Tag Archives: Cece Winans

Worship Wednesday – The Goodness – TobyMac & Blessing Offor

Photo Credit: Instagram, TobyMac

“I am certain that I will see the Lord’s goodness in the land of the living. Wait for the Lord;
be strong, and let your heart be courageous. Wait for the Lord.”
Psalm 27:13-14

Taste and see that the Lord is good. How happy is the person who takes refuge in him!
You who are his holy ones, fear the Lord, for those who fear him lack nothing. Young lions lack food and go hungry, but those who seek the Lord will not lack any good thing.
Psalm 34:8-10

“Be still, and know that I am God; I will be exalted among the nations, I will be exalted in the earth.”Psalm 46:10

“The LORD is gracious and compassionate, slow to anger and abounding in loving devotion. The LORD is good to all; His compassion rests on all He has made. All You have made will give You thanks, O LORD, and Your saints will bless You.” Psalm 145:8-10

Today has been the quietest of days. This may be unrelatable to most and the envy of some. I love a full day myself usually…but today was a gift. A gift of quiet.

Within that quiet I was reminded of the many Psalms that speak to the goodness of God. How He loves and moves with both mercy and justice in this world. When we are bombarded by news, much of it bad, and the challenges and distractions of life, the temptation is to take matters into our own hands. To make ourselves the actors in this narrative. What a blessing to have a block of time to quiet the mind and remember the reality of a sovereign God. It takes stillness to listen to the Spirit of God and our own hearts as we gather our thoughts around the beauty of His character. I had that kind of day.

It doesn’t take a day though, right? A moment will do. Even in the midst of busy little ones or weary old ones, as well as demanding work or co-workers, we can turn our hearts in wonder at the goodness of God.

Christian artists TobyMac and Blessing Offor sing together about The Goodness of God. Both of these men have known terrible loss, and yet they will tell you that God’s goodness meets them at every turn.

Quiet days leave me quiet, but I want to share this song and my own gratefulness to God for His great goodness.

Worship with me.

You made the rain
So when it falls on me
Should I complain?
Or feel You callin’ me?
It’s all on me to stay
And really catch what You’re showin’
It’s my roots that You’re growin’
‘Cause life is more than this moment

You are the Light
So when the darkness falls
The greatest heights
They never seem so tall
No, not at all
You’re right
It’s my roots that You’re growin’
Don’t want to miss what You’re showin’

Ain’t no doubt about You
Everywhere that I go
You keep showin’ up
Lord, You make me wanna shout it, oh
You’re the goodness in my life
And I’ma tell you my truth
They may come, they may go
You keep showin’ up, sure do
Ain’t no doubt about it
You are, You are the goodness in my life

You are the joy (Joy)
You’re the smile on the face of Your boy (Boy)
You’re the flowers at that park in Detroit
Still the words on the back of our coins
Let’s make some noise

You cover me
My Defender when You’re rollin’ up Your sleeves

You’re the truth that’s gonna set the captive free
The only King that’s ever chose to bleed (Chose to bleed)
Is what I believe (What I believe)

But they keep tryin’ to make Your glory fade (Fade)
But I ain’t really sweatin’ what they say (Say)

Ain’t no doubt about You
Everywhere that I go
You keep showin’ up
Lord, You make me wanna shout it, oh
You’re the goodness in my life
And I’ma tell you my truth
They may come, they may go
You keep showin’ up, sure do
Ain’t no doubt about it
You are, You are the goodness in my life

Through the good and the bad and the ugly
I can still see the sunshine above me
Lord, I love all the ways that You love me
You’re the good, You’re the good
You’re the goodness
Through the good and the bad and the ugly (Woo)
I can still feel see the sunshine above me (Tell ’em, Blessing)
Lord, I love all the ways that You love me (Yeah)
You’re the good, You’re the good
You’re the goodness

You’re the good (You are)
You’re the good (You are)
You’re the good, You’re the good
You’re the goodness (You’re the goodness)
You’re the good (You are)
You’re the good (You are)
You’re the good, You’re the good
You’re the goodness

