God’s glory

God Is Not Absent

/ The Pastor

In the midst of hardships and tragedies, our awesome God is not absent but ever present – longing to calm the storm. Maybe he does not calm the storm raging all around you, but through Jesus Christ he calms the storm in your heart. For these storms do not define you and they definitely do not direct your destiny. These storms are not your eternal reality and they are definitely not sovereign over you. Yes, storms do rage and toss you to and fro, but Jesus not only walks on the storm, he tramples it as he reaches out to you with grace and compassion. In no way are you required to fight the waves to get to a safe haven, but Jesus simply reaches out his hand upon your faith-filled plea for help.

No, storms are not a sign of God’s absence but just the opposite. Satan wants you to fail, crumble, knuckle under and give up, but God will be gloried and thus He will give you what you need to make that happen. Do not cry out wondering why God left, rather worship Him and know that He is faithful to not let Satan consume you.

Maybe you are not going through a storm at the moment, but someone is. Pray for them that they may see God through Jesus Christ. Pray for a hedge of protection around them to keep Satan at bay. Pray for God’s glory to shine through their storm. Pray, pray and then pray some more. God is not an absent God. He is an ever-present God in times of trouble. Do not forget this.

GOD – IS – NOT – ABSENT!

God is faithful and God is FOR YOU. Call out to Him. Go head. God is listening.

All glory, honor, praise and thanksgiving be unto our awesome God through Christ Jesus our Lord, Amen!

Protect

/ The Pastor

God has given us life so that we may glorify Him. Yet, all too often we get sidetracked with worldly desires and temptations that do anything and everything but glorify God. My prayer is that God would protect my senses and my body that they may be used for Him. This poem grew out of my prayer time this morning asking for that protection. May God protect and guard you as well that you may live for Him – in the name of Jesus, Amen.

Protect my heart
And teach my mind,
That to Your ways
I won’t be blind.

Protect my tongue,
That I may shine,
Your love and grace,
All of the time.

Protect my eyes,
That I may see,
Nothing but You,
And how I’m free.

Protect my hands,
That all my deeds,
May strive to serve,
My neighbor’s needs.

Protect my feet,
And lead them straight,
In Jesus’ name
To Your estate.

Forever and Ever

/ The Pastor

To You be the glory, forever and ever,
To You be the glory forever.
What a joy it is to proclaim Your story.
For You have made it my own.
You saved this miserable wreck of a sinner,
You redeemed this long lost life.
You rescued this life from the grips of death.
You rewrote my future story.
To You be the glory, forever and ever,
To You be the glory forever.
Through Jesus my Lord I stand on the Rock,
Through Jesus my Lord I am saved.
You have washed and cleaned my sin-stained clothing,
You have crushed the Deceiver’s head.
You have snatched me from the lion’s mouth.
You have secured my life in Yours.
To You be the glory, forever and ever.
To You be the glory forever.
I will worship Your name through Christ my Lord.
To You be the glory forever.

Majestic Glory

/ The Pastor
Mount Rainier from Living Word Lutheran Church in Graham, WA

2 Peter 1:16–17 (ESV) ~ 16 For we did not follow cleverly devised myths when we made known to you the power and coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, but we were eyewitnesses of his majesty. 17 For when he received honor and glory from God the Father, and the voice was borne to him by the Majestic Glory, “This is my beloved Son, with whom I am well pleased,”

To see this mountain is to see “majestic glory”.
But that is almost sacrilegious to say,
For this is only part of the story.
For if this mountain is majestic,
You are more so,
For You are the Creator of the heavens and the earth,
Thus it is glory to You I want to bestow.
You are my Father –
My Lord and King,
You are my Savior and Shepherd.
New Life You certainly bring.
You are holy and awesome.
You declared Jesus to be Your Son,
He died and rose again,
And he will never be outdone.
From You is borne New Life
Thus You are the Majestic Glory.
I sing aloud and praise Your name,
For You are my complete story.

Sing People, Sing…

/ The Pastor

Just in case you need another reason to praise and worship God, I thought I would offer this. God painted this scene this morning behind our church building and I just had to share this. To God be the glory!

It is right, oh God and it is our joy to give You thanks and praise at all times and in all places – to limit our praise and thanks to a single moment in time is impossible. Therefore, we offer our worship in every moment and with our very lives. For You give us peace through holding all our tomorrows. You give us Life through Jesus Christ, Your dear Son. You give us love for You are love. And so, it is our great pleasure to join with the church on earth and the hosts of heaven in singing Your unending praise…

Sing people, sing…

Morning Glory

/ The Pastor

I wrote the last stanza of this poem yesterday morning as a short prayer as I prepared for worship. This morning, I share it with you – with a couple more stanzas. To God be the glory!

