“Shout joyfully to
the LORD, all the earth; Break forth and sing for joy and sing praises.” (Psalm
98:4 NASB)
“He rules the world with truth and grace,
And makes the nations prove
The glories of His righteousness,
And wonders of His love…” (Joy to the Word! Isaac Watts )
As I heard
the clamorous sound, I felt a sick feeling in the pit of my stomach. My heart
began to race as the nauseating realization hit, our then 9-month-old baby
Abigail and just tumbled down our basement stairs in her walker. It was Christmas Eve 1994. It was one of those crazy moments you think
will never happen to you. I was ailing
with the flu, and my pastor husband was trying to watch our three children as
he prepared for the Christmas Eve service.
The ambulance came and found her bruised but not seriously injured. My husband called the assistant pastor, Michael
Saunders, as he prepared to take Abigail to the ER for a precautionary cat
scan.
The enemy of
our souls would have loved to see the Christmas Eve worship service canceled,
but Pastor Michael stepped up to stand in the gap and preached the gospel.
Later that evening when Abigail was home safe in bed, we learned that Covenant
Presbyterian in Hammond, IN, had experienced one of their most special
Christmas Eve services ever.
Worship is
indeed “an act of war against the enemy of our hearts.” (Holley Gerth)
And he will
do anything he can to keep us from it.
However, Jesus Christ gives us the power to stand firm and move forward
in Him.
Feeling oppressed? Worship!
Feeling depressed? Worship!
Struggling with anxiety? Worship!
“Break forth and sing for joy and sing praises!”
“Joy to the world! The Savior reigns
Let men their songs employ
While fields and floods
Rocks, hills, and plains
Repeat the sounding joy
Repeat the sounding joy
Repeat, repeat the sounding joy” (Joy to the Word! Isaac Watts )
What fun
traditions do you have planned for Christmas?
I pray worship is on your list.
Will you “ repeat the sounding joy!” ?
Yes, the
earth has been cursed with an enemy since the fall of man in the Garden of
Eden. He would love no more than to see
the busyness of the holiday stamp out our worship. Don’t allow this to happen!
“No more let sins and sorrows grow
Nor thorns infest the ground
He comes to make
His blessings flow
Far as the curse is found
Far as the curse is found
Far as, far as the curse is found” (Joy to the Word! Isaac Watts )
God spreads
the wonders of His love, and His blessings flow: “far as the curse is found!”
“Far as the
curse is found!”
Contemplate
those words, my friends. They should
indeed cause us to break out in worship…shouting joyfully to the Lord:
“Joy to the world! The Lord is come
Let earth receive her King!
Let every heart prepare Him room
And heaven and nature sing
And heaven and nature sing
And heaven, and heaven and nature sing”
Joy to the World. It isn’t just for Christmas!
Cheryl Lutz is
passionate to teach women how to tear down strongholds and find freedom in
Christ. A pastor’s wife for twenty-five years, Cheryl possesses a vibrant love
for teaching the Word of God. She is the founder of Securely Held, LLC, where
she works as a trained and experienced lay counselor and speaker.
You may contact Cheryl through
her blog at:www.securelyheld.com
On Facebook: www.facebook.com/securelyheld
Twitter: @clutz40
Email: clutz40@gmail.com