Ain’t no doubt about You (Ain’t no doubt about You)
Everywhere that I go
You keep showin’ up (You keep showin’ up)
Lord, You make me wanna shout it, oh (Ah)
You’re the goodness in my life
And I’ma tell you my truth (Yeah)
They may come, they may go (They may come, they may go)
You keep showin’ up, sure do
Ain’t no doubt about it (Ain’t no doubt about it, woo)
You are, You are the goodness in my life (The goodness in my life)

You’re the good (You are good)
You’re the good (You are good)
You’re the good, You’re the good
You’re the goodness in my life (You’re the goodness in my life)
You’re the good (You are good)
You’re the good (You are good) (In my life)
You’re the good, You’re the good (Yes, You are)
You’re the goodness in my life (Yeah, ooh)
You’re the good (You are good) (Thank You)
You’re the good (You are good) (Yes, You are)
You’re the good, You’re the good
You’re the goodness in my life

You are, You are still the goodness in my life.*

*Lyrics to The Goodness – Songwriters: TobyMac, Kyle Williams, Gabe Real, & Bryan Fowler

Worship Wednesday – Habakkuk’s Response to the Incomprehensible Goodness of God – Deb Mills

Photo Credit: Greg Sloop

Worship Wednesday – Goodness of God – CeCe Winans – Deb Mills

Photo Credit: YouTube

YouTube Video – Goodness of God – CeCe Winans (Live)

YouTube Video – Goodness of God – Bethel Music – Brian & Jenn Johnson

Worship Wednesday – Goodness of God – CeCe Winans

Photo Credit: YouTube

One generation will commend Your works to the next, and will proclaim Your mighty acts— the glorious splendor of Your majesty. And I will meditate on Your wondrous works. They will proclaim the power of Your awesome deeds, and I will declare Your greatness.  They will extol the fame of Your abundant goodness and sing joyfully of Your righteousness. The LORD is gracious and compassionate, slow to anger and abounding in loving devotion. The LORD is good to all; His compassion rests on all He has made.    Psalm 145:4-9

Let us hold fast the confession of our hope without wavering, for He who promised is faithful.Hebrews 10:23

Can we take a moment out of this busy day and reflect on the goodness and faithfulness of God?

I’d like to stay in the present except for just a few reflections on my life story which is His story of goodness to me. Here we go:

  • Born in a charity ward of a downtown hospital in Atlanta, Georgia. Wanted by my mama.
  • One of four children – our lives protected while mom worked while a biological father didn’t nor did he care for us.
  • Following our parents’ divorce, we were unchurched until neighbors invited us to their church. Thankful for God’s protection and pursuit of us.
  • Saved at the age of 9. Discovered the wonder of a loving God.
  • Grew up in the nurture and admonition of the Lord who kept us all together with a working mom and step-dad.
  • Kept from wandering too far from God during college and my 20s.
  • Found favor professionally as a nurse and educator.
  • Came to my senses spiritually before marrying someone not right for me.
  • In my 30s, met and married Dave, a man who loved and reverenced the Lord …and loved me (no small thing).
  • 3 children I never thought I would get to have. A beautiful gift from God.
  • Served in the local church and then in work overseas. Privileged to raise our kids first in Tennessee and then in Africa. Blessing.
  • Have had great grace lavished on us in the losses of people most dear to us through the years.
  • Experiencing the joy of in-law children and grandchildren. Thank You, God.
  • All the goodbyes and hellos of enduring friendships and family relationships near and far – who share a forever future together with the Lord.
  • Healing from cancer and God’s protection in good health in this moment.
  • The opportunity to continue to serve Him in my neighborhood and beyond.

Well…that was a longer look than you probably thought. Me with you.

Now to this moment: listen to yourself breathe. What’s going on right where you are? Whose voices penetrate your hearing? What thoughts come sharply to mind…even as you tune to this moment?

We are never alone with those thoughts. The God of the universe has made His home with us. Each one of us.

Best of all, He loves us. He calls us to Kingdom purposes. Nothing or nobody is insignificant. We are vessels of His glory and His goodness. He is ever faithful. Forever faithful.

