THANKFULNESS is important to Him. It should be important to us. Even worship of heaven as described by John in Revelation includes expressions of thanksgiving:
And the twenty-four elders, who were on their thrones before God, fell on their faces and worshiped God, saying: "We give THANKS to you, Lord God Almighty, the One Who is and was, because you have taken Your great power and have begun to reign." (Revelation 11:16)
If worship in heaven includes THANKSGIVING, so should the worship on earth.

So here is a question that we must prayerfully ask ourselves everyday: Are we thankful? Are our hearts full of gratitude or resentment? Gratitude and resentment cannot co-exist. Resentment is indignation toward God. It takes offense at apparent mistreatment. Resentment is the attitude that I did not get what I deserve - that I have somehow been unfairly injured or mistreated.

Resentment is rooted in pride;
it is watered with tears of self-pity;
it bears the fruit of bitterness;
and it scatters seeds of envy.

The resentful heart cannot say thank you for what it has been given, because it can only look at what it does not have. And therefore, the resentful heart cannot be a place of worship, because thanksgiving is the beginning of worship (Psalm 100:4). In order to be a worshiper, we must learn to say thank you. Even in hard times.

Especially in the hard times. If we have truly surrendered our lives to God, then who are we to say anything but thank you for what comes to us from the Father's hand? As Job said, "Shall we accept good from God, and not trouble?" (Job 2:10). I have walked with the Lord long enough to know that many things I call "trouble" turn out for my good, and many things I perceived to be "good" have proven otherwise. If we truly believe that "In all things God works for the good of those who love Him" (Romans 8:28), then we can say thank you in every joy or sorrow, every success or failure, every gain or loss. It isn't always easy. Sometimes it really is a sacrifice. But it is necessary.

The prophet Jonah, from inside the belly of the fish, said:
"But I, with a song of thanksgiving, will sacrifice to you. What I have vowed I will make good. Salvation comes form the Lord." (Jonah 2:9)
Jonah's sacrifice in the midst of his trial was a simple song of thanksgiving. He said thank you before he was set free. But it was not until Joanh said thank you that God brought about his deliverance

The Apostle Paul wrote, "Give thanks in all circumstances, for this is God's will for you in Christ Jesus" (1 Thessalonians 5:18). God's will is that we give thanks in ALL circumstances

In the Gospel of Luke we read an encounter Jesus had with ten lepers (see Luke 17:12-10). Ten men called out to Jesus. Ten men were healed. Only one of them said thank you - and he was a Samaritan, the least likely of the bunch. Did it matter to Jesus? Yes. He asked, "Where are the other nine?" Apparently, there is a 90% chance that we will forget to say thank you. Surely there is something we can be thankful for today - And yet, how much do we take for granted.

Worship begins with two simple words: Thank you.
(An extract from - The Way of a Worshiper by Buddy Owens)
You may wish to see related blog post - January 16 & 23 - A Deeper Gratitude and Goodbye Grumblings)

Be Thankful! (Colossians 3:15)
TPWC

PRAISE HIM - The Victory You Have In God Over Your Enemy

God Wants Us To Be Victors,

Not Victims ... To Overcome,

Not To Be Overwhelmed

William Arthur Ward

Further to my last few blog posts on the power of praise (Silencing The Enemy, The Enemy Has Been Defeated & Praise - Our Weapon In Spiritual Warfare), may these scriptures enlighten and reinforce the position we already have in Christ when we praise Him:

2 Samuel 22:30 - Praise Him when you can overtake an entire troop
2 Chronicles 20:17 - Praise Him when He fights on your behalf
2 Chronicles 20:21 - Praise Him when you can defeat an overwhelming army by praising God
Romans 8:31 - Praise Him when God is for you and no one can stand against you
Psalm 7:6 & 17 - Praise Him when your enemies rage against you
Psalm 27:2 to 5 - Praise Him when your enemies come against you
Psalm 25:19 - Praise Him when your enemies are many and are very cruel
Psalm 38:19 - Praise Him when your enemies are multiplied and very strong
Psalm 69:4 & 30 - Praise Him when your enemies hate you without cause and you are forced to restore what you did not steal
Psalm 102:8 & 12 - Praise Him when your enemies speak against you all day long (see also Psalm 71:10, 15 & 16)
Lamentations 1:21 - Praise Him when your enemies hear of your trouble and rejoice in your suffering
Lamentations 3:52 - Praise Him when your enemies hunt you down without cause (see also Lamentations 3:55-58)
1Samuel 2:1 - Praise Him when you can smile at your enemies because of His salvation
Psalm 18:1 to 3 & 8 - Praise Him when you are delivered from your enemies (see also 2 Samuel 22;1, Psalm 31:15; 59:1)
Psalm 9:1 to3 - Praise Him when your enemies fall and perish at His presence
Psalm 18:3 - Praise Him when you call on the Lord and are saved from your enemies (see also Psalm 3:48-49)
Psalm 23:5 - Praise Him when He prepares a table for you in the presence of your enemies
Psalm 25:1 to 2 - Praise Him when He will not allow your enemies to triumph over you
Psalm 27:4 to 6 - Praise Him when He lifts your head above your enemies
Psalm 27:11 - Praise Him when He leads you on a smooth path in the face of your enemies
Psalm 41:2 - Praise Him when He stands against the will of your enemies
Psalm 119:98 - Praise Him when He makes you wiser than your enemies through his Word
Psalm 143:9 - Praise Him when He lifts you and gives you light in the face of your enemies
2 kings 17:39 - Praise Him when he delivers you from the hand of all your enemies
Zephaniah 3:14 to 15 - Praise Him when He turns back your enemies
(an extract from Praise Him by Vivien Hibbert)

A wise assessment of our struggles will always include this glorious fact: Almighty God fights on behalf of those who hearts are His. When we look at a problem with a sense of defeat, we are not wise to the reality of God's power or His promise. We must always know who holds victory in His hand, and we must never loose heart - Worship The King by Chris Tiegreen

Have a victorious week! (Romans 8:37)
TPWC

PRAISE - Our Weapon In Spiritual Warfare

Let the high praises of God be in their mouth,
And a two-edged sword in their hand,
To execute vengeance on the nations,
And punishments on the peoples;
To bind their kings with chains,
And their nobles with fetters of iron;
To execute on them the written judgment—
This honor have all His saints.
Praise the LORD!

