I, therefore, the prisoner in the Lord, urge you to walk worthy of the calling you have received, with all humility and gentleness, with patience, accepting one another in love, diligently keeping the unity of the Spirit with the peace that binds [us].

A picture really is worth a thousand words sometimes.  Though not a perfect depiction, perhaps this picture will help in your understanding as you remember all we’ve talked about.  God’s master plan is to bring all things together in Christ Jesus, the Messiah (Ephesians 1:9-10).  Towards that end He revealed Himself to the Jews and prepared a people through whom the revelation of God’s plan, the Messiah would come to earth (Luke 1:30-33).  Christ tore down the dividing wall of hostility between Jews and Gentiles and brought peace through the blood of His cross (Ephesians 2:14).  All who by faith believe in the Son receive the gift of life in Christ (Ephesians 2:8-9).  As a down payment of the inheritance, the Holy Spirit indwells every believer (Ephesians 1:13-14).  Both Jew and Gentile now have access by one Spirit to the Father and are being fitted and built together into one body, the Body of Christ—the Church (Ephesians 2:18-22).  Even though at the present time during our life on earth we are all at differing levels of maturity in Christ, we will one day reach unity in the faith as together we grow into a mature man with a stature measured by Christ’s fullness (Ephesians 4:13).

Now, here we are once again looking at what it means to walk worthy of the calling we have received to be in Christ—what it means to walk in a manner appropriate and fitting for those who are in Christ.  We see that God’s plan to bring the collective body of believers under the rule and reign of the Messiah begins with individuals yielding control of everything to Christ.  As I said in the first post of this series, cooperating with the Father in His work and submitting every attitude, relationship, thought, opinion, action and reaction to the rule and reign of Christ IS HARD WORK.  But, a work in which we will be blessed if we persevere.

As we see in our text above, the first two qualities that must characterize our way of life, if we are going to walk worthy of our calling, are humility and gentleness.  These two character qualities go hand in hand.  Humility is lowliness of mind and freedom from vanity or boastfulness; gentleness, or meekness as the KJV translates the word, means mild or temperate in feeling or behavior toward others.  When we speak of something being “mild”—let’s take the weather for example—we understand that it is not cold or severe or extreme in either direction.  If we’re describing a flavor or smell with the word “mild” we understand that what we’re describing is not sharp, pungent, or strong.  The same understanding must be carried into our description of what it means to walk worthy.  The way to walk worthy is to walk in humility considering others as more important than yourselves (Philippians 2:3), and with gentleness in your dealings with others.  What I mean is that our manner of life is not to be cold, severe or extreme, nor sharp, stinging or biting in our relationships.

The next quality by which our lives should be marked is that of patience.  Patience is endurance of hardship, injuries or offenses.  It is self-control, that is, control or restraint of oneself or one’s actions and feelings.  It is the abstaining from the enforcement of a right.  Patience is mental and emotional strength in facing difficulty, adversity, danger, or temptation courageously.  And it is patience that motivated by love for Christ and love for His Body enables us to accept—to bear with and put up with one another.

To walk worthy means diligently keeping the unity of the Spirit.  That particular word, diligent, doesn’t just mean being earnest and persistent, but it carries the idea of being eager, of using speed, of making effort and being prompt.  And what is it that we’re to be eager and prompt in doing?  We’re to be eager and prompt in guarding the unity of the Spirit from loss or injury by keeping our eyes upon it.    What is the unity of the Spirit?  Fulfill my joy by thinking the same way, having the same love, sharing the same feelings, focusing on one goal. (Philippians 2:2)  Now that’s oneness and unanimity.  And, when the thoughts and the love, and the feelings and the goals are yielded to and under the control of the Holy Spirit, the unity is of the Spirit.

The means by which we guard and keep that unity is the peace that binds us.  Look again at the illustration above.  The peace that binds us IS the cross of Christ.  What one thing do we all have in common that put us “in Christ” and resulted in the indwelling of the Holy Spirit?  The one thing everyone in Christ has in common is belief in the cross of Christ and His atoning work.  Colossians 3:15 tells us to let the peace of the Messiah, to which you were also called in one body, control your hearts.  If we are to let the peace Christ brought through the cross arbitrate in the decisions of how to behave towards one another we must look at the example Christ gave us in the cross.

