Welcome to the Puget Sound. A waterway nestled within Western Washington, the Puget Sound boasts a freshness and beauty long-remembered by folks who visit. Unless it’s raining. Which it does, a lot. In that case, you will remember a lot of grey skies, grey water, grey pavement. And lots of trees. Tall ones.
But maybe you’ll come up here on a sunny day, catch a ferry boat and enjoy our gorgeous channels, inlets, and bays. The views are astounding. Stand for a moment on deck; walk out to the pickle-fork and breathe in all that invigorating fresh salt air.
Perhaps you’ll laugh at the always comical seagulls, flying in tandem with the ferries, usually on the look-out for handouts. Watch for the seals lounging about on the buoys; maybe you’ll spot the occasional visiting Orca, or Grey Whale.
I don’t know where you live in this big round world. Puget Sound is where I live, and sounding forth His praise is what we do, we Christians.
As we get to know our Creator, and even more so when we come to know Him as our Redeemer, praising Him just naturally follows.
Unless it doesn’t. It’s so easy to crowd out the practice of praise. Have you ever felt a reluctance, a sort of “I do that on Sunday”, or, “I’ll get to it in just a bit, when I’m finished with…”?
In our fast-paced, hectic life, pulling away from the business of life to embrace the essential, happens only by intention. Worshiping the One worthy of our attention is a decision. A commitment. A surrender. An intentional attention to the Holy One.
Do you want to be more thankful, more mindful of God, and more celebratory in your faith? Me, too.
It’s tough to take our eyes off the craziness of the here and now, and decide to turn our attention instead on this God who became flesh.
Establishing a regular practice of worship is a practical step we can take to reinforce the ongoing habit of seeking Him, and His glory, first. Soon we find that taking those few minutes to glorify Him, whether outloud in song, or quietly in our hearts, becomes the highlight of our days!
The enormous musical library available to us (online) can help to bring us closer into the presence of God, where we join the myriad of worshipers past, present and future, elevating the Holy God who is worthy of our praise.
Jack Hayford, beloved pastor for decades at Church of the Way in Van Nuys, CA, had much to say on the topic of worship. He was keenly interested in what God was up to when we praise. He saw the power that worship brought into the lives of people.
The fruitfulness that flows from worship is the reason God calls us to it.
Jack Hayford
As believers, we are granted the authority, and the mandate to usher the Kingdom of God into this world. One of the ways we equip ourselves for the task, is in keeping periods of time in His presence.
Do you find that the more you know Him, the more you love Him, and the more you love Him, the more you want to celebrate Who He is? Worship helps bring about our transformation. We become a people who are eager to please Him. We long to make Him happy, to cause our great, loving, almighty God to smile.
It reminds me of the Phil Wickham lyric, “The more I praise you, the more I want to. I’m falling in love, falling in love with you.” Check it out, and have a listen. Take a minute and sing along with Phil. No, go ahead. I’ll still be here.
Awesome, yes?
The thing is, and this is a pretty unpopular fact, our lives on earth are really short. The opportunity to glorify Him now — on this earth, in these bodies — is a brief one. The time is now!
The angels in heaven, ever before the face of God, cry “Holy!”
His dearly beloved children are invited to join in this eternal anthem of praise. Hallelujah!
And one called to another and said: ‘Holy, holy, holy is the LORD of hosts; the whole earth is full of his glory!’
Isaiah 6:3
Click around the posts below, and sing a song to Him, today.
For a soundtrack of many of the songs on SaltySoundGirl, just go to the playlist.
“… but be filled with the Spirit, speaking to one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing and making melody with your heart to the Lord; always giving thanks for all things in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ to God, even the Father…”
Ephesians (5:18b-20)
To pray for God’s will to be done, means that I will no longer delude myself into believing that the locus of control is mine. To pray for God’s will to be done, means that I will demonstrate that I trust Him. To pray for God’s will to be done,
The song is a prayer, where the singer tells the Lord that he can’t even count high enough to name all the blessings from above.
We decide to be thankful. On our own, in the quietness of a moment alone, we make the change. We close our eyes and exhale. We let the hard thing alone for a minute, and we decide, when we open our eyes again, to pay attention to what else is
How can we praise Him enough? One glorious day, all of creation will burst forth in worship and praise to our God, who is love. Will we ever stop singing?
And yet, for many of us today, our lives might feel anything but safe, secure, or quiet. So what does Psalm 23 really mean, when our path forward throws us into rough seas, thorny patches, or terrifying terrain?
The Father knew that I would need this truth for the hard years ahead.