Psalm 149:6-9 (NKJV)

This particular passage of Scripture shows that praise and spiritual warfare go together. With high praises and the Word of God (a two-edged sword) we have the ability to excute God's vengence, inflict punishment, bind kings, bind nobles and execute judgments.

In spiritual warfare, our enemy is not people. Apostle Paul said that " we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high places" (Ephesians 6:12). We must always keep in mind who our enemy is: the devil.

Further, apostle Paul said that "the weapons of our warfare are not carnal, but mighty through God to the pulling down of storng holds" (2 Corinthians 10:9). You cannot fight a spiritual enemy with natural weapons. We must use spiritual weapons of war to combat our spiritual enemy. Praise is one of those weapons. It is a spiritual weapon of war that binds and breaks the powers of darkness.

Psalm 149:7 - Praise can execute God's vengence. God does take vengence, for He said, "Vengence is mine" (Romans 12:19). God wants to settle the score in all matters and give just recompense to whom is due. The primary target of the vengence is the devil.

Psalm 149:8 - We see that our praise will "bind kings with chains and nobles with fetters of iron." Let's first understand who the kings and nobles are that the psalmist is talking about. I believe them to be the principalities and rulers of darkness. They are the wicked demonic kings that have set up rulership and dominion in geographical locations and in people's lives. The Bible says that our praise binds them with chains and fetters of iron. As we praise the Lord, we immobilize the. We cause them to desist and stop whatever maneuvers, plans or strategies they are attempting to carry out.

Psalm 149:9a - Our praise "execute (s) the judgment written." The NIV version states it this way: "to carry out the sentence written against them." The enemy has already been defeated and the church has already won the victory. Let us arise with praise in our mouths, as we execute His judgment upon the powers of hell.

Psalm 149:9b - "This honor have all the saints." What honor is the psalmist talking about? The honor of executing God's judgment and vengence on the powers of air. Spiritual warfare is not a toilsome thing. It is an honor that God has bestowed upon you and me. It is done with joy in our hearts as we celebrate the victory of our Lord.

Now that we know Praise as our Spiritual Weapon, we should now change the way we view what the devil tries to throw across our paths. When we are confronted by the enemy, we have the privilege one more time of showing the devil who we are in Christ and who he is not. We then lift up our hands, raise our voices in song and dance before the Lord as we acknowledge Him as the mighty man of war who is mighty in battle through us!
(an extract from Silencing The Enemy by Robert Gay)
Have a blessed and victorious week! -TPWC

THE ENEMY HAS BEEN DEFEATED

If Christ Has Not Been Raised,
Your Faith Is Futile,
You Are Still In Your Sins
1 Corinthians 15:17 (NIV)

The resurrection validates everything we believe in - this includes all our praise and worship to our Lord and King. Without it, the Bible is bold enough to say, our faith is worthless. The resurrection also validates our faith in the redeeming work of our High Priest, Who has taken away our sins. It allows us to live with a sense of risk and adventure, because it makes us part of a new order of creation that ultimately cannot fail - our lives are grounded in Someone who reigns in eternal victory - Chris Tiegreen

NO RESURRECTION, NO CHRISTIANITY! - Michael Ramsey

For Paul, this transformation was more than just another event in salvation history. The resurrection of dead and the transformation of believers to immortality meant:

1) The Final Defeat Of Death

"And when this perishable puts on the imperishable and this that was capable of dying puts on freedom from death, then shall be fulfilled the Scripture that says, Death is swallowed up (utterly vanquished forever) in and unto victory. O death, where is your victory? O death, where is your sting? Now sin is the sting of death, and sin exercises its power [upon the soul] through [the abuse of] the Law" - 1 Corinthians 15:54-56 (Amplified)

THE ENEMY HAS BEEN DEFEATED!


Lyric :
The Enemy Has Been Defeated
Death Couldn't Hold You Down
We Gonna Lift Our Voice In Victory
We Gonna Make Your Praises Loud

Shout Unto God With A Voice Of Triumph
Shout Unto God With A Voice Of Praise
Shout Unto God With A Voice Of Triumph
We Lift You Name Up, We Lift Your Name Up

2) A Hymn Of Thanks!

This leads Paul to a moment of praise. For Paul it is very important to remind us that we must give thanks for the greatest gift that could be given: complete victory over death

"But thanks be to God, Who gives us the victory [making us conquerors] through our Lord Jesus Christ. 1 Corinthians 15:57 (Amplified)

3) Final Encouragement

"Therefore, my beloved brethren, be firm (steadfast), immovable, always abounding in the work of the Lord [always being superior, excelling, doing more than enough in the service of the Lord], knowing and being continually aware that your labor in the Lord is not futile [it is never wasted or to no purpose]" 1 Corinthians 15:58 (Amplified).

It is important for Paul that Christians repond to what the have learned through their everyday actions. The experience of the Corinthians had been anything but firm, unmoveable and abounding n the work of the Lord
Some, like a lot of Christians today, accepted the resurrection as a future reality but not as a present dynamic. They forgot what Paul emphasizes un Ephesians 1:19-20 - that the very power that raised Jesus from the dead is the power that is working in those who believe. We can live with that blessing not only in the future physical resurrection but also in the present spiritual one.
SAME POWER THAN CONQUERED THE GRAVE LIVES IN US!


