Jesus

A Heart Hungry To Worship

/ taethne

Years ago I published a book, A Heart Hungry to Worship, (available on Amazon) that focused on relating the stories of Biblical characters to people I have encountered in my ministry. For 2024 I would like to upload a chapter at a time to encourage people. Below is the introduction from the book.

 It is in the process of being worshipped that God communicates His presence to men.[1]

Introduction

            God created each of us with an innate desire to worship Him. You would think, then, that it should come naturally to us. Yet millions have no knowledge of who God is, so worshipping Him is impossible. Millions more are confused as to how to find Him or how to approach Him when He is found. Still others are convinced that even if they met God He would not accept worship from them. They feel so unworthy they cannot believe He would want any kind of relationship with them.

You will meet some of these people in this book. These are people like you and I, struggling to make sense of this world, convinced there is something more than what we are experiencing. People hoping against hope that someday they will have a relationship with a God they desperately want to love them, a God they crave to worship. People like Maggie, Sheila, Dinah and Renaldo who could be your neighbor, co-worker or cousin; people who long for the closeness that salvation by grace brings.

            One of the neat things about the Bible is that it contains true stories of people like this – like us! People who are desperately seeking to be found by God but do not know where to start. They are people like the Ethiopian eunuch in the book of Acts or the Samaritan woman in John’s gospel. They are people who have a desire to worship God but are confused how that worship comes about.

            I tell their stories in the pages ahead. Stories about those who God is drawing into a relationship they desire but are scared to enter. Those who the Holy Spirit has begun drawing but have not quite arrived. Those whose hearts are hungry to worship the One True Living God.

[1] C.S. Lewis, Reflections on the Psalms

Gentle Mary – A Timeless Carol

/ taethne

This beautiful song was written by Joseph Cook in 1919.  Mr. Cook was born in England in 1859 but immigrated to Canada where he attended Wesleyan College and McGill University in Montreal.

The lyrics show a progression from wondering if this baby, born to peasants in humble surroundings could really be the Savior of mankind. The answer – just ask those transformed by Him.  Surely the people of Jesus’ day asked this question too. How could a baby in a manger have more power than King Herod, who ruled from nearby palaces and fortresses?

Yet in his humility, Jesus did have more power than Herod. In today’s culture, where the rich are admired and superstars are praised, Jesus is still the humble King who really deserves our adoration. No longer a stranger to the world, people from every nation and ethnic group on earth rejoice at Christmas, singing – “Praise His Name in all the earth, hail the King of glory!”

 Gentle Mary laid her Child
Lowly in a manger;
There He lay, the undefiled,
To the world a stranger:
Such a Babe in such a place,
Can He be the Savior?
Ask the saved of all the race
Who have found His favor.

Angels sang about His birth;
Wise men sought and found Him;
Heaven’s star shone brightly forth,
Glory all around Him:
Shepherds saw the wondrous sight,
Heard the angels singing;
All the plains were lit that night,
All the hills were ringing.

 Gentle Mary laid her Child
Lowly in a manger;
He is still the undefiled,
But no more a stranger:
Son of God, of humble birth,
Beautiful the story;
Praise His name in all the earth,
Hail the King of glory!

 

Wednesday’s Words

/ taethne

Some random thoughts on this first day of July:

  1. If you claim to be a follower of Jesus Christ, where is He leading you?
    1. How well are you following – reluctantly, enthusiastically or not at all?
    2. If you don’t know where He is leading you, why not?
  2. Do you love Jesus Christ for who He is, or what He does for you?
    1. If He withdrew His blessings, would you still praise, worship and honor Him or withdraw yourself?
      1. He is worthy to be honored, praised and worshiped because He is the King of Kings, not a genie.
      2. We owe Him all, He owes us nothing.
      3. Any blessing He gives is out of mercy and grace but not because we somehow deserve it.
    2. Peter’s declaration should ring true with us. In John 6:68, when the crowds stopped following, Jesus asked the disciples if they would leave also. Simon Peter answered him, “Lord, to whom shall we go? You have the words of eternal life.  We have come to believe and to know that you are the Holy One of God.”
  3. Is Jesus, alone, enough for us or are we still looking for something extra?