Hold me with Your grace.
Bring me from disgrace.
My sins please erase.
For Your glory!
For Your glory!

Hear me when I pray.
Each and every day.
With You I want to stay.
In Your glory!
In Your glory!

Jesus is my King.
What an awesome ring.
My heart will loudly sing.
Your great glory!
Your great glory!

Bless me as I preach.
Guide me as I teach.
Many souls may I reach.
To Your glory!
To Your glory!

Unending Praise for the King of Glory

/ The Pastor

I wrote the following as part of the Holy Communion liturgy for today, July 28. God’s deserving title, the King of Glory, is still running around in my head and heart so thus that theme was picked up again, and why not 🙂
To God be the glory, forever and ever. Amen.

It is indeed right and salutary that we should at all times and in all places give thanks and praise to you, oh God, the King of Glory. And You are indeed deserving of that title, the King of Glory. Through Jesus Christ we have salvation. You have given the Holy Spirit, without which we would not believe that Jesus is the Way, the Truth and the Life. You have made us Your beloved children and thus love to dote on us; giving us Your most wonderful and perfect gifts. You have sealed us with the cross of Christ and have engraved our names in the book of Life. Oh God, there is none other worthy of the title, the King of Glory and therefore, with the church on earth and the hosts of heaven, we join in singing Your unending praise…

Praying the Psalms ~ The King of Glory

/ The Pastor

Lift up your heads, O gates! And be lifted up, O ancient doors, that the King of glory may come in.
Who is this King of glory?
The Lord , strong and mighty,
the Lord , mighty in battle!
Lift up your heads, O gates! And lift them up, O ancient doors, that the King of glory may come in.
Who is this King of glory?
The Lord of hosts,
he is the King of glory!
[Psalms 24:7‭-‬10 ESV]

Oh, who is not guilty of glory-stealing? We all are. We all seek to satisfy good ole number 1 — ourselves. That is why I am always convicted when I read these verses from Psalm 24. But God, the King of Glory is worthy; Him and Him alone. Just reflect and meditate on what God has done through Jesus Christ and you will soon be reminded of why He is called, the King of Glory. Let us pray…

Oh to praise You, oh Lord.
Oh to sing of Your mighty name.
For Your name is glorious,
Your name is Life.
You have lifted me up from the miry bog of sin and have rescued me from the clutches of the Deceiver.
You have sealed me with Your Spirit and marked me for Life.
You have claimed for me an inheritance through Christ Jesus my Savior.
You have shielded me from my enemies; placing a guard over my soul.
You reign victorious and thus Your title, “the King of Glory”
But I confess that at times I have sought my own glory. I confess that at times I have tried to make it about me.
Oh God, King of Glory, I confess and repent. Forgive me.
I open the gates of my heart that You may enter in.
You are my King.
You are the Creator.
You are the Mighty One.
You are the Lord of hosts.
There are none that can compare with You; none that can stand against You.
There are none beside You who is worthy of worship.
You are the King of Glory.
Oh Lord, my God, the Lord of hosts,
To You I lift up my head and praise You.
In Jesus name I pray,
Amen.

The Path

/ The Pastor

Creator God, awesome and mighty,
You burst forth in the morning,
holding nothing back.
You make a grand entrance,
announcing Your presence.
Oh Lord, there You are.
But how, oh Lord, can anyone possibly say this isn’t from You? How could they even think such things?
I am perplexed by that thought.
For there is nothing random here. Only Your masterful hand lovely painting every stroke of color; each one planned and purposefully presented that all glory may be Yours.
Every hue.
Every ray of light.
Every beautiful detail.
Everything! – emanates from You.
Oh Lord my God, You blessed me this morning with this beautiful tapestry; for to see it was a pathway to Your glory – knowing that something even greater than this awaits me because of Jesus.
Oh God, I am in awe.
Wow!
Thank You for this morning artwork, but even more than that, thank You for this path to remember Your grace through Jesus Christ. I can hardly wait to see what awaits me.
To You be all glory, honor, praise and worship, through Christ Jesus my Lord.
Amen.

The Lake

/ The Pastor

Peaceful and quiet,
your waters are serene.
Gentle and tranquil,
Oh, how I love this scene.

The sun’s rising slow.
The colors of the morn.
You help set the stage.
This day will be adorned.

The loons sing their song.
My children laugh and play.
The sounds of the lake,
I could listen all day.

Time is so slow here,
Just inching right along.
Oh so refreshing,
I wish I could prolong.

But sadly we’ll leave,
And have to say goodbye.
God, thanks for this lake,
Its You I glorify.