Lyric:
The Same Power That Conquered The Grave
Lives In Me, Lives In Me
Your Love That Rescued The Earth
Lives In Me, Lives In Me

Have A Blessed, Victorious and Glorious Easter!
TPWC

SILENCING THE ENEMY

From the lips of children and infants
you have ordained praise
because of your enemies,
to silence the foe and the avenger

Psalm 8:2 (NIV)

Have you ever wondered why God commands and desires our praise? Is it because He has as ego problem? Is He insecure? Does He need our praise? The answer to all these questions is emphatically NO. God does not need our praise. Scripture records that there are creatures in heaven that do nothing but worship Him day and night (Revelation 4:8)

Why then has God ordained our praise? Psalm 8:2 gives us the answer: "because of our enemies." Some people feel they have done the Lord a great service if they spend thirty minutes worshiping Him. The fact is we do not do Him a favour; we do ourselves a favour and the devil great damage. God has not ordained praise because He needs it, but because we need to praise Him.

Ezekiel refers to Lucifer as "the anointed cherub" (Eziekiel 28:13-14). Lucifer was called to lead all of heaven in worship to the most high God ... but he fell because of PRIDE (Isaiah 14:12-15). Because of a prideful heart, Satan fell from heaven, lost his heavenly anointing and was cast to the earth. (Ezekiel 28:16-18).

The wonderful thing God did was to take what Satan was originally anointed to do and allow us, the body of Christ, to use it as a weapon of warfare to destroy the enemy's plans. Psalm 8:2 says that God has ordained praise because of our enemy, to silence the avenger. The word silence is the Hebrew word "shabath" which means "to cause to fail, to repose, suffer to be lacking, to put down, take away."

As we praise the Lord, we cause the enemy to fail. As we lift our voices to God, we defeat the power of Satan that would bring us into bondage. As we enter into worship, we begin to take back what the enemy has stolen from us.

When you understand this, spiritual warfare is no longer drudgery. That's why Paul could say, "Fight the good fight of faith" (1 Timothy 6:12). It is a good fight when you know your enemy is fleeing in terror. We are not running from our enemy; instead we have him on the run. we are not in a defensive position waiting for him to attack. Rather we take the offensive and go after his kingdom aggressively. We are God's commandoes who go in behind the lines recuing those that are held captive. We use spiritual weapons of war to blow up his communications facilities and destroy his method of operation.

Paul said that "the weapons of our warfare are not carnal, but mighty through God to the pulling down of stronghold" (2 Corinthians 10:9). Praise and worship play an important role in all this because God has ordained our praise to silence him. It is time for the church to arise in this hour and praise the Lord with all it's might. We must become uninhibited in our praise, even as children are (Psalm 8:2 says - "out of the mouth of babes"). Then our weapon of warfare - PRAISE - will be unleashed on the powers of darkness and result in their demise and destruction.

(an extract from - Silencing The Enemy by Robert Gay)

Praise The Lord!

TPWC

WE NEED MINOR KEYS TOO!

"Giving thanks always for all things unto God"
Ephesians 5:20

No matter what the source of the evil, if you are in God and surrounded by Him as by an atmosphere, all evil has to pass through Him before it comes to you. Therefore you can thank God for everything that comes, not for the sin of it, but for what God will bring out of it and through it. May God make our lives thanksgiving and perpetual praise, then He will make everything a blessing.

We once saw a man draw some black dots. We looked and could make nothing of them but an irregular assemblage of black dots. Then he drew a few lines, put in a few rests, then a clef at the beginning, and we saw these black dots were musical notes. On sounding them we were singing,

"Praise God from whom all blessings flow,
Praise Him all creatures here below."

There are many black dots and black spots in our lives, and we cannot understand why they are there or why God permitted them to come. But if we let God come into our lives, and adjust the dots in the proper way, and draw the lines He wants, and separate this from that, and put in the rests at the proper places; out of the black dots and spots in our lives He will make a glorious harmony. Let us not hinder Him in this glorious work! - C. H. P.

"Would we know that the major chords were sweet,
If there were no minor key?
Would the painter's work be fair to our eyes,
Without shade on land or sea?"

"Would we know the meaning of happiness,
Would we feel that the day was bright,
If we'd never known what it was to grieve,
Nor gazed on the dark of night?"

Many men owe the grandeur of their lives to their tremendous difficulties.- C.H.Spurgeon

When the musician presses the black keys on the great organ, the music is as sweet as when he touches the white ones, but to get the capacity of the instrument he must touch them all.- Selected
(An extract from - Streams In The Desert by Mrs. Charles E. Cowan)

Blessed Week
TPWC

PRAISING THE LORD IN TIME OF DARKNESS

"Although the fig tree shall not blossom,

neither shall fruit be in the vines ...

yet I will rejoice in the Lord,

I will joy in the God of my salvation."

Habakkuk 3:17-18

The verse in context shows that there were those who were complaining that God wasn't acting quickly enough. Habakkuk didn't understand either - he had questions and doubts. But though he began with complaint, he ended with rejoicing. Chapter 1:2 (NKJV) says, "O LORD, how long shall I cry,and You will not hear?" But at the end of the book Habakkuk says, "The LORD God is my strength;He will make my feet like deer’s feet,and He will make me walk on my high hills" (3:19 NKJV). He began by complaining and he ended by rejoicing.

What happened between the beginning of the book of Habakkuk and the end? Some might say, "Obviously things must have changed." But did they? Look at chapter 3:17-18 (NKJV):"Although the fig tree shall not blossom, neither shall fruit be in the vines ... yet I will rejoice in the Lord, I will joy in the God of my salvation." The basis of complaining was still there. The very things Habakkuk had complained about - the fig tree wasn't blossoming, there was no fruit, no herd in the stalls - and yet he was rejoicing! He wasn't complaining now. What changed his mind?