Wickham’s lyrics invite us to join in the fray. Swords out, shields up! We join God, fighting the battles we face. And here is how we fight the good fight… we pray, we have faith, and we worship. “So when I fight, I fight on my knees…”
This old hymn is a prayer reflecting faithful trust in the Lord Jesus. When the author, Jean Pigott, penned the words “Jesus, I am Resting, Resting”, she little knew how valuable this prayer would be to missionary James Hudson Taylor, nor how beloved it would still be over 100 years
Who is the One who worthy of all worship, honor, and praise? Yes, Christ Jesus, the mighty Lamb of God is the One worthy of it all. And what a joy to sound it out! Sound it forth, this day, while it is still called “today”! Use your voice to
Phil Wickham’s new song, The Jesus Way is (I think) one of his best. And that is saying a lot! The lyrics to this song challenge, encourage, and beckon us ever onward, inviting us to state with conviction that we choose the Jesus way! Have a listen!
Turning. Sometimes it takes an effort almost superhuman. Especially when anxiety and or depressive feelings pervade. Sometimes we are too anxious, too watchful–we don’t think that we can take our eyes off of this thing even for a minute. How can we give it over to Someone else?
God’s grace: that enduring, sacrificial, unearned love that our Creator God bestows upon His children. Can we ever extol Him enough? Probably not. But let’s try, anyway!
Trust Him to be the King over your life, Sovereign over what you are facing today.
Is He worthy? And that’s the question for the ages. Is His worthy of our praise? Mine? Yours? Even in this difficult situation, even in this? Yes! Sing it! Raise your sights to Him, scripture invites us. Lift up your voice and proclaim the truth, in the easy times, and
Today’s Practice of Praise brings back an old favorite from yesteryear. This lovely worship ballad found its way into many churches in the 1990’s. Perhaps you are familiar with it already. If not, I hope you find it enriching in your moment’s with Him.
A Thousand Hallelujah’s? Are you kidding me? Today, I can’t generate even one! Heavy sighs just kept escaping from my weary, worn-out soul. Is there a way out of my grumpiness, and into His presence?
Today marks one of the highest and holiest days of the Christian Calendar. It is a day for jubilant rejoicing, as we celebrate our great King’s triumph over death, sin, and the grave.
Do you know this Savior? Have you met this Risen Lord?
Charles Wesley wrote today’s much-loved hymn over 250 years ago. “And, can it be, that I should gain and interest in the Savior’s love?”
Wesley was overcome with the reality of God’s Amazing Love.
The song that we are adding to our practice of praise today Jack Hayford’s most popular. In fact, for over 15 years, it was consistently among the top 10 songs among Christians. Perhaps you have enjoyed praising God with this gem.
Now the crowds going ahead of Him, and those who followed, were shouting, “Hosanna to the Son of David; BLESSED IS THE ONE WHO COMES IN THE NAME OF THE LORD; Hosanna in the highest!”
King Jesus is Lord of the Cross, Lord of the Resurrection, and Lord of Life. Our King, All Powerful and Eternal, is worthy of our adoration!
Indeed, with each new day, the sun comes up, and it’s a new day just dawning. There’s never been this particular sunrise, you know, that one that occurred today. There’s never been this new day, the one in front of you, right now. Yesterday is past, and is now consigned
And we look to Him, at the head of the banquet table, as He breaks the bread in celebration of our reunion. We raise our glasses, all around, and toast the Giver of the feast. Then the music, and the dancing, and the singing, as all of us unite our
The authors worship the Triune God: Jesus the Son, the Spirit, and lastly, the Father. The chorus then states: “You are the One that we praise, You are the One we adore, demonstrating that though three Persons, our God is One.
In John’s Revelation, he includes these words, words that bear continuous repeating, over and over, throughout every age, forever and ever.
The song states that we will love God with everything we can, with everything we are. Both in the Old Testament Law, as well as the words of Jesus in the New Testament, we are instructed to direct our full self to loving God.
Today’s song to add to our Practice of Praise is a modern-day classic: Phil Wickham’s song “You’re Beautiful. “ This song is truly a gem. It does what Wickham intended–it helps bring God’s children right into the throne room of our beautiful God. First Song This song has become a
Shipwrecked by the storms? It’s easy to wobble, and times we just tip over. But we are invited to run back to Him! He is waiting.
Even in our suffering, His presence is our provision. His nearness becomes the shelter to which we run, the only one that sustains us, enabling to keep on enduring whatever He has allowed into our lives. He Himself gently sustains us, even amid dire circumstances.
The sign is clear: “Keep Off”. The rule is plain to see. And the seagull? He doesn’t care. Watch him stare at us, daring us to change his mind. Notice his exquisite placement; of all the spots to plunk down, he has chosen defiance. He’ll land where he does. Take
Our God is pure love, and that, we can take to the bank. As we proclaim it, we remind our own wavering souls of this higher truth, the one that can co-exist with the struggles of life.