Remember He’s not finished. He finished the work to reconcile us to Himself in Jesus…that is done. Yet we can also take hope in this: Whatever He is doing in the world and in our lives right now…He’s not done yet. He has promised His faithfulness to complete what He has begun (Philippians 1:6).

Earlier this week, I heard CeCe Winans‘ rendition of Bethel Music‘s Goodness of God. It’s been on repeat in my head ever since.

We spend too much time in the past and the future. We have regrets and we can’t help but believe those regrets will tarnish our future. Stay here in this present moment and rest in the goodness of God. He loves us, Dear Ones. He loves us as only a good God can.

Worship with me:

I love You, Lord
For Your mercy never fails me
All my days
I’ve been held in Your hand
From the moment that I wake up
Until I lay my head
Oh, I will sing of the goodness of God

‘Cause all my life You have been faithful
And all my life You have been so so good
With every breath that I am able
Oh, I will sing of the goodness of God

I love Your voice
You have led me through the fire
In darkest night
You are close like no other
I’ve known You as a father
I’ve known You as a friend
And I have lived in the goodness of God (Hey)

‘Cause all my life You have been faithful
(Oh yes you have)
And all my life You have been so so good
With every breath that I am able
Oh, I will sing of the goodness of God

Your goodness is running after
It’s running after me
Your goodness is running after
It’s running after me
With my life laid down
I surrender now
I give You everything (Oh Lord)
Your goodness is running after
It’s running after me

Your goodness is running after (Oh yeah)
It’s running after me
Your goodness is running after (Oh yeah)
It’s running after me
With my life laid down
I surrender now
I give You everything (Everything)
Your goodness is running after
It’s running after me

And all my life You have been faithful
And all my life You have been so so good
With every breath that I am able
Oh, I’m gonna sing of the goodness of God
I’m gonna sing

All my life You have been faithful (All of my life You’ve been faithful)
All my life You have been so so good (So good, with every breath)
With every breath that I am able (Every breath I’m able)
I will sing (I’m gonna sing) of the goodness of God
Yes I am
I will sing of the goodness of God
I’m gonna sing of the goodness of God*

*Lyrics to Goodness of God – Songwriters: Brian Mark Johnson, Ben David Fielding, Ed Cash, Jenn Louise Johnson & Jason Ingram

Gospel Singer CeCe Winans Launching First National Tour in Over a Decade – R. O. Read

Worship Wednesday – Habukkuk’s Response to the Incomprehensible Goodness of God – Deb Mills

Worship Wednesday – When Storms Come, We Still Have a Good, Good Father – Chris Tomlin & Pat Barrett – Deb Mills

The Story Behind Goodness of God – Joy 99 – featuring songwriter Jenn Johnson – song inspired by God’s goodness in her son’s adoption story

Worship Wednesday – Christmas in October – Peace on Earth – Casting Crowns

Photo Credit: Casting Crowns, YouTube

Adapted from the Archives

[Our family begins singing/listening to Christmas carols in October. Too many beautiful, God-glorifying songs to fit in one month. So…Christmas in October starts tomorrow…and we sure need it …Him.]

“See, I am going to send my messenger, and he will clear the way before me. Then the Lord you seek will suddenly come to his temple, the Messenger of the covenant you delight in—see, he is coming,” says the Lord of Armies.

You have said, “It is useless to serve God. What have we gained by keeping his requirements and walking mournfully before the Lord of Armies?  So now we consider the arrogant to be fortunate. Not only do those who commit wickedness prosper, they even test God and escape.”

At that time those who feared the Lord spoke to one another. The Lord took notice and listened. So a book of remembrance was written before him for those who feared the Lord and had high regard for his name.  “They will be mine,” says the Lord of Armies, “my own possession on the day I am preparing. I will have compassion on them as a man has compassion on his son who serves him. Malachi 3:1, 14-17

Then the angel said to them, “Do not be afraid, for behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy which will be to all people. For there is born to you this day in the city of David a Savior, who is Christ the Lord… And suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host praising God and saying:

“Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace, goodwill toward men!” – Luke 2:10-11, 13-14

In December, 1863, American poet and scholar Henry W. Longfellow received his wounded son home from battle. It was Christmas time, and the U.S. Civil War raged on. Having already lost his wife years earlier, Longfellow nursed his son, Charley, back to health. His own thoughts, in turmoil over all that was happening around him, he poured out in the poem “Christmas Bells”.