We need to see the nature of Habakkuk's complaints:

1) He Complained about God's slowness:
"O Lord, how long shall I cry?" (1:2) Have you ever asked the question: why is God slow? One reason is that God sees the end from the beginning. Knowing how it's going to end up, He is in no hurry. Another reason is that time is on His side. The Bible says, "One day is with the Lord as a thousand years, and a thousand years as one day" (2 Peter 3:8). God is in no hurry. He is patient.

Very often we are glad that God is patient. Aren't there times when we thank Him for being slow to anger and rich in mercy? How would we like it if God stepped in the moment we sinned? The time comes later when we blush and say, "God, I am sorry. I was wrong."
And God says,"I knew you were wrong, but I knew you would eventually see it."
Then we say, "Thank you, Lord, for being so patient with me."

2) Habakkuk complained that God did nothing while injustice thrived:
"Why do You make me look at injustice? Why do you tolerate wrong?" (1:3) For a long time God didn't answer. He was in silent.
But then, at last, God stepped in. He told Habakkuk that He would send an evil nation, the Chaldeans, to destroy His people. There does come a time when God acts. One after another the prophets all hoped to see the coming of the Messiah, and eventually, after hundreds of years the Messiah came. As Paul put it:"When the fulness of time was come, God sent forth His Son, made of a woman, under the law" (Galations 4:4).

In Chapter 2, there were three things that consoled Habakkuk:
a) He could see that God saw what he saw:
The Lord answered him and said, "Write the vision and make it plain on tablets, that he may run who reads it." (2:2 NKJV). What a relief to know that God see!
And that is what God said to Moses: "I have surely seen the affliction of my people" (Exodus 3:7). Nothing is more consoling than to know that God sees.

b) Habakkuk knew that though full intervention might not come as soon as he wanted, it would nevertheless definitely come (2:3). There is an appointed time. Maybe it's a little longer than we want it to be, but wait for it, it will come. That knowledge gave Habakkuk a good feeling.

c) The understanding that God imputes righteousness to the man or woman who lives by God's faithfulness (2:4). There are many things we may not understand and don't know why He haven't stepped in sooner. But we are trusting Him ... We sense that behind the clouds the sun is shinning and God sees us. He says, "I like it when you trust me that way."

At the end of the book of Habakkuk the prophet is a changed man. We see his confidence in the strength of the Lord. (3:17-19). Are you looking for the fig tree to give figs before you can praise the Lord? Are you waiting for everything to fit in before you start praising the Lord? If that is so, then turn in your badge now and give up. As Proverbs 24:10 says,"If you falter in times of trouble, how small is your strength!" Here Habakkuk who still had all these complaints but yet said, "I will rejoice"

Nothing changed outwardly. The basis for Habakkuk's complaints was still there, the injustices were still there. Nothing happened to them, but a lot happened to him. Habakkuk was given grace to trace the rainbow through the rain. Habakkuk saw something we all need to see: that grace will always be there to keep us one step ahead of the enemy. At the beginning when he talked about the Babylonians, he said,"Their horses are swifter than leopards" (1:8), but now he says, "God will make my feet like the feet of a deer." (3:19). Whereas horse can run fast, a deer can climb to places a horse cannot reach. As Moses said, " ...your strength will equal your days." (Deuteronomy 33:25). Things may not get better around us - but a lot can happen to us - and that changes everything!

(An extract from Worshiping God - R.T. Kendall)

Make a choice to praise Him in the midst of the storm! - TPWC

PRAISING UNCONDITIONALLY

Why do we praise God? Do we desire to honour Him and make Him glad? Or do we feel that praise puts God under obligation to grant the earthly longings we bring to Him in prayer? Will God do whatever we ask simply because we praise Him?

God is not a heavenly machine into which we insert the coin of praise, press the right button, and get whatever we want. Nor praise is a magical incantation that forces God to fulfill our wishes. Many of us would not consciously try to manipulate God. But when we praise Him in the midst of a trial, we can be tempted to secretly bargain with Him, feeling in some recess of our heart, "I'm praising You, Lord. Now You owe it to me to work out this situation the way I want."

1) TRUSTING REGARDLESS OF WHAT HAPPENS
True praise imposes no conditions on God. It chooses to believe Him regardless of the situation and its outcome. It accepts the circumstances He has permitted, without insisting that He change them. Such praise begins with the attitude that says, "Father I'm going to keep trusting You even though everything is dark and confusing." As we continue to praise, we reach the place where we can say, "Father, thank You that You are working in me to beautify my character. Change me in anyway You see fit."
One majot purpose of trials is to strengthen our faith and transform our attitudes. Therefore choosing an attitude of trust and praise sometimes ends a trial with surprising speed. But even if it does not, we find ourselves enriched and strengthened to endure.

2) DEMOSTRATE OUR TRUST

Through praise each of us can demostrate trust in God to work in the present as He has in past centuries. In the final chapters of Genesis we see how God brought far-reaching benefits through all the events that had happened to Joseph - the cruel betrayal by his brothers, the agonies of his soul, the slavery, the false accusations, the long years of imprisonment, and the forgetfulness of the butler he had befriended, with the extra years of confinement that resulted.

We read in Psalm 105:17 that God Himself had sent Joseph to Egypt, intending to bring good out of his trials. He used them to prepare this youth to be prime minister of the greatest nation on earth. Through Joseph's trials, God arranged to have him in the right place at the right time to save the lives of hundreds of thousands during severe famine. Joseph's long years of suffering resulted in his own life being saved, as well as his entire family, and through it, the ancestors of Jesus.

Joseph showed his confidence in God's loving sovereignty in Genesis 50:20-21. When his brothers feared retribution, Joseph told them, "You meant evil against me, but God meant it for good in order to bring about this present result, to preseve many people alive. So therefore, do not be afraid." As we offer praise, we show that we believe that Joseph's God is alive and at work today, even in the bleakest of circumstances.

