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NOT About us but is about JESUS!

Good morning!  I am reading from the devotional, “The First fruits of My Morning” and wanted to share the contents with you. Especially if you lead worship in your church in any capacity (choir director, choir member, musician, soloist, song writer, poet, praise dancer, etc), or anyone who publicly worships, this morning’s devotion is a must read!  *Please consider signing up for our free worship newsletter as well.  All subscribers are updated with other news such as online bible studies, book signings, praise dance events, gospel stage plays and much more!  Oh, and if you sign up, you also get the 30 day devotional free! Thank you and God bless!

MORNING #3- “ITS NOT ABOUT US, IT’S ABOUT JESUS!”

 

LEVITICUS 10:1-3-1AND NADAB and Abihu, the sons of Aaron, each took his censer and put fire in it, and put incense on it, and offered strange and unholy fire before the Lord, as He had not commanded them.

2And there came forth fire from before the Lord and killed them, and they died before the Lord.

3Then Moses said to Aaron, This is what the Lord meant when He said, I [and My will, not their own] will be acknowledged as hallowed by those who come near Me, and before all the people I will be honored. And Aaron said nothing.  (amplified version)

 

Wow!  Look at the passage of scripture above.  Read it and weep!  This is actually the scripture that God specifically pointed out to me when I began my public praise and worship dance ministry.  I was preparing a public program entitled, “Dancing into the Holy of Holies”.  I was meditating and God pointed out to me the danger of “offering unholy fire before the Lord!”  You see, we as praise and worship dancers, choir members, musicians, play actors, etc., we are always at the forefront and we are seen and heard sometimes even more than the preacher!  I am a preacher and sometimes I find myself preparing and concentrating more on the dance ministry than preparing myself to always be ready to preach the Word!  God had to remind me that yes, we are seen, but He must continually be seen in and through us!  What I am saying worshippers, is that it is very easy to get caught up in the glamour of things when people are always “pumping” us up!  Anytime we are moving in the flesh, caught up in competition and entertainment, then we are offering strange fire that is not authorized by God and it means nothing.  It is also very dangerous!  In our scripture reference, the two priests who made this terrible mistake died immediately.  God is the same, yesterday, today, and forever!  If He did not like it back then, He still does not.  Let us guard our hearts against the spirit of competitiveness and entertainment.  Let us stay pure in our worship by focusing on God.  It is truly not about us, but always about Jesus!  Now if you keep reading in this verse of scripture you will see that Aaron was not even allowed to mourn for these men.  Brothers and Sisters, let us always be reminded that we are to do what we do by the Spirit of God and to get ourselves out of the way and do it the way God authorizes us, and that is through the revelation of the Blood of Jesus who allows us to offer a sacrifice of praise through that new and living way.

 

 

Exercising will Profit a little, but what about Godliness?

I love to take a brisk walk first thing in the morning while I listen to worship music, meditate and hear from the Lord.  Exercising is very important.  We should maintain our bodies, which is the temple of the Lord.  This morning after my walk, I noticed the Spirit of the Lord nudging at me with this verse: “But Godliness with contentment is great gain” (I Timothy 6:6).  You know bodily exercise does profit us but the bible compares physical bodily exercise and Godliness together and measurement equals:  bodily exercise profits little while Godliness with contentment equals GREAT GAIN!  Nothing compares to the peace and blessings that we gain by maintaining our character and growing in our relationship with God and with others.

So go ahead, burn that treadmill up, tone those muscles, dance, do whatever it takes to maintain your physical body but do not forget to maintain your Godly character and be content.

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LOVE AND BLESSINGS!

A God Encounter: Building your hope on things ETERNAL!