In the cross we see Love.

But God proves His own love for us in that while we were still sinners Christ died for us!  (Romans 5:8)

In the cross we see humility and obedience.

He humbled Himself by becoming obedient to the point of death–even to death on a cross.  (Philippians 2:8)

In the cross we see submission.

And He said, ”Abba, Father!  All things are possible for You.  Take this cup away from Me.  Nevertheless, not what I will, but what You will.”  (Mark 14:36)

And, in the cross we see perseverance.

Keeping our eyes on Jesus, the source and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy that lay before Him endured a cross and dispised the shame, and has sat down at the right hand of God’s throne.  (Hebrews 12:2)

Yes, the means by which we guard and keep the unity of the Spirit is the peace that binds us—the cross of Christ and following His example.

But speaking the truth in love, let us grow in every way into Him who is the head—Christ. (Ephesians 4:15)  Now comes the hard part.  It’s time to grow.  It’ time to ask the Holy Spirit to answer these questions about you, then respond accordingly:

1. Is my way of life an appropriate and fitting reflection of the invitation I have received in Christ?  In other words, does my life show that I’ve accepted the invitation to live in Christ?
2. Is my mind free from conceited and boastful thinking?
3. Would others say that I am gentle in my words and reactions, or am I cold and severe?  Are my words and reactions sharp and pungent?
4. Do I patiently endure hardships, injuries and offenses?
5. Do I exhibit self-control in my words and actions, abstaining from demanding MY rights?
6. Do I courageously face difficulty, adversity, danger and temptation with mental and emotional strength?
7. Do I accept my brothers and sisters in Christ AS brothers and sisters in Christ?
8. Do I put up with them in love no matter what level of maturity they have reached in Christ?
9. Am I eager and prompt to guard the oneness that we have in Christ by earnestly paying attention to any and all obstacles that would hinder the way we relate to one another?
10. Do I let the peace of the Messiah control my heart?  In other words, do I let the peace Christ brought through the cross arbitrate in the decisions of how to behave?  Do I follow Christ’s example of love, humility and obedience, submission and perseverance?

I, therefore, the prisoner in the Lord, urge you to walk worthy of the calling you have received. (Ephesians 4:1)

There it is—the first of our series of practical applications of how we are to walk in Christ.  We are to walk worthy.  Before we can fully comprehend what this admonition means, there’s one word we need to explore and that is the word therefore.  To understand that word we need to go all the way back to Ephesians 1:9-10.

He [God] made known to us the mystery of His will, according to His good pleasure that He planned in Him for the administration of the days of fulfillment—to bring everything together in the Messiah, both things in heaven and things on earth in Him. [HCSB]

What we know from this Scripture is this:

• God’s will is in line with His plan that not only pleases Him, but that will one day be fulfilled.
• God’s will was a mystery, but has now been made known to man.
• God’s will is to bring all things in heaven and on earth together in Christ, the Messiah.

From the start God’s plan was to bring everything together in the Messiah.  Uh, oh…does anybody else see a problem here?  How could that plan be accomplished in light of man’s choice in the Garden to disobey?  Not to worry, because before the foundation of the world God made the choice that all who were “in Christ” would be holy and blameless before Him.  (Eph. 1:4)  He set the boundary to which He would go to enfold mankind “in Christ” and redeem us from the power and penalty of sin, and that boundary was love.  It was love that took the only begotten Son of God all the way to the cross where He paid the price for our rebellion against the Father and opened the way for mankind to be adopted as sons and daughters for God Himself.  You see, the cross of Christ is the ultimate expression of God’s love for mankind (John 3:16), and the Gospel is the revelation of that which was once a mystery—God’s plan for bringing all things together in the Messiah.  The way “in” is the way of faith, the way of believing and trusting.