3) A MAJOR STRESS REDUCER

Praise and thanksgiving do not insulate us from problems and pressures. But as we couple them with honest prayer, they do serve as a major stress reducer. They help us from the self-imposed stresses of our negative attitudes, opening our hearts to the soothing power of God's peace, which surpasses all understanding. And they do more than soothe. They also infuse us with vitality. God's Word says, "Strength and joy are in His dwelling place ... The joy of the LORD is your strength." (1 Chronicles 16:27, Nehemiah 8:10)

Praise and thanksgiving usher us into God's presence, where we can partake of His joy and quietly absorb strength, strength for every need - spiritual, emotional, or physical. By helping us view our situation through God-coloured glasses, praise gives our threatening or depressing circumstances a new look. It helps us relax our bungling efforts to change other people so that life will be easier for us. It tunes us in to God's wisdom so that we know when to take wise, loving action and when to simply trust Him to act. We begin to exert a creative, uplifting influence on others, because as we change, people tend to react to us in new ways. Although God does not promise fewer trials if we praise, praise often brings a multitude of external benefits as well as relaxed-yet-invigorated spirit.

Our unconditional praise deepens our trust and joy in God. It increases our spiritual impact on people. These and other benefits come not as our due for praising the Lord but simply as added reasons to praise Him for His undeserved favour. They come not because we manipulate God to do what we want, but because we center our thoughts and expectations in Him.

Our motive in genuine praise is to bring joy and glory to God. we are here to do His will, not to obligate Him to do ours.

(An extract from PRAISE - A Door To God's Presence by Warren & Ruth Myers)

Praise The Lord!

TPWC

The Secret Of Abiding In The Vine

"If you abide in Me, and My words abide in you,

you will ask what you desire,

and it shall be done for you.

By this My Father is glorified,

that you bear much fruit;

so you will be My disciples"

John 15:7-8

"If!" - The great condition to answered prayer and bearing fruit is an abiding RELATIONSHIP with Christ and His words. Abiding is all about the most important FRIENDSHIP of your life. Abiding doesn't measure how much you know about your faith or your Bible. In abiding, you seek, long for, thirst for, wait for, see, know, love, hear, and respond to ... a person. More abiding means more of God in your life, more of Him in your activitives, thoughts and desires.

If our need for this RELATIONSHIP is so deep and constant, why do so few of us fervently pursue it? One of the primary reason is that we don't really believe that God wants to abide with us even more than we want to abide with Him. God's longing for intimacy with His people has never ceased or changed, for this very desire is continually revealed in His Word, and reflected in Paul's passionate prayer,

[For I always pray to] the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory, that He may grant you a spirit of wisdom and revelation [of insight into mysteries and secrets] in the [deep and intimate] knowledge of Him (Ephesians 1:17 - Amplified Bible)

He has made His passion known. God desires every born-again child to know Him deeply and intimately.

The Principles Of Abiding:

When we start with the PERSON of abiding and realize how much He loves us and wants us to share His life with us, we have taken the most important step toward the practice of abiding. Think again about the meeting place of vine and branch. Why would Jesus give us a picture of a living thing whose life force - the sap - is mysteriously out of sight? One reason could be that in abiding, what happens on the surface doesn't count; what happen inside does. Abiding begins with visible spiritual disciplines, such as Bible reading and prayer. Yet it may shock us to find out that we can can do these things for years without abiding. After all, reading a book about a person isn't the same thing as knowing the person who wrote the book. The challenge in abiding is always to break through fom dutiful activities to a living, flourishing RELATIONSHIP with God.

Principle 1: To break through to abiding, we must deepen the quality of our devoted time with God

Devoted time in Biblical sense has to do with setting apart for God. In Psalm 27:4, David expresses his desire for this kind of time with God: "One thing I have desired of the Lord, that will I seek: 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."

Principle 2: To break through to abiding, we must broaden our devoted time - taking it from a morning appointment to an all-day attentiveness to His presence

Brother Lawrence, a seventeenth-century lay Christian who worked in a monastry kitchen, described his practice of abiding in God: "I do nothing else but abide in His holy presence, and I do this by simple attentiveness and habitual, loving turning of my eyes on Him. This I call ... a wordless and secret conversation between the soul and God which no longer ends."

Abiding More And Doing Less - leads us to more results for God. These have to do with the benefits of abiding - what happens to us and through us when we consistently practice it:

1) Abiding helps us to sense the leading of the Lord - We learn to recognize God's "still small voice" (1 Kings 19:12) and become familiar with His ways. Abiding helps us to accomplish more for Him because we are more in tune with His directions

2) Abiding helps us to tap into all of God's spiritual riches - In Acts 4:13 we read, "Now when they saw the boldness of Peter and John and perceived that they were uneducated and untrained men, they marveled. And they realized that they had been with Jesus." When we abide, we are "with Jesus" and are filled with His Spirit and power

3) Abiding gives us the "rest" we need to bear a much greater yield and carries with it promise of answered prayer (John 15:7-8) - The element of dependence is why God is glorified when we bear fruit. If we achieved things for God, we would be glorified, not Him. But our incapability give Him a platform to work in the Spirit. He can work in an insufficient life to much greater honour than He can in a self-sufficient life. Our inabilities can be turned into an act of WORSHIP, if we'll offer them up to His power

Have you learned yet that your abiding on God - your manifest weakness, in fact - is an occasion for His GLORY? Let Him be honoured in you. Learn to abide.

Blessings

TPWC

THE JOY OF THE LORD

"Be joyful always ...

give thanks in all circumstances

for this is God's will for you."

1 Thessalonians 5:16-18

There is a great difference between JOY & HAPPINESS. Joy is the realm of the spirit whereas happiness is related to our emotions and circumstances. When things are going well, we have happiness. It is good to have happiness, but we cannot have it all the time.

