Get Lit for Jesus
By: Khalilah Shelton
I love music! I love to sing ALL the words when I go on road trips. And when I'm in a Sunday service I am much obliged to join with the angels belting out hymns of praise. I'm probably off key most of the time, but the Bible says make a joyful noise, right? One of my favorite parts of any song are the adlibs. The adlibs are when the singer goes off script and puts the soul and emotion into songs and you know how they really feel.
Throughout the year I have really been clinging to the tender way God uses songs to carry me through uncertain times. The book of Psalms is a huge playlist that addresses so much of what we experience. When I was feeling down about broken relationships I would go to Psalm 27:14, "Wait for the Lord; be strong, and let your heart take courage; wait for the Lord!" And when I feel stress I sing Psalm 23:1-3, "The Lord is my shepherd; I shall not want. He makes me lie down in green pastures. He leads me beside still waters. He restores my soul. He leads me in paths of righteousness for his name's sake." Then I scroll through my phone and find my favorite music app and turn up for Jesus! I shuffle through and find "Not Today, Satan'' by KB and remember that the broken relationships and stress are ways the enemy is trying to get at me. And I warn him that today is not his day! Or I may click on "Love Is A Miracle" by Maverick City and think about the miraculous love God showed me and trust His love for others as well, not to mention, this song has some great adlibs and notes that I like to belt out!
Other days are quite routine, you know, cooking, cleaning, work, checking on family members. On days like these I like to put on my Lacrae playlist or maybe Lauren Daigle or Tasha Cobbs Leonard and I am reminded of how God pursues His people.
God sings over His people (Zephaniah 3:17). And He loves to hear us sing in response to His greatness. You do not have to wait for Sunday service to belt out a note nor do you need a full band to worship God in song. You just need a heart and you can cry out to Him. Turn up for Jesus! Find some songs that hit the heart of the matter and read the scriptures to know if those songs reflect the One True God, if they do, SING! "Oh sing to the Lord a new song; sing to the Lord, all the earth!"(Ps 96:1).
What songs are you singing? Drop your favorites in the comments. Let us know what you have been clinging to.
"Worship the Lord in the splendor of holiness" (Ps.96:9a), or as I like to say, get lit for Jesus!