Today during lunch I visited a local restaurant.  As I stood waiting on my “to go” order, I noticed one of the employees.  Oh I have seen this particular young lady on many occasions in the past in this restaurant, but today, God’s Spirit began to drop a prophetic word down on the inside of my spirit for this young lady.  Now, there was no way that I could stop her in the middle of a busy lunch crowd and minister the word to her, so I just began to pray under my breath a prayer for her and if God sees fit, I know He will open a door for me to give her this Word at a later time.  Now as I proceeded to my car and to drive off, I thought on the Word.  It was “Build your hopes on things eternal.  Keep building and I will deliver you and give you your heart’s desires”.  I pondered and I wondered if I would ever speak this word to her or perhaps I would post it online for someone else to be encouraged by it.  Just then, I was prompted to grab the Word for myself!  As the tears started rolling down my face, the Holy Spirit began to minister even more to me.  You see, in order for us to build our hopes on things eternal, we must first know what is eternal and what is temporary.  The Spirit spoke to me even further and said that it goes deeper and far beyond a definition.  We must learn by experience what is eternal, which is God’s word, verses what is temporary, such as our afflictions, troubles, trials, heartaches, etc.

Today, I invite you to grab hold of that same prophetic word, and build your hope on what God has already said to you specifically and also on His written Word each day of your life!  Keep your focus on Him and He will place desires in your heart and make sure that they come to pass!  I thank God for the “God Encounter” that He gave me today.

Morning #15 of the devotional, “The Firstfruits of My Morning” by Denise Cook Godfrey

II CHRONICLES 20:21-22:  21And when he had consulted with the people, he appointed singers unto the LORD, and that should praise the beauty of holiness, as they went out before the army, and to say, Praise the LORD; for his mercy endureth forever.

22And when they began to sing and to praise, the LORD set ambushments against the children of Ammon, Moab, and mount Seir, which were come against Judah; and they were smitten.

 WOW!  What an important task that the singers were given in our text this morning.  The singers actually were “positioned” in front of the army when King Jehoshaphat and the people faced national disaster against three other groups of people.   Can you imagine this?  What this means is that praise is powerful and can be used as a weapon of warfare!  This is God’s idea.  We must use every weapon that is given to us to fight our battles.  We must be ready and “positioned” as choir members, soloists, and worship leaders.  One more very important point that is sometimes overlooked is that the word says that the singers began to sing and to praise!  Singing is a form of praise, so why does this verse say that the people began to sing and to praise?  The word “praise” in its Hebrew meaning in this particular verse means “tehillah” which means a “laudation.”  In other words, they were not just singing in a dry, solemn manner.  They were very cheerful and loud!  They added clapping!

Singers, never forget that you have a very important part to play in worship service but you also have an excellent tool for warfare!  Are you using your tool?

 

 

Complimentary “Worship Newsletter”

We are in a season of time where every moment spent in worship is extremely important.  The Father is still seeking hungry worshippers!  Sign up for our monthly “Worship Newsletter” and receive a free 30 day devotional that will jump start your appetite for worship like  never before!  The newsletter will contain inspiration to arouse your hunger for worship, updates on books, praise dance workshops, complimentary online bible studies, news on gospel stage plays and much more!  Go to www.worshipfulministries.com today and sign up using the form located on the right-hand side of the page!  Love and Blessings!

The Thin Line Between Pride and Confidence!

Hello my fellow worshippers.  This morning the Holy Spirit is reminding me that when God looks at me, He actually looks at me through the blood of His Son Jesus Christ!  That means that we are counted worthy of His Kingdom and our calling when we have a healthy mindset of who we are IN CHRIST JESUS!     (II Thes 1:11  Wherefore also we pray always for you, that our God would count you worthy of this calling, and fulfil all the good pleasure of his goodness, and the work of faith with power:)

So the thin line is this::::::  the Holy Spirit reveals to us our identity in Christ and we are to have bold confidence in the cross alone.  We are only worthy through the cross of Christ.  We are not to be “coward soldiers”, but at the same time we are not to walk in pride.  God hates pride and gives grace to the humble and resists the proud.  (James 4:6)

Never leave Him Out!