To illustrate: If I lost my wallet, I would be very happy when the founder returned it to me. After a few days, I would no longer have the feeling of happiness although my wallet is still with me. What I have actually lost is the feeling of happiness at the time of finding it.

Joy on the other hand, is not dependent on feelings or circumstances. There is only one source of Joy and that is God - God Himself! That is why it is possible to "Rejoice in the Lord always!" In Philippians 4:4-7, Paul actually commands the Philippians to "Rejoice in the Lord always "(verse 4) and they are able to do so because "the Lord is near" (verse 5). You will note that while submitting they are also encouraged to submit their petitions; their prayers include the spirit of thanksgiving. (verse 6) And the resultance is having "the peace of God" (verse 7) in midst of whatever circumstances.

Therefore, when our circumstances cause us nothing but grief, fears, doubts, anger, depression ... we can still rejoice because our joy is not based on fluctuating circumstances, but has it's source in the One Who loves us and is the object of our love. Beloved, if we but exercise our faith and choice to "rejoice in the Lord", in the midst of our adverse circumstances, these negative feelings of grief, fears, doubts anger and depressions will just melt away!

Why It Is Important For A Christian To Have JOY OF THE LORD?

1) The JOY of the Lord is our strength (Nehemiah 8:10)
2) Without it we could have lost the JOY of our salvation. (Psalm 51:12) As a child of God, JOY is our Christian testimony to reflect to the depressed world that in any situation, God is good all the time.
3) A healthy Christian is one that is JOYFUL because he is actively connected to "The Vine and bearing fruits." (John 15:5 & Galatians 5:23)
4) A JOYFUL believer is one that has his prayers answered. (John 16:24)
5) We are commanded to "Rejoice In The Lord Always!" (Philippians 4:4)
6) It is God's will to be JOYFUL! (1 Thessalonians 5:16-18)
7) JOY is one of the key to God's presence! (Psalm 100:4)
8) JOY is the evidence of one who is living in a Victorious Abundant Life. (John 10:10)

Apostle John in 1 John 1:4 - "We write this to make our JOY full."
This verse shows that:

a) We need to read, mediatate and be a doer of the Word so that we do not leak. Some Christians may be walking with either half tank or worst still with an empty tank without JOY! We let the emeny rob (like a thief - John 10:10) us of our JOY through the circumstances and pressures of life. The key to a JOYFUL and abundant life is to stay connected to The Vine (John 15:5). Only then we can "Count it all joy even when we fall into divers trials or testings" (James 1:2) because it is "The Joy of the Lord" which is our strength (Nehemiah 8:10) that will carry us through.

REJOICE!\0/\0/\0/
TPWC

THE PRINCIPLES OF POURING OUT WORSHIP

I tell you the truth, unless a kernel of wheat falls to the ground and dies, it remains only a single seed. But if it dies, it produces many seeds. John 12:24

David discovered God's principle of pouring out in 2 Samuel 23:13-17. Here, in response to an uttered wish by king David for water from the well of Bethlehem, three of his mighty warriors broke through the army of Philistines that surrounded them and obtained that water for him. Yet, instead of drinking it, David poured it out before the Lord; saying, "Is this the blood of the men that went in jeopardy of their lives?" He had a legal right to drink that water, but he realized that there was a higher principle involved than merely drinking it and satisfying himself and his desire, and so he poured it out on the ground before the Lord as an offering.

A similar episode is found in John 12:3, Mary poured out an alabaster box or precious perfume upon Jesus. It was a posture and act of a glorious worship seen in the Bible (PROSKUNEO - to kiss, to knee down in reverence and adoration). WORSHIP IS VERY COSTLY! The alabaster box of purest perfumes part of her entire future. It was a dowry for her to be given to her groom on the day of her marriage. Yet when she poured it upon the Lord, the whole house was filled with the fragrance of the perfume.

What is our motive for going to the house of the Lord? Do we complain, "The Lord did not touch me tonight."? Do we go to ask for blessing or to pour out our worship to the King of kings? There is a difference between going there for Him to please our hearts and going there for us to please His heart. We touch a higher dimension in God when we learn to give up the deepest desires of our hearts and pour them out before the Lord. It does not mean we do not care any more about these desires; in fact we will care more about them than we have ever cared in our lives. But when we touch this principle of pouring out in worship, it will not really matter as long as He receives the glory, and God will accept our offering, turning the barren earth in our hearts into new life.

Abraham knew the meaning of pouring out in worship. When God told him to sacrifice Isaac to Him, Abraham did not bargain but obeyed. He knew God so well that in Genesis 22:5 he could say, "... I and the lad will go younder and WORSHIP and come again to you." As a result of his obedience, Abraham met the God of resurrection (Hebrew 11:17-19), and God promised him He would bless him and multiply his seed. Only that which is offered in death will spring forth in resurrection life.

So was Jesus Christ poured out for us upon the cross of Calvary, "the Lamb that was slain from the creation of the world" (Revelation 13:8). Philippians 2:6-8 tells us of Christ's willingness to be poured out for us. In the same way, there is a realm in God where we are willing not only to pour out but to be poured out, just as stated in John 12:24. If Christ had been willing to pour out His greatest desire but not to be poured out Himself, He would probably have said something like, "Father, I love You too much to leave You" and we would still be lost in sin. But because God was willing to pour out His Son and His Son was willing to be poured out, we have a precedent for any act of pouring out that God might ask of us - our ministry, friends, possessions and desires of our hearts - and become a kernel of wheat that falls into the ground and dies, that it might bear much fruit. (An extract from "On Eagles Wings - by E. Charlotte Baker)

Closing thoughts - Why This Waste?
As we ponder on the story of Mary who broke the alabaster box (John 12:3; Matthew 26:8-9). may I draw your attention to the disciples' indignant remarks ... "Why this waste?"
Waste means giving more than necessary. To Judas and the disciples the waste of money, time and efforts of worship poured out upon the Lord could ahve been channelled for better use. But if the Lord is worthy, then can it be waste? HE IS WORTHY to be worshiped, worthy to be served, worthy for me to be a prisoner and worthy for me to be in ministry ... HE IS WORTHY! Once we see this revelation, what others say about this does not matter anymore
The Lord said, "Do not trouble her". So let us not be troubled. The Lord's approval upon Mary's action lays the principles of pouring out to Him: that in our worship we need to pour all that we have, our self, upon Him. It is not first of all a question of whether "the poor" (Matthew 26:9) have been helped but a question of whether the Lord has been satisfied.

