Rise, Shine, and Give God the Glory, Glory!

Church, get up.

Wake up. Return to worship in the waiting.

For too long we’ve let a broken world determine what it is to be blessed… success, health, happiness, little stress and little strife.

But the Lord defines it much differently.

He blesses us with Himself. His Presence. His Power. His Protection and Peace.

No matter the circumstance. No matter what defeating thing happened in the world, no matter what disappointing thing we did—He responds with grace sufficient, mercy abundant. For the hurting world and the weary soul, He makes a renewing and repeating offer of MORE. Forgiveness for our sin. Peace for our anxiety. Clarity for our confusion. Joy for our mourning. Hope for our heart. For that and so much more, He is worthy of worship.

If you are waiting for civil rest, governmental triumph, or a world free of loss or suffering to determine your joy—it will be a life of wanting and waste. Apart from Christ, that day is not coming, but joy could be yours this very day. Light and life? Yours today.

It’s so very easy—see Him rightly, see yourself rightly. Then worship.

I have friends worshipping in ash today. They are praising in loss and suffering—from suicide, from murder, from floods. I have friends worshipping in the most difficult of mission fields, precious people still singing in the rubble of cities ruled by chaos and intimidation, still believing in countries that seek their silence and absence. Every morning, they wake and rise from the dark, needing relief from hours and days, months and years of heaviness.

Still, they are blessed. Hurting and blessed. Struggling and blessed. In need and blessed Waiting and blessed .But, blessed. Because PRESENCE. POWER. PROTECTION. PEACE.

Circumstances may not change, but hearts and minds absolutely do when we remind ourselves of who He is and what He has done. He is everlasting, the God of eternity and modernity. He has not grown tired with age, weary from work, or bored with His children. He is still speaking, still seeing, still saving, and still blessing.

What could possibly keep you from His courts… if the broken and bound are gladly finding their way there?

Sing. Worship. Pray. Dwell on His Word.

This is how we fight our battles. Praise and thanksgiving are our weapons. Victory is certain. Blessing guaranteed… when we worship.