But to all who did receive Him [Jesus], He gave them the right to be children of God, to those who believe in His name. (John 1:12)

For by grace you are saved through faith, and this is not from yourselves; it is God’s gift—not from works, so that no one can boast. (Eph. 2:8-9)

That’s why there’s no place in heaven for those who reject Christ.  Because everything will be under the rule and reign of the Messiah, those who refuse to be under His authority must be banished.  And because God is the source of life and light and hope and peace and everything that is good, the unrepentant will be banished to a place of eternal darkness and torment apart from everything that is good.  The only way to live in God’s presence is to be holy and blameless, and because of man’s sinful condition, the only way to be holy and blameless before God is to be “in Christ.”

With this great plan in mind, God chose Abraham through his son, Isaac, and grandson, Jacob, to create a people through whom the Messiah would appear.  During the days of Moses the Law was given to them as a guardian to restrain their evil behavior and preserve them for God’s purpose (Gal. 3:24).  But hostility existed between those who lived under the Law (Jews) and those who didn’t (Gentiles).

When Jesus came to earth, conceived of the Holy Spirit and born of the virgin Mary, He made peace by the blood of His cross—peace within, peace with God, peace with man.

For He is our peace, who made both groups one and tore down the dividing wall of hostility.  In His flesh, He did away with the law of the commandments in regulations, so that He might create in Himself one new man from the two, resulting in peace.  [He did this so] that He might reconcile both to God in one body through the cross and put the hostility to death by it.  (Eph. 2:14-16)

That “one new man” which Christ created IS His body—the Church, whose purpose Paul states in the verses immediately preceding our text is to bring glory to God.  In fact, earlier in Eph. 1:22 Paul described the Body of Christ as the fullness of the One who fills all things in every way.  Wait…push pause…think about that a minute.  Can there be any greater source of glory to God than the completion and fulfillment of His plan to bring everything together in the Messiah?  Can there be any other fulfillment of that plan than the Body of Christ, that “one new man” under the rule and reign of Christ?

To Him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus to all generations, forever and ever. Amen. (Eph. 3:21)

And that’s what the “therefore” is “there for”.  Because of all Paul taught in Eph. 1-3 about God’s purpose and our position as believers “in Christ”, he’s now going to turn His attention to the practical matter of how that life in Christ is lived out during our remaining time on earth.  And he begins by saying walk worthy of the calling you have received.  That word “calling” means “invitation.”  Now the invitation to be “in Christ” is open to every man.

The Lord does not delay His promise, as some understand delay, but is patient with you, not wanting any to perish, but all to come to repentance. (2 Peter 3:9)

But Paul’s admonition to the church here is that ever believer’s walk should be appropriate or fitting for one who’s been invited to be “in Christ”.  In other words, as a believer in Christ your manner of life should reflect the fact that you’ve accepted the invitation.  He goes on in vv.2-3 to describe what that walk looks like.

With all humility and gentleness, with patience, accepting one another in love, diligently keeping the unity of the Spirit with the peace that binds [us]. (Eph. 4:2-3)

Next time we’ll look at each of these qualities in more detail to discover what a worthy walk looks like. Until then, may your heart be encouraged and overflow with thanksgiving as day by day you live in the knowledge of God’s plan and purpose for your life—to be under the rule and reign of the Messiah.

1) He reminds the believers at Ephesus how they used to walk in the past:

And you were dead in your trespasses and sins in which you previously walked according to this worldly age, according to the ruler of the atmospheric domain, the spirit now working in the disobedient.  We all too previously lived among them in our fleshly desires, carrying out the inclinations of our flesh and thoughts, and by nature we were children under wrath, as the others were also.  (Ephesians 2:1-3)

Paul is reminding them that at one time they were walking dead men.  They walked according to this world, according to the spirit working in the disobedient.  They lived to carry out the desires of their fleshly thoughts.

2) He directs their gaze forward to how they now walk as believers in Christ.  Verse 4 of that chapter begins with the words, “But God…”  But God, because of His mercy and love intervened to bring salvation; not by the merits of man, not through any work of man, but solely and completely by the grace of God—God giving the desire and power to believe; faith being the expression of that belief.