Share with you this awesome song - Pour Out My Love (by Phillips, Craig & Dean). As you worship, lavish your love upon Jesus the lover of our soul on this Valentine Day!

HE IS MOST WORTHY!
TPWC

MARTHA KNOWS HOW - MARY KNOWS HIM (PART 2)

Mary took a pound of ointment of pure liquid nard

[a rare perfume] that was very expensive,

and she poured it on Jesus' feet

and wiped them with her hair.

And the whole house was filled with

the fragrance of the perfume.

John 12:3 (Amplified Bible)

The account of Mary's anointing of our Lord is found also in Matthew 26:6-13 and Mark 14:3-9. But it must not be confused with the account given in Luke 7:36-50, where a former harlot anointed Jesus in the house of simon the Pharisee. Mary was a virtuous woman, and she anointed Jesus in the house of Simon the (former) leper (Mark 14:3). The Luke 7 event took place in Galilee, while the account we are now considering occurred in Judea. The fact that there are two "Simons" involved should not surprise us, for Simon was a common name in that day.

When you combine all three accounts, you learn that Mary anointed both Jesus' head and His feet. It was an act of pure love on her part, for she knew her Lord was about to endure suffering and death. Because she sat at Jesus' feet [A Worshiper] and listened to Him speak, she knew what He was going to do.

In a sense, Mary was showing her devotion to Jesus before it was too late. She was "giving the rose" while He was yet alive, and not bringing them to the funeral! Her act of love and worship was public, spontaneous, sacrificial, lavish, personal, and unembarrassed. Jesus called it "a good work" (Matthew 26:10; Mark 14:6) and both commended her and defended her.

It would have required a year's wages from a common labourer to purchase that ointment. Like David, Mary would not give to the Lord that which cost her nothing (2 Samuel 24:24). Her beautiful act of worship brought a fragrance to the very house in which they were dinning, and the blessing of her deed has spread around the world (Matthew 26:13; Mark14:9). Little did Mary realize that night that her love for Christ would be a blessing to believers around the world for centries to come!

When she came to the feet of Jesus, Mary took place of a slave. When she undid her hair (something Jewish women did not do in public), she humbled herself and laid her glory at His feet (see 1 Corinthians 11:15). Of course, she was misunderstood and criticized; but that is what usually happens when somebody gives her best to the Lord.

What Mary did was a blessing to Jesus and a blessing to her own life. She was also a blessing to the home, filling it with fragrance (see Philippians 4:18); and today, she is a blessing to the church around the world. Her one act of devotion in the little village of Bethany still sends "ripples of blessing."

As we look at this event, we see some "representative people" who are examples for us. Martha represents work as she served the dinner she had prepared for the Lord. This was just as much a "fragrance offering" as was Mary's ointment (see Hebrews 13:16). Mary represents worship, and Lazarus represents witness (John 11:9-11). People went to Bethany just to be able to see this man who had been raised from the dead! Lazarus' miraculous life was an effective witness for Jesus.

Actually, the Christian life ought to be a beautiful balance of worship, work, and witness (in the right order). This event must have brought special encouragement and strength to the Saviour's heart as He faced the demands of that last week before the Cross. we should examine our own hearts and homes to ask whether we are bringing joy to His heart by our worship, work, and witness.
(an extract from Be Alive by Warren W. Wiersbe)
Blessings
TPWC

MARTHA KNOWS HOW - MARY KNOWS HIM (PART 1)

"Lord, don't you care that my sister has left me to do the work by myself? Tell her to help me!" 'Martha, Martha,' the Lord answered, "you are worried and upset about many things, but only one thing is needed. Mary has chosen what is better, and it will not be taken away from her."
Luke 10:38-42 NIV


I would like to approach this passage of scripture in the perspective of a worshiper ...

(1)Martha Served But Mary Sat At The Feet Of Jesus (Luke 10:38-42):
We are all familiar with this one story when Jesus visited the home of the two sisters. Martha came to Him to complain about her sister, Mary. God used the story of two well-known women in the Bible to demonstrate to us the type of relationship He wants with each of us.

I get the image of a house busy with people engaged in numerous conversations around the house. Martha is running about trying to figure out how everybody is going to get fed and coordinating the logistics of cooking for all the people. Somewhere in a secluded corner the Lord Jesus Christ is calmly teaching a handful of people who are intently listening to His every word. Mary is sitting at His feet, very content and very settled.

Martha frantically rushes over to interrupt the intimate gathering. Everyone casually looks up at her as the Lord easily sets the record straight. Feeling compassion for Martha, He reassuringly says, “Martha, Martha … you are worried and upset about many things, but only ONE THING is needed. Mary has chosen what is better, and it will not be taken away from her." After all, if Jesus could feed the 4,000 (Matthew 15:32-39) and the 5,000 (Matthew 14:14-21), then certainly He could handle supper for a house full of people.

Jesus said:
"ONE THING is needed ..." As worshipers, especially if you are in the ministry of worship (i.e worship minister, worship leaders, musicians, singers).

RELATIONSHIP WITH JESUS IS THE FOUNDATION FOR WORSHIP

King David said:
"ONE THING I have desired of the Lord, that will I seek; 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). David's primary occupation was to seek God and His beauty. God declared David to be a man after His own heart (1 Samuel 13:14). Imagine that? Wouldn't you love for God to say that about you? I know I would.