Longfellow clearly took comfort from God as he wrote, ending the poem with this stanza:

“God is not dead, nor doth He sleep;
        The Wrong shall fail,
        The Right prevail,
    With peace on earth, good-will to men.”*

I Heard the Bells is a Christmas carol, not a worship anthem. Yet, given continuing wars and current hardships, we must tend the fires of our hope. God is the “lifter of our heads” (Psalm 3:3). He is the One who gives strength to our “weak hands and shaking knees” (Isaiah 35:3). He will do as He’s promised. He is faithful.

We desperately need those bells of Christmas ringing over our cities and countrysides.In fact, wouldn’t it be a lovely concert to hear church bells ringing together over the din of divisiveness right now.

We, in our fleshing out the love of Christ, are the Christmas bells in our culture. May we never be the noisy gong or clanging cymbal of those without love! May we, like Longfellow, nurse those we love, wounded in this world’s battles, back to wholeness and a living hope in Christ.

When you hear the bells ring where you are, take heart in that. We will continue to pray for His peace on earth…and in our own hearts.  We can be vessels of His good-will toward our neighbors, both very near…and far away.

Worship with me…

I Heard the Bells on Christmas Day (Lyric video)

I heard the bells on Christmas day
Their old familiar carols play
And mild and sweet their songs repeat
Of peace on earth good will to men

And the bells are ringing (Peace on Earth)
Like a choir they’re singing (Peace on Earth)
In my heart I hear them
Peace on earth, good will to men

And in despair I bowed my head
There is no peace on earth I said
For hate is strong and mocks the song
Of peace on earth, good will to men

But the bells are ringing (Peace on Earth)
Like a choir singing (Peace on Earth)
Does anybody hear them?
Peace on earth, good will to men

Then rang the bells more loud and deep
God is not dead, nor doth He sleep (Peace on Earth, peace on Earth)
The wrong shall fail, the right prevail
With peace on earth, good will to men

Then ringing singing on its way

The world revolved from night to day
A voice, a chime, a chant sublime
Of peace on earth, good will to men

And the bells they’re ringing (Peace on Earth)
Like a choir they’re singing (Peace on Earth)
And with our hearts we’ll hear them
Peace on earth, good will to men

Do you hear the bells they’re ringing? (Peace on Earth)
The life the angels singing (Peace on Earth)
Open up your heart and hear them (Peace on Earth)
Peace on earth, good will to men

Peace on earth, Peace on earth
Peace on earth, Good will to men*

* Lyrics to I Heard the Bells – Casting Crowns – Writers: Mark Hall, Dale Oliver, and Bernhard Herms

YouTube Video – Casting Crowns performing I Heard the Bells on Christmas Day

Casting Crowns’ Mark Hall On Christmas (Teaching Vignettes)

Christmas Carol Soldier – Story of Charley Appleton Longfellow & the occasion for H. W. Longfellow’s writing of the poem/lyric

The Story Behind I Heard the Bells On Christmas Day – Tom Stewart

*Longfellow’s poem Christmas Bells

Worship Wednesday – I Surrender All – Robin Mark

Photo Credit: SlideServe

Trust in the LORD with all your heart, and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways acknowledge Him, and He will make your paths straight.Proverbs 3:5-6

Then Jesus told his disciples, “If anyone would come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross and follow me. For whoever would save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for my sake will find it. For what will it profit a man if he gains the whole world and forfeits his soul? Or what shall a man give in return for his soul? For the Son of Man is going to come with his angels in the glory of his Father, and then he will repay each person according to what he has done.”Matthew 16:24-27

Truly, truly, I say to you, unless a grain of wheat falls into the earth and dies, it remains alone; but if it dies, it bears much fruit.
 – John 12:24

Going a little farther, he [Jesus] fell face down and prayed, “My Father, if it is possible, let this cup pass from me. Yet not as I will, but as you will.”  Matthew 26:39

All in.