For we are His creation—created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared ahead of time so that we should walk in them. (Ephesians 2:10)

We are saved—not by good works, but for good works; works in which God prepared for us to walk.  You may be wondering, “What are the good works God prepared for us to walk in?”  Paul, in his letter to the Ephesians gives us a series of practical applications of how we are to walk, that is how we are to live in Christ.

• 4:1- walk worthy
• 4:17- walk not as the Gentiles in the futility of their thoughts
• 5:2- walk in love
• 5:8- walk as children of light
• 5:15- walk paying careful attention

In the next few weeks we will examine each of these individually to see how they apply them to our walk as a believer in the 21^st century.  Then, as backwards as it may seem to us, we’ll see in Ephesians 6 that it’s in learning how to walk that we learn to stand.

We must cooperate with the Father in His work of bringing every part of our lives together in the Messiah, that is in bringing every part of our lives under the rule and reign of Christ.  That means every attitude, every relationship, every thought, every opinion, every action, every reaction, EVERYTHING submitted to the rule and reign of Christ.  And that’s HARD WORK.  Remember James 1:25, But the one who looks intently into the perfect law of freedom and perseveres in it, and is not a forgetful hearer but a doer who acts—this person will be blessed in what he does.  If we persevere in this hard work, that is the work of bringing everything in our lives under the rule and reign of Christ, we will be blessed!

Now you may be wondering, “How do we walk in those good works?”  As believers, we walk according to the power God gives us through the indwelling of the Holy Spirit.

In Him you also, when you heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation—in Him when you believed—were sealed with the promised Holy Spirit.  (Ephesians 1:13)

I pray that the eyes of your heart may be enlightened so you may know what is the…immeasurable greatness of His power to us who believe, according to the working of His vast strength.  (Ephesians 1:18-19)

The power He gives us is the same power that raised Jesus from the dead and gave Him all authority for all eternity.  (Ephesians 1:20-23)  That’s the ultimate in power!  It’s the power that is able to do above and beyond all that we ask or think. (Ephesians 3:20)  It’s the power that is able to give us the desire, courage, and everything we need to do His will.  (2 Peter 1:3)  It’s the power of the Holy Spirit, our guide and comforter that, working in us as we cooperate, conforms us to the image of His Son, and brings God glory in the church and in Christ Jesus to all generations, forever and ever. Amen. (Ephesians 3:21)

In the next few weeks you will have the opportunity to examine your walk as a believer in Christ, and order your steps according to God’s Word.  As long as you are in this body of flesh, no matter what stage of maturity you reach in Christ, you will never get beyond the need of examining your walk in the light of God’s Word and your willingness to yield to God’s Spirit.   I’ll say it again:  It’s hard work!  It’s work we want to procrastinate. It’s work we want to avoid.  It’s work we want to ignore.  But it’s work that will be blessed!  Will you join me in encouraging one another to persevere in this work?  Together let us grow in every way into Him who is the head—Christ.  (Ephesians 4:15)

TO RECAP:

• Sunday, Jan 8 – (11:00 only) – I Then Shall Live
• Wednesday, Jan 11 – NO rehearsal (January Bible Study with Dr. Bobby Kelly)
• Sunday, Jan 15 – (11:00 only) – Not Unto Us  (Adria Smith, soloist)
• Wednesday, Jan 18 – REHEARSALS RESUME (6:30)
• Sunday, Jan 22 – (11:00 only) – I Believe God
• Wednesday, Jan 25 – Regular Rehearsal (6:30)
• Sunday, Jan 29 – (11:00 only) – We Are the Church

Can’t wait to see you all,

Bro. James

I hope you are gearing up for the Getty’s this Friday.  We can use several of you this Friday morning to load in the Gettys BUT WE NEED ABOUT 20 FOLKS TO STICK AROUND Friday NIGHT TO LOAD THEM OUT AND SET US BACK UP FOR Sunday.  PLEASE SIGN UP ON THE LIST or CALL (302-3006, desk phone) or EMAIL CINDY (cwallace@qsbc.org) YOUR PREFERENCE.  Guys and girls welcome.  Orchestra chairs and stands, trap set, keyboards, piano, etc all need to be positioned.

