The Lord Is My Song
Worship Leadership In Focus
by
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The Lord Is My Song
Topic: Our Focal Point of Praise: The Lord
Psalm 118:14-16 ESV
14 The Lord is my strength and my song; he has become my salvation.
15 Glad songs of salvation are in the tents of the righteous: “The right hand of the Lord does valiantly,
16 the right hand of the Lord exalts, the right hand of the Lord does valiantly!”
The Psalmist proclaims that the Lord is his strength and his song. He is quoting part of the “Song of Moses,” Ex. 15:2. Now, hundreds of years after Moses he is personally applying this truth. He uses the word “my” indicating his personal experience, and his personal decision to make this powerful declaration. He does not boastfully rely on his intellectual wisdom, his physical strength or his worldly wealth, Jer. 9:23,24. His reliance is on the Lord and without limitation the Lord Himself has become the central expressive mandate, or song, of his life. The Psalmist goes on to say that the Lord has become his salvation, that is, the Lord has become his “personal” Savior by the use of the word “my.” The Psalmist observes that he is not alone in his praise of the Lord. He hears what is coming from the “tents” of the righteous. Worshipful songs of joyful salvation are heard in their homes and we can be sure that an entire neighborhood of praise developed when the plurality is noted, “tents.” vs. 15.
There is a permeation of praise for the Lord in the life of the yielded individual, in his home and even in his community. The tents or homes of the righteous give evidence of the Lord whom they love. The “mighty things” that the Lord has done are obvious and bring forth praise. The Lord's work in our own lives has caused us to be His “workmanship” Eph. 2:10. This word, “workmanship” in the greek language, poiema from where we get the English word “poem” – reminds us that our lives are His lyrics and that we are His songs. The Lord is My Song, personally, and we, having yielded to Him fully, have become “His songs.” We stand before our congregation not merely as worship leaders but also as worship participants with them. We have passed from death to life and joyful songs of salvation resound from each of our lives as we proclaim what the Lord has done in each of us. When we are fully yielded, we become His poems, His lyrics, His songs. Each one of us, individually, must fully illustrate for our congregation that, “The Lord is my strength and my song.”
Play With Skill And Shout For Joy!
Topic: Well Rehearsed Musicians
Psalm 33:1-4 ESV
1Shout for joy in the Lord, O you righteous! Praise befits the upright.
2 Give thanks to the Lord with the lyre; make melody to him with the harp of ten strings! 3 Sing to him a new song; play skillfully on the strings, with loud shouts.
4 For the word of the Lord is upright, and all his work is done in faithfulness.
The Psalmist proclaims that the righteous are to praise the Lord “joyfully” with all bitterness and mourning set aside. They know that He is comprehensively faithful and that His word is “upright” vs.4. “Praise befits the upright.” In other words, it makes perfect sense for the upright to praise Him. The Psalmist mentions the harp of ten strings and the lyre and directs the Lord's musicians to sing a “new song” which is to be played “skillfully,” vs.3. Instruction and practice, two of the main ingredients to skillful playing, are required. There are no short cuts to success. Notice also that genuine enthusiasm is implied as the song is expressed with “loud shouts.” Sometimes, with our understanding of who God is and what He has accomplished in our lives, it can be challenging to keep the volume down. Sometimes, a “loud shout of joy needs to be a part of worship! Our God deserves the very best. Joyful and exuberant worship must rise from the hearts of His righteously redeemed people. True worship cannot fully rise from those who are not redeemed by Him. We joyously provide for Him a variety of instruments and a well rehearsed and skillful presentation. We bring to Him newly composed songs rising from our new and current experiences of His goodness. We must not rely only on the hymns and songs of the past although they have their place. Our understanding of His faithfulness in the past and our experiences of His work and Word in our lives now, causes us to write new original songs for Him.
Our worship participants in our congregation and the members of our worship team need to celebrate His faithfulness in all that He does globally and in each of our lives personally. We must not allow ourselves or our worship participants to rely on last weeks worship. Have we encouraged our worship team members to compose an original “new song” for the Lord? Let's do so and celebrate Him. We must also grasp that the musical environment in this, His sanctuary, must be free from the distraction of inadequately practiced music and poorly presented, lack luster, praise. We practice diligently because He deserves our very best.
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About the Book
Having been involved in Christian music for many years, I have made an unfortunate observation. Far too often, music has been the primary focus of many worship practices and events. Our Lord, whom we love, must be restored to the central point of our worship. As an orchestral composer, I realize how alluring music can be. We must set this allurement aside and refocus on God’s glory. If artistic beauty and musicianship have taken center stage, then our music may have become a sinful source of pride.
Singers and musicians have sometimes become involved in worship teams and choirs without ever having begun a personal relationship with our Lord Jesus, and when their musical motivation fades, they depart, having never learned to love Him.
Music is the organized, auditory, communicative expression by the living of the life they possess and the truths they profess. In worship we affirm His worth. Worship, as an act of the will, indicates our position as His obedient people, and He, as Lord, must receive our adoration.
It is my intent with these devotionals, based on seventy-five passages of Scripture, comprising 291 verses, to provide a valuable resource for all who lead worship.
About the Author
Mark G. Turner, with his wife, Marie, are active members of a local church and have served as missionaries, counselors, Bible teachers, and leaders at Christian children’s camps. They have served in the United States, Canada, the Bahamas, Great Britain, and the Philippines. Mr. Turner has been a worship leader, elder, school teacher, and recently taught at Windermere Bible College in the Bahamas. Mr. Turner is a graduate of Briercrest College and Seminary, the University of Waterloo, and York University.
Mr. Turner, as an orchestral composer, has had his music performed in the United States, Canada, and Great Britain and is currently pursuing postgraduate music composition studies at the University of Leeds in Great Britain. A small sampling of some of his recent compositions can be heard and purchased through, sheetmusicplus.com by simply entering his full name, Mark G. Turner, into the search box.
To contact him personally regarding his music or to arrange opportunities to teach or speak, he may be reached by e-mail at: turnermarkgj@yahoo.ca. His Facebook site, O’Kestrel Music: Orchestral Composition, may be visited at: www.facebook.com/OrchestralComposition.