PAUSING
Find a quiet place where you can be alone. Take a few seconds or minutes to pause and be still; to breathe deeply, and to re-center any scattered thoughts or desires onto the presence of God.
PRAYING
God of our salvation and restoration, thank You for Your great and beautiful mission int he world. Here I am, Lord, fill me with Your Spirit and send me.
ENCOUNTERING HIS WORD
"Will not the day of the Lord be darkness, not light—
pitch-dark, without a ray of brightness?
“I hate, I despise your religious festivals;
your assemblies are a stench to me.
Even though you bring me burnt offerings and grain offerings,
I will not accept them.
Though you bring choice fellowship offerings,
I will have no regard for them.
Away with the noise of your songs!
I will not listen to the music of your harps.
But let justice roll on like a river,
righteousness like a never-failing stream!"
- Amos 5:20-24
Part 1
"Away with the noise of your songs!" That's jarring for a lot of us who love praise music. What constitutes good praise music that God wants to hear vs. the kinds of songs he can do without?
I know you've been there before. We're singing a song in church and you're not really feeling it. It's not a melody you like, it's too slow, it's too loud, the words don't fit. You wish you could worship with all your mind, body, and soul but this song is just not doing it for you. While we're wrestling with what we like and don't like, we might fail to realize that in that moment, we've become consumers! We might not be doing it on purpose, but we've made worship about me.
In a world where you can create your own worship song playlist and even buy VIP tickets for worship concerts, where does the concept of justice fit in? What are the kinds of worship songs that God desires to hear? What is it that truly brings Him joy?
REFLECTING AND PRAYING
Is there anything you might be engaging in that could come off as noisy to God? Where are the areas of your heart where you are most driven by a desire to consume? How might the Lord be inviting you to adjust or repent?
GODS PROMISE
"He will make your innocence radiate like the dawn, and the justice of your cause will shine like the noonday sun" - Psalm 37:6
Find a quiet place where you can be alone. Take a few seconds or minutes to pause and be still; to breathe deeply, and to re-center any scattered thoughts or desires onto the presence of God.
PRAYING
God of our salvation and restoration, thank You for Your great and beautiful mission int he world. Here I am, Lord, fill me with Your Spirit and send me.
ENCOUNTERING HIS WORD
"Will not the day of the Lord be darkness, not light—
pitch-dark, without a ray of brightness?
“I hate, I despise your religious festivals;
your assemblies are a stench to me.
Even though you bring me burnt offerings and grain offerings,
I will not accept them.
Though you bring choice fellowship offerings,
I will have no regard for them.
Away with the noise of your songs!
I will not listen to the music of your harps.
But let justice roll on like a river,
righteousness like a never-failing stream!"
- Amos 5:20-24
Part 1
"Away with the noise of your songs!" That's jarring for a lot of us who love praise music. What constitutes good praise music that God wants to hear vs. the kinds of songs he can do without?
I know you've been there before. We're singing a song in church and you're not really feeling it. It's not a melody you like, it's too slow, it's too loud, the words don't fit. You wish you could worship with all your mind, body, and soul but this song is just not doing it for you. While we're wrestling with what we like and don't like, we might fail to realize that in that moment, we've become consumers! We might not be doing it on purpose, but we've made worship about me.
In a world where you can create your own worship song playlist and even buy VIP tickets for worship concerts, where does the concept of justice fit in? What are the kinds of worship songs that God desires to hear? What is it that truly brings Him joy?
REFLECTING AND PRAYING
Is there anything you might be engaging in that could come off as noisy to God? Where are the areas of your heart where you are most driven by a desire to consume? How might the Lord be inviting you to adjust or repent?
- Pray that your life be more than noise and consumption; that it would instead be full of action driven by love.
GODS PROMISE
"He will make your innocence radiate like the dawn, and the justice of your cause will shine like the noonday sun" - Psalm 37:6