As Jesus prayed in the garden, just hours before He would give His life for us on the cross, He wrestled with the Father. He was willing; He was always willing. From the beginning of time…or before. He was all in.

Yet the weight of what He was about to accomplish must have pinned Him to the ground. Before He would be pinned to the cross.

All the sins of the world. All. The worst of it…my sins. He would take them all on His sinless self on the cross. To provide a path for us back to God. To restore us to holy God. For us “not His people” to become His people (1 Peter 2:10). God’s justice, love, and mercy revealed perfectly in Jesus.

This Sunday, at Movement Church, we sang that beautiful old hymn I Surrender All. I am so grateful that our worship leader, most Sundays, includes a hymn in the songs we sing. This time as we were singing, something happened to the computer/projector setup, and the lyrics vanished for a couple of verses.

A few of us kept singing without the lyrics in front of us (maybe because we knew the words from our own childhood). Growing up in an era of summer revivals and extended altar calls gave rise to knowing most songs from that section of the hymnal (often and thoroughly sung in revival services).

The words finally popped back up on the screen, but in the between time, my mind went back to those days in my youth of singing that song, over and over, at the end of a service.

Surrendering all is beyond our ability. We need the One who truly surrendered Himself fully to saving us. For this life and the next. My struggle in surrendering my life daily to Christ can be sullied by duty and self-interest. Worship leader Zac Hicks had this to say:

“The truth is that you and I are horrible surrender-ers. We don’t really surrender our lives to God with as much wholeheartedness, conviction, and forthrightness as we sometimes think. To make matters worse, when we find ourselves in a moment of “genuine” consecration and giving up of ourselves, we almost immediately and instinctively begin to feel good about ourselves and pat ourselves on the back. We are sick and diseased. Our only hope comes when we look to the Man who really did “surrender it all” to God, for us and for our salvation. He made himself nothing, taking the very form of a servant, becoming obedient to death, even death on a cross (Phil 2).

If I’m honest, I can’t in good conscience say “I surrender all” to Jesus. What I can say, sing, even shout is, “Jesus surrendered all for me.” Not to us, not to us, but to Your name be the glory.”Zac Hicks [Read the whole piece here.]

I do believe that we can desire to surrender all…as we move through our lives. As, by His Holy Spirit, we are being renewed in our minds, in the process of being conformed to the image of Christ, “daily daily” to the things of this world. Remembering, as Zac Hicks wrote, to ever remember and give glory to Jesus who did surrender all.

Robin Mark, a Christian singer songwriter from Northern Ireland sings I Surrender All. Mark wrote Days of Elijah. His “When It’s All Been Said and Done” is the background song on my Mom’s memorial page (if there was ever one in my life who was all in – as much as was humanly possible in her life – it was my mom).

Worship with me to this great old song – remembering what the Lord has done for us.

All to Jesus I surrender,
All to him I freely give;
I will ever love and trust him,
In his presence daily live.

Refrain:
I surrender all,
I surrender all,
All to thee, my blessed Savior,
I surrender all.

All to Jesus I surrender,
Humbly at his feet I bow,
Worldly pleasures all forsaken,
Take me, Jesus, take me now.
(Refrain)

All to Jesus I surrender;
Make me, Savior, wholly thine;
Let me feel the Holy Spirit,
Truly know that thou art mine.
(Refrain)

All to Jesus I surrender,
Lord, I give myself to thee,
Fill me with thy love and power,
Let thy blessing fall on me.
(Refrain)

All to Jesus I surrender;
Now I feel the sacred flame.
Oh, the joy of full salvation!
Glory, glory, to his name!
(Refrain)*

*Lyrics and Story Behind the Song I Surrender All – Songwriter(s): Judson Van DeVenter and Winfield S. Weeden

YouTube Video – I Surrender All – CeCe Winans

YouTube Video – Revival in Belfast – Robin Mark

Worship Wednesday – I Am Broken at Your Feet – Alabaster – Rend Collective

Photo Credit: The River Walk

Within two days of Jesus’ crucifixion, just hours before, a woman would anoint his body for burial… Here is the strange and glorious account of that event:

 It was two days before the Passover and the Festival of Unleavened Bread. The chief priests and the scribes were looking for a cunning way to arrest Jesus and kill him.  “Not during the festival,” they said, “so that there won’t be a riot among the people.”