This Sunday night is our Christmas Homecoming (meet Sun aft @ 4:30).  This is the same kind of “Gaither style” sing along that we have done in the past, led by you…the QSBC Choir and Orchestra.  You guys will sing a couple of specials including A CHRISTMAS TO REMEMBER from the CD project last year.  You might give it a listen between now and then.  (meet Sun aft @ 4:30)  The other songs will be familiar Christmas songs and carols.  ”DRESS REHEARSAL” will be
this Wednesday at 6:30 in the Worship Center.  I need all hands on deck for this evening presentation!  (meet Sun aft @ 4:30)  These Homecomings are some of the favorite evenings of our church family.  I’m counting on you to make His praise glorious once again.

Following the Homecoming service, we meet up in the café for our Christmas party.  Go get your children from the childcare area and bring ‘em along.  No extended childcare for this party.  Also, remember your requested food or drink item.  MMMMMMMM GOOD!

If you are getting this letter on Thursday or later…all info is still for you.  If the mail is slow to your box, there is still a HUGE invitation for you to come Sunday night.  All music for Homecoming is singable and prepared for your ease.  You know how
important you are to filling the loft.  Thanks for planning to be present with or without the run through Wed night .  You have done this before and you can do it again!

Bless you all and know that my Christmas season is always richer because of the opportunity to spend it with each of you!!!

Bro. James

WE’RE LOOKING FOR PEOPLE WITH A SONG IN THEIR HEART…Nothing surpasses the beauty of a song that springs from the lips of a heart that has been changed. As the redeemed, we have a song to sing; a song that reflects the work of God in our lives; a song that expresses our love and devotion to Christ; a song—the only song that is worth singing.

WE’RE LOOKING FOR PEOPLE WITH A SONG IN THEIR HEART WHO ARE FILLED WITH THE SPIRIT OF GOD…To quote the old hymn, “All is vain unless the Spirit of the Holy One comes down.” God’s Word through Zechariah was, “Not by might, nor by power, but by My Spirit.” Even our Savior reminded us, “Apart from Me you can do nothing.” Only as the Holy Spirit fills each person and anoints each song is the fragrance of Christ lavished on every needy soul—a pleasing aroma to our Heavenly Father.

Are you such a person?  One with a song in your heart, filled with the Holy Spirit?

THEN WE’RE LOOKING FOR YOU!

Won’t you join us in rehearsal this week on Wednesday evening, 6:30-7:30 in the Choir Room (B210)?

Click here to enroll in Adult Choir for the Fall 2011 session.

Click here to view the schedule of rehearsals for all age groups.

Ever since we sang these words in church last night I’ve been drawn to reflect on my own personal experience of salvation.  I do still remember the day that I was saved.  For me it wasn’t the first time I heard Him call out my name.  Even as a nine year old child I tried to rationalize salvation with three excuses.  First, I didn’t think my sin wasn’t so bad–after all, I was just nine.  Surely I hadn’t done anything really bad. (Had I?…)  Second, I was active in church.  When I say active, I mean more than active–we were there for every event of the church.  in fact, we involved ourselves in no activity that would interfere with being in God’s house doing God’s work anytime, anywhere.  Surely my actions were good enough.  (Weren’t they?…)  Third, I recognized that my parents had a genuine relationship with Christ.  Surely He wouldn’t let me go tot hell and disappoint them.  (Would He?…)

Ironically, it was because of what I learned from all that time in church, and what I saw in my parents’ lives that God’s Word had been embedded in my heart.  When every argument I hurled at that Solid Rock of Truth shattered against it, I saw that truly Christ was the only way I would ever get to heaven–the only way I would ever have real life.  In an instant I embraced that Truth from the depths of my being and that was the moment I was saved–Wednesday evening, May 26, 1965.