Gentle Mary – A Timeless Carol

/ taethne

This beautiful song was written by Joseph Cook in 1919.  Mr. Cook was born in England in 1859 but immigrated to Canada where he attended Wesleyan College and McGill University in Montreal.

The lyrics show a progression from wondering if this baby, born to peasants in humble surroundings could really be the Savior of mankind. The answer – just ask those transformed by Him.  Surely the people of Jesus’ day asked this question too. How could a baby in a manger have more power than King Herod, who ruled from nearby palaces and fortresses?

Yet in his humility, Jesus did have more power than Herod. In today’s culture, where the rich are admired and superstars are praised, Jesus is still the humble King who really deserves our adoration. No longer a stranger to the world, people from every nation and ethnic group on earth rejoice at Christmas, singing – “Praise His Name in all the earth, hail the King of glory!”

 Gentle Mary laid her Child
Lowly in a manger;
There He lay, the undefiled,
To the world a stranger:
Such a Babe in such a place,
Can He be the Savior?
Ask the saved of all the race
Who have found His favor.

Angels sang about His birth;
Wise men sought and found Him;
Heaven’s star shone brightly forth,
Glory all around Him:
Shepherds saw the wondrous sight,
Heard the angels singing;
All the plains were lit that night,
All the hills were ringing.

 Gentle Mary laid her Child
Lowly in a manger;
He is still the undefiled,
But no more a stranger:
Son of God, of humble birth,
Beautiful the story;
Praise His name in all the earth,
Hail the King of glory!

 

The Little Drummer Boy Revisited

/ taethne

Some years ago I wrote this article:

No, he isn’t in the Biblical story. Aaron did not travel with the Magi and was not present at the birth of Jesus. Yet, the way the song is written, he could have been. Originally titled “Carol of the Drum”, the song is about a young boy summoned by the Magi to go with them to present gifts to the newborn King.  Upon arriving, the boy realizes he has no gift that is fit to give a king, much less the King of Kings. All he has is his ability to play the drum, so he asks if he can play it for him. As Mary nods permission, he plays his best for the baby Jesus and is rewarded with a smile from the Lord.

While fiction, the song gives a powerful message. Jesus is the King and is worthy of being honored by us. All that we have to give Him we should surrender to Him. Even our crowns in heaven will be laid back at His feet for He alone is worthy. It isn’t just material things, like gold, frankincense or myrrh, that we can give but also our God-given abilities. All that we give Him should reflect our best effort, like the drummer boy’s song. And a smile from Him, a show of approval, well … that is definitely reward enough. “Well done, good and faithful servant, well done.”

Oh, and in the tv show Aaron is angry at life, owning a heart filled with hatred, and is powerfully changed when he encounters the baby Jesus. In the scene where his pet lamb is healed, why not? Jesus heals spiritually and physically. So watch it with joy, sing along heartily, include it in a cantata. Let the message of giving God our best because He alone is worthy of being praised.

In the years since I wrote this I keep thinking about the song and the cartoon tv special. It continues to hold a special place in my heart. Sing it, and while singing pledge to give your very best to the King of Kings. Give Him back what He has blessed you with, serve Him with your whole heart.

Come they told me pa rum pum pum pum
A newborn King to see pa rum pum pum pum
Our finest gifts we bring pa rum pum pum pum
To lay before the King pa rum pum pum pum
rum pum pum pum rum pum pum pum
So to honour Him pa rum pum pum pum

When we come
Baby Jesus pa rum pum pum pum
I am a poor boy too pa rum pum pum pum
I have no gift to bring pa rum pum pum pum
That’s fit to give a King pa rum pum pum pum
rum pum pum pum rum pum pum pum
Shall I play for you? pa rum pum pum pum
on my drum?

Mary nodded pa rum pum pum pum
The ox and lamb kept time pa rum pum pum pum
I played my drum for Him pa rum pum pum pum
I played my best for Him pa rum pum pum pum
rum pum pum pum rum pum pum pum
Then He smiled at me pa rum pum pum pum
Me and my drum