Never leave the Holy Spirit out when selecting a song for ministry in dance.  Don’t do it.  I tell you, I have been serving in the praise and worship dance ministry for some ten years now and it never ceases to amaze me how I can even get “tripped” up into thinking “I got this”.  Holy Spirit knows who is going to be at the service or event, He knows what each person is currently or has already been through, He Knows the will of the Father!  In John 16:13, Jesus puts it this way when He spoke of the Holy Spirit who would come to dwell within the Christian believer’s heart:   “However, when He, the Spirit of truth, has come, He will guide you into all truth; for He will not speak on His own authority, but whatever He hears He will speak; and He will tell you things to come“.  So there you have it, ask the Holy Spirit to guide you into all truth even when it comes to what song to minister in dance or what doors to go in.  You would be surprised at the times when we pick and choose what we want to minister or where we want to go, and it may appear that we are effective above the surface, but underneath, we will lack the effect that the Lord has in mind.  Only when we totally surrender our wills to His, will we serve with a purpose and get the results that the Holy Spirit desires to bring forth.  I have experienced this first hand.  Once I remember ministering at our local church and as soon as the music started playing and I started to move, I felt an impression in my “gut” that the song was not the right song for that service at that time.  The song was an anointed, Christ-centered piece but it was ministered out of season.  I could not wait until that dance was over.  I felt a weight of burden on my heart and I did have to end up repenting.  Even though a few people approached me at the end and stated that they really enjoyed the dance, I knew deep within that I did not consult the Holy Spirit.

Always stand in His council before ministering, even if someone else has asked you to do a specific number.  Let Him (Holy Spirit) guide you into all truth concerning what the Father wants you to do, and you will see results.

 

God still requires an Altar

Genesis 12:3-4:  And he went on his journeys from the south even to Bethel, unto the place where his tent had been at the beginning, between Bethel and Ha’i; unto the place of the ALTAR, which he had made there at the first; and there Abram CALLED ON THE NAME OF THE LORD.

When there is no audience to preach, teach, and prophesy to, when there is no music to praise dance to, no inspirational drama or poetry to recite; Father I come to You with my affection, to give you worship.  Worship is what You really desire and it is at this point when You begin to search me, my very heart, every part of my heart.  You begin to stare at me, Your eyes pierce the deep parts of my soul, bringing a breaking within in order for my spirit to worship freely.

God is still requiring that we build Him an altar.  The only sacrifice that is required on that altar is us!  We must die to our own agendas and bring Him the sacrifice of praise, the fruit of our lips giving prasie and thanksgiving continually.  It is all about Him, not about us!

To read more about balancing your service and your worship to our Lord, purchase your copy of “Worshipping God-Serving God, the Mary/Martha Syndrome” today.  You can get it for a donation to the ministry of just $10.00.  Go to the link below.

www.amazon.com/author/denisecookgodfrey or you may contact me directly at sherrylcook@att.net or via FaceBook at Denise Cook Godfrey.

God bless you!

A Few Tips for Praise Dance Ministries

Well hello my fellow praise and worship dancers.  I love to encourage praise dance ministries.  Sometimes I get so full when I think of the goodness of God and how He places creativity down on the inside of us, I get too excited and just want to write!  Below are a few of my favorite tips.  You may already be fully aware, but it never hurts to be refreshed and reminded.  Just writing these tips again has helped to rejuvenate my spirit and frame of mind.  If you enjoy these tips and are helped by them, why not become a follower of this blog and also check out the book:  “So You Say You Can Praise Dance….Now What?”  (get it at amazon.com/author/denisecookgodfrey)  It not only helps those who are new to praise dance ministry, but it is filled with biblical foundations for answering criticisms and it gives the praise dancer a firm foundation from a biblical point of view.  Enjoy the tips.

Praise dancers:  when was the last time you danced for an audience of “ONE”?  Dance for Him first and He will anoint you to minister through your dances, mimes, and interpretive expressions.

When His anointing rests upon your movements, it really does not matter how skilled you are or how many hours you put into practice.  This does not mean that we do not prepare and continue to train and learn, it just means that the anointing makes the difference.

Praise dancers:  sometimes the most popular song is not for your season.  Always seek the Holy Spirit’s advice when selecting a song to minister in dance.  You will be surprised sometimes at what He will direct you to do.  Be open.  Be sensitive to HIS voice.

amazon.com/author/denisecookgodfrey

 

Standing in Spite Of!

I tell you, the world is in a mess!  The god of this world’s system is definitely on his job!  (According to Ephesians 2:2 satan is called the prince of the power of the air and also in 2 Corinthians 4:4 he is called the god of this world).  But we as Christians must continually stand in spite of what is going on around us.  We must never forget that we are more than conquerers through Him that loved us, who is Jesus Christ.  (This is found in Romans 8:37).

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