Do you remember the day He saved you?  Maybe you don’t remember the exact date, but you remember the occasion.  Take time to reflect on it.  (Share it below if you like.)  You will be blessed as you joyfully draw water from the springs of salvation (Isaiah 12:3).  If you don’t have a salvation experience to remember, perhaps this is the day you hear Him calling your name.  I urge you to respond to His tender mercies.

“Come, to Me, all of you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest.  All of you, take up My yoke and learn from Me, because I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for yourselves.” (Matthew 11:28-29)

 

Jesus answered, “If anyone loves Me, he will keep My word.  My Father will love him, and We will come to him and make Our home with him.” (John 14:23)

I promise you, you’ll never be the same!

(We Will Remember by Tommy Walker © 2005 Doulos Publishing)

First every chair must be filled with a body.  Participation is necessary to the choir ministry.  Obviously, without choir members there can be no choir.  We can boast large numbers on paper from people who come and go, but without choir members showing up in the flesh, effectively we have no choir.  It’s just that simple.  Participation is necessary to the choir ministry.  Every chair must be filled with a body, for without bodies the choir has no presence.

But simply filling chairs with bodies isn’t enough.  Every chair must be filled with a song.  While there are many beautiful songs in the world, nothing surpasses the beauty of a song that springs from the lips of a heart that has been changed.  As the redeemed, we have a song to sing; a song that reflects the work of God in our lives; a song that expresses our love and devotion to Christ; a song—the only song—that is worth singing.  If we have NO song in our hearts, may no choir chair ever be filled again!  While participation is necessary, songs are vital, for without a song the choir has no purpose.

As important as it is to have every chair filled with a body and a song, one thing more is needed.  Every chair must be filled with the Spirit.  To quote the old hymn, “All is vain unless the Spirit of the Holy One comes down.”  God’s Word through Zechariah was, “Not by might, nor by power, but by My Spirit.”  Even our Savior reminded us, “Apart from Me you can do nothing.”    We can fill every chair in the choir loft with bodies every Sunday morning to gratify our eyes.  Every Sunday morning we can fill every chair in the choir loft with beautiful songs to satisfy our ears.  But as the Holy Spirit fills each body and anoints each song, the fragrance of Christ is lavished on every needy soul and is a pleasing aroma to our Heavenly Father.  Participation is necessary, songs are vital, and the Holy Spirit is indispensable, for without the Spirit the choir has no power.

Presence, purpose, power; a body, a song, the Spirit.  Do you understand that all are essential to an effective choir ministry?  Now, how serious will you take the charge?  Will you prayerfully consider your part in making it more than a motto, but a reality?  It must become our battle cry:  Every Chair Filled…with a body, a song, and the Spirit!

This morning we drove to Olive, OK to sing for the morning service at First Baptist Church.  Their Minister of Music & Youth and his wife, Josh & Blair Henson, along with four of their youth, Martana Whitehead, Melissa Whitehead, Sierra Whitehead and Kylie Reiter. 

This trip will be the springboard to help them launch a youth ensemble in the Fall.  It has been a great experience for all of us as the girls and our kids became famous friends, and Josh & Blair were a great assent to our sponsor team.  We sang six songs during their morning service and heard a sermon from Ephesians 4:1-6 that just wrapped a bow around what we’ve been talking about all week in the devotions and our Scripture theme. (pictured l to r: Josh, Melissa, Sierra, Kylie, Martana, and Blair)

Our other sponsor couple was Troy & Suzzane Duncan.  Every year God puts together just the right people for the right trip, and this year was no exception.  We are so grateful for their contribution to our mission.