While he was in Bethany at the house of Simon the leper, as he was reclining at the table, a woman came with an alabaster jar of very expensive perfume of pure nard. She broke the jar and poured it on his head. But some were expressing indignation to one another: “Why has this perfume been wasted? For this perfume might have been sold for more than three hundred denarii and given to the poor.” And they began to scold her.

Jesus replied, “Leave her alone. Why are you bothering her? She has done a noble thing for me.  You always have the poor with you, and you can do what is good for them whenever you want, but you do not always have me. She has done what she could; she has anointed my body in advance for burial. Truly I tell you, wherever the gospel is proclaimed in the whole world, what she has done will also be told in memory of her.” – Mark 14:1-9

Our pastor Cliff Jordan’s sermon on Mark 14:1-11 brought this account alive again to us. [Listen to the podcast linked above.]

The woman who poured out her treasure – possibly all she had in the world – in worshiping the Lord – was no stranger to him. She was Mary, sister to Lazarus and Martha – friend and follower of Jesus.

Surrounded by the disciples at his host’s table, Jesus was enjoying the company of these men so close to him. Mary entered the room without ceremony and straightaway broke open an alabaster jar containing this expensive perfume. [That jar was like her security – equivalent to a year’s wages in that day – “compared to her love for Jesus, it was nothing”, Cliff preached.]

She would pour that extravagant oil over his head. She then took the dripping oil into her hands and rubbed it on his feet. Drying off the excess with her own hair. The men in the room took loud exception at what they considered her frivolous act…but not Jesus.

Leave her alone. Why are you bothering her? She has done a noble thing for me.  You always have the poor with you, and you can do what is good for them whenever you want, but you do not always have me. She has done what she could; she has anointed my body in advance for burial. Truly I tell you, wherever the gospel is proclaimed in the whole world, what she has done will also be told in memory of her.”

Two days later, Jesus would give his all on a cross. Beaten and bloody he would die…for us…holding nothing back. It was a Friday, and Passover. By the time his body was released to be buried, his followers had to rush, because of the late hour, laying his body in the tomb, wrapped but without anointing oils.

No worries. In the quiet of that Passover evening, Jesus’ body, caked with blood mixed with his sweat, the fragrance of Mary’s love offering must have remained…must have sweetened the stench of his death. He gave his all for us…she gave her all for him.

“Love is a laid-down life.” (Elisabeth Elliot) – We experience that in Jesus, those of us who know him. We see that in Mary.

Pastor Cliff asked the questions: “What is my alabaster jar? Where do we place our security? What can’t we imagine life without?”

I can’t imagine life without Jesus and knowing his love and his great gift of salvation. Everything else pales.

___________________________________________________________________________

From our years living in Egypt, we have kept two small alabaster votives. The light they emit is both enthralling and beautiful…so like the act of Mary’s giving all she had to her beloved Jesus.

Worship with me to Rend Collective‘s Alabaster.

I am broken at Your feet
Like an alabaster jar
Every piece of who I am
Laid before Your majesty

I will bow my life
At Your feet, at Your feet
My lips, so lost for words
Will kiss Your feet, kiss Your feet
Yeah

Oh, the gravity of You
Draws my soul unto its knees
I will never be the same, no
I am lost and found in You

And I will bow my life
At Your feet, at Your feet
My lips, so lost for words
Will kiss Your feet, kiss Your feet

Oh, I will bow my life
At Your feet, at Your feet
My lips, so lost for words
Will kiss Your feet, kiss Your feet.*

* Lyrics to Alabaster by Rend Collective

The AlabasterJar – The River Walk

YouTube Video – Alabaster Box – Cece Winans