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Greetings in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ,

This past couple of Sundays have been a little different for me.  Bro. Allen Snapp has led the singing at Highland for many years.  But because of family issues he was not able to be there for one week.  Then they were going to be gone this week.  He asked me if I would lead the music.  Of course, I said I would.

Like I said, it is a little different.  After preaching all those years I almost forgot about where I started.  When I started college, I went to the School of Music at Oklahoma Baptist University.  I loved to sing and share Christ through music.

At one point God worked in my life and called me to preach.  I never quit singing but preaching was where God wanted me to be.  I still sang during the song service and every once in a while, I would sing a special.  I have always enjoyed the song service and the music that people would share.

As I have prepared for the past two weeks services, it has made me think about the importance of singing of all that God has done for us.  Singing is not something that certain ones will do, but what each of us needs to do.  Even if we don’t think we can sing, there needs to be a song in our hearts that comes out of our mouths.

David wrote in Psalm 30:3-5 --- 3 “O Lord, You have brought up my soul from Sheol; You have kept me alive, that I would not go down to the pit. 4 Sing praise to the Lord, you His godly ones, And give thanks to His holy name. 5 For His anger is but for a moment, His favor is for a lifetime; Weeping may last for the night, But a shout of joy comes in the morning.”

I know that some of the things we face in life are tough, but God is still with us.  When we hurt from the loss of a loved one, God is with us.  When the pain of an illness is there, God is with us.  When life hits us with issues that seek to overwhelm us, God is with us.  We must remember that regardless of what confronts us, like David said, “Weeping may last for the night, but a shout of joy comes in the morning.”

I may not be standing in the pulpit preaching a message that God has given me.  I may not be sharing the Word through preaching but for the last couple of weeks I’ve been blessed to share through singing.  Yes, it is different for me but God’s still God.

Psalm 96:1-4 says --- “Sing to the Lord a new song; Sing to the Lord, all the earth. 2 Sing to the Lord, bless His name; Proclaim good tidings of His salvation from day to day. 3 Tell of His glory among the nations, His wonderful deeds among all the peoples. 4 For great is the Lord and greatly to be praised; He is to be feared above all gods.”

Bro. Allen will be back next week and I’ll be back simply singing songs and watching God work through others.  I’ll be singing the songs with my mouth but they will be coming from my heart.  I am going to do all I can to lift up my voice in praise to the Lord.

I am so thankful that not only can I still move around, but I can lift up my voice in praise to the Lord.  As David said – “Sing to the Lord a new song; Sing to the Lord, all the earth. 2 Sing to the Lord, bless His name;….”  Regardless of what we may be facing in our lives, God is there for us.

As you make your way through the coming days, take the opportunity to lift your voice and ‘sing to the Lord’.

JESUS, JESUS, JESUS, there IS something about that name!!

Christ only, always,

Bro. Paul