Day 24

Tuesday April 01

1 Praise the LORD.
Praise God in his sanctuary;
praise him in his mighty heavens.
2 Praise him for his acts of power;
praise him for his surpassing greatness …

– Psalm 150:1-6

Some of the most glorious music known to man comes out of the Church and worship –

Handel’s Messiah, choral works by Randall Thompson, the great Christian hymns, gospel songs by Bill and Gloria Gaither and contemporary songs by Phil Wickham. And many others too numerous to mention.

Some of us have been singing these songs all our lives in the Church. Others of us have come to worship later in life and are now discovering this wonderful and powerful music.

Whatever our journey, we told to use our music and songs to praise God.

Yes, not only in Bethel’s beautiful sanctuary but also throughout our community and the world.

We are told to praise Him with the power of our instruments and our voices. This Church is very fortunate to have a large number of talented musicians and singers who are willing to give their time and talents in service to God. These individuals will be first to tell you that whatever talent/skills they possess, that they all come from God.

I once heard the comedian Jackie Gleason make a very interesting comment: he said, “talent is a frustrating thing because you cannot take any credit for it – it’s a gift from God”!

And so it is.

We are to use whatever talent we have to praise Him for “His surpassing greatness” (V. 2)

As we are in the Lenten season and reflecting on our spiritual lives, I encourage you to examine your own gifts for praise. If you play an instrument, great! If you just want to sing, great! The Bethel music community would love for you to join with us to sing and to play to the glory of our God and our risen Saviour!

You WILL be blessed!!

Monday April 07

1 “Shout it aloud, do not hold back.
Raise your voice like a trumpet.
Declare to my people their rebellion
and to the descendants of Jacob their sins …

– Isaiah 58:1-14
Saturday April 05

18 And pray in the Spirit on all occasions with all kinds of prayers and requests. With this in mind, be alert and always keep on praying for all the Lord’s people. 19 Pray also for me, that whenever I speak, words may be given me so that I will fearlessly make known the mystery of the gospel, 20 for which I am an ambassador in chains. Pray that I may declare it fearlessly, as I should.

– Ephesians 6:18-20
Friday April 04

40 “‘But if they will confess their sins and the sins of their ancestors—their unfaithfulness and their hostility toward me, 41 which made me hostile toward them so that I sent them into the land of their enemies—then when their uncircumcised hearts are humbled and they pay for their sin, 42 I will remember my covenant with Jacob and my covenant with Isaac and my covenant with Abraham, and I will remember the land.”

– Leviticus 26:40-42