(2)Martha's Emotion vs Mary's Comfort (John 11:32)
In another story about Jesus raising Lazarus from the dead, the two sisters had different reactions to the news that Jesus was coming to see them after their brother Lazarus had died. There are many lessons that Jesus prepared us to see in this whole scenario. Herein we focus on the differences between the two sisters’ approaches to Jesus before He brought Lazarus back to life (kindly read John 11:17-40)

In verse 20 - Jesus was coming
- Martha took off quickly to find Jesus (impatient and anxious)
- Mary stay at home (probably waiting for Jesus)
In verse 25 and 26 - Jesus spoke to Martha but
- Martha did not really hear Jesus(verse 21-22). She was focused on what she had to say to Him. - Mary only went to see Jesus after Jesus called her (verse 28). She went without delay (at the right time).
In Verse 30 - Jesus met Mary in the same place as Martha
- Mary said the same thing as Martha, but unlike Martha complaining to Jesus, Mary worshipped at Jesus' feet(verse 32). Consequently Mary got a different response from Jesus(verse 33).
- Martha had not spent the time in God’s presence (just as in Luke 10) was overcome by her feelings did not believe. Her faith was not at a high level. Even when Jesus was ready to raise Lazarus from the dead, Martha was filled with unbelief(verse 39). Our unbelief can block God's miracles in our lives but, again Jesus lovingly corrected the situation (just as in Luke 10), when He said, “if you believed, you would see the glory of God ” (verse 40).

Both Mary and Martha were believers in the one true God. But, their walk was not the same. Martha knows how ... whereas Mary knows HIM ...

Martha's Syndrome:
Fret & Worry
Complain
Focus on feelings
Anxious
Unbelief

Mary's Solution:
Quiet
Peaceful
Prayerful
At Jesus’ feet
Faith

To be continued next week ... (3) Martha Served While Mary Worshiped (John 12:3)
Blessed week
TPWC

GOODBYE GRUMBLINGS!

He who sacrifices thank offerings honors me,

and he prepares the way so that I may show him

the salvation of God.

Psalm 50:23

Continuing from last week's post on - "A Deeper Gratitude", this week a TPWC's member posted an interesting question on her Facebook's status:"How do we know the will of God for us so that we can be in the centre of it?" There were many enlightening and inspiring answers .....
I gave my input with a perspective of a worshiper and thought it would be good for us to know that the easiest & fastest way to be in the centre of God's will is to walk in the spirit of THANKFULNESS! 1 Thessalonians 5:18 speaks so clearly "IN EVERYTHING GIVE THANKS FOR THIS IS THE WILL OF GOD!"

There is something very powerful and transforming if we dare live a life of walking in the spirit of thankfulness. God's will easily fall in place in everything we do. On the contary we will struggle like the Israelite in the "wilderness of God's will" if we choose a life of complaining, grumbling or murmuring. In 1 Corinthians 10:10-11, the apostle Paul was speaking about the behaviour of the Israelites in their wanderings from Egypt to the Promised Land ... "And don't MURMUR against God and His dealings with you, as some of them did for that is why God sent His Angel (of death) to destroy them. All these happended to them as examples to warn us against doing the same things; they were written down so that we could read about them and learn from them."

In spite of the many miracles God had performed to deliver them from slavery, the Israelites didn't trust God. Everytime something went wrong, they COMPLAINED bitterly and wanted to go back to Egypt. Why did it take them forty years to cover less than two hundred miles? Even with women and children and cattle, they could have covered the distance in a few weeks. They were delayed because they MURMURED and refuse to trust that God would keep His promise to take care of their every need.

So what's wrong with a little complaining? What difference does it make? It does make all the difference in the world. Everything depends on how we respond to the little things in life. A marriage counselor will tell you that a marriage usually breaks up over little things. It takes only a small nail to puncture a tire. A small mistake by a mechanic can cause the crash of a giant airliner. A small misunderstanding can start a war. Little things mean a lot, because this is the level where we live, down at the nitty-gritty of our attitude at breakfast table, or in the long checkout line at the supermarket.
Grumbling comes so easily to all of us that we often don't even realise what we are doing. But grumbling is the very opposite of thanksgiving; a complaint is the opposite of trust; a murmur against your wife when she burns your toast is the opposite of a loving acceptance. The dictionary defines a complaint as an accusation. You know what? By complaining and grumbling you are actually accusing God of mismanaging the details of your life. The attiutde of thanksgiving and praise releases the power of God into our lives, but the attitude of murmuring and complaining blocks that power.

Our compliants and murmurings against God in the little things can keep us from entering into the perfect plan He has for our lives. The cause of the Israelites' murmuring was UNBELIEF, and UNBELIEF is the root of every one of our complaints. Unbelief, like all sin is a deliberate act of rebellion against God. We can choose whether or not to believe. The first step in dealing with any sin is confession ... admitting to the Lord that we are habitual grumblers, and confessing and asking God for forgiveness. Then we make an agreement with God not to grumble and promise instead to thank Him for every little thing that used to make us grumble. In practice, we will find that the Lord will bring into our lives the very kinds of circumstances that used to trigger our grumbling. When we see them coming, we can thank and praise God, because He is using those very incidents to bring about change in us. Once they made us stumlbe; now they will show us God's strength. Accepting every little thing that happens with joy and thanksgiving will release the power of God in and through us.

To be a worshiper, we need to begin disciplining our lives daily with the spirit of thanksgiving. The benefits of a thankful heart are many ... by giving thanks:
- We are in His divine will (1 Thessalonians 5:18)
- We have immediate access into His presence (Psalm 100:4, 16:11)
- The joy of the Lord will be our strength (Nehemiah 8:10)

Rejoice in the Lord, Always! (Philippians 4:4)
TPWC