This is the last post from the road as we will be home in about 45 minutes.  Tonight is our home concert at QSBC.  The group from Olive as well as several from their church will make the drive to OKC to join us.  We are looking forward to a great evening.  By the time we get home we will have traveled 2317 miles through 5 different states, sung for around 600 people in 9 detention centers, youth and homeless shelters, and seen about 220 pray to receive Christ–not to mention the spiritual growth our kids have experienced and we have witnessed.  (Not to mention singing at the Air Force Academy Chapel, white water rafting, Royal Gorge, Pike’s Peak, Garden of the Gods and Glen Eyrie.)  Another great choir tour is now in the history books.  Only time and eternity will reveal all the fruit from the seeds that have been sown.  While we may not really know the exact number of people who gave their hearts to Christ, He knows and on the basis of His Word we trust that He will continue the good work He has begun in them.

Who may ascend the mountain of the Lord?  Who may stand in His holy place?  The one who has clean hands and a pure heart, who has not set his mind on what is false, and who has not sworn deceitfully.  He will receive blessing form the Lord, and righteousness from the God of his salvation.  Such is the generation of those who seek Him, who seek the face of the God of Jacob. –Psalm 24: 3-6

After spending last night in Dodge City, KS we made our way to Hutchinson where we ate lunch before going to First Southern Baptist Church to sing for a group of about 15 youth, mostly from Reno County Youth Shelter.  The pastor and youth minister at First Southern do a Bible study every Tuesday night for these kids.  They are teenagers who have been removed from their homes by the state for various reasons.  Because of the smallness of their facility, the kids were transported to the church where we sang, stomped and shared our message of hope and change.  When Bro. James asked those who prayed to receive Christ to acknowledge their desire for him to continue to pray for them, 10 people including the two workers from the shelter raised their hands.  One of the workers was visibly moved and well into the next song was wiping tears that were running down her face.

A Scripture that kept coming back to me these last few days which I shared with the kids this morning is Isaiah 61:1-4,6. 

“The Spirit of the Lord God is on Me, because the Lord has anointed Me to bring good news to the poor.  He has sent Me to heal the brokenhearted, to proclaim liberty to the captives, and freedom to the prisoners; to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favor, and the day of our God’s vengeance; to comfort all who mourn, to provide for those who mourn in Zion; to give them a crown of beauty instead of ashes, festive oil instead of mourning, and splendid clothes instead of despair.  And they [i.e. the poor, the brokenhearted, the captives, the prisoners and all who mourn] will be called righteous trees, planted by the Lord, to glorify Him.  They will rebuild the ancient ruins; they will restore the former devastations; they will renew the ruined cities, [this next phrase I just really noticed today] the devastations of many generations…But you will be called the Lord’s priests; they will speak of you as ministers of our God.”

The kids we sang for today, as in all the facilities we were in, are the product of “the devastations of many generations.”  This is the ministry we’ve had these last nine days.  A ministry that our youth choir has embraced with all their being.  A ministry that sets this choir apart from other youth choirs and a ministry that we hope continues for many years to come.

We left Hutchinson and arrived in Ponca City in time for supper.  (You should have heard the whoopin’ and hollerin’ in the bus when we got inside Oklahoma!)  After supper we spent the evening in the gym at Northeast Baptist Church where James’s good friend and fellow Singing Churchman, Guy Cooper, is Minister of Music.  After basketball, volleyball and other games, we settled in a room and had our annual Secret Saint Reveal.  Bro. James began by sharing the character qualities seen in his Secret Saint, Alisha Lackey, who then shared the character qualities she had observed in her secret saint, Meagan Thomas, who then shared and revealed her secret saint, and so on until Casea Boyd revealed her secret saint as Bro. James.  After that Caleb led us in a time of worship and several of the kids shared their feelings about the trip and each other, especially towards the seniors in the group.  It was a very emotional time and one they did not want to end.  But since we had to leave so they could close the building, the love continued on the bus where when we arrived at the hotel we could hardly get the kids off the bus.  Then when we got them off of the bus we could hardly get them out of the parking lot.  Eventually everyone made it to their rooms in a timely fashion for room checks and tape on the doors.  What a special year this has been with a great group of kids!

In the morning we get up and head to Olive, OK where we will sing in the morning service before heading down the turnpike to OKC and our home concert at QSBC.  Can’t wait to get home and let the kids sing, stomp and share with all of you.