ThoughtSeeds

Hey everyone! I'm taking the next couple of weeks off to focus on a few changes happening for my family. Nothing bad -- just things requiring attention, and I don't want to give my family OR ThoughtSeeds Podcast the short end of the stick, so I'm taking a short break. See you all in two weeks!

From the battlefields of Culloden Moor to the governer's residence in Bombay, India, travel with me as we learn how the great hymn, "O Worship the King," came to be.
Based on the text of Psalm 104, we're treated to the full display of God's splendor and majesty, and inspired to worship Him as our "Maker, Defender, Redeemer, and Friend."

https://www.umcdiscipleship.org/resources/history-of-hymns-o-worship-the-king

Have you ever stopped to really think about what it truly means to worship God? What does that look like for you? Is it singing praise and worship songs in church? Praying? Reading your Bible? Enjoying nature?

What does God say is a pleasing and acceptable way to worship Him? Romans 12:1 tells us that presenting our bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to God, is an act of spiritual worship. What does it mean to present your body as a living sacrifice? Join me in this episode and we'll talk about it.

https://www.desiringgod.org/messages/present-your-bodies-as-a-living-sacrifice-to-god

Worship. What does that mean to you? Who do you worship? How do you worship? Who *should* we worship? In Psalm 96:9, we're told to worship the Lord in the beauty of holiness, and to tremble before Him. What does that look like, really? Find out more about what worship really is, and what God says about it in the first of this week's episodes about it.

In 1970, Bill and Gloria Gaither were the parents of young children, and had one by one, lost their grandparents. They observed both the comforting and healing power of the name of Jesus with their children, and watched their grandparents slip from earth to the arms of Jesus as they uttered His Name. This brief song says much in its few words. "Jesus. Jesus. Jesus. There's just something about that name."

There are so many names found in the Bible for Jesus alone, never mind all of the names listed for the entire Godhead. Even just scratching the surface of studying that opens up our eyes and our hearts to the rich and vast identity of our Savior. Do you know Him? I mean, do you REALLY know Him? Is He *your* Jesus? Your "I AM, Rescuer, Deliverer, Savior?"

Jesus. What does that Name mean to you? An angel told Joseph, His earthly father, to call Him Jesus, because He would save His people from their sins. Jesus comes from "Yeshua," and it means "YHWH will save." YHWH is "I AM." Jesus did say that He came to seek and to save those who are lost. That's every one of us -- lost, until we come to Him.

https://www.jesusfilm.org/blog-and-stories/what-are-names-titles-jesus.html
https://www.jesusfilm.org/blog-and-stories/jesus-name-mean.html

A poem copied down in England for a blind friend by a minister traveled three years later across the ocean to America, where it was published in a newspaper. Still later, William Bradbury saw it and composed a melody for it. William Walford is credited with the poem, though that is not 100% verified. "Sweet Hour of Prayer" calls us to a private time of communing with our Lord in a deeply personal way. Truly, time like this with Him IS sweet.

Prayer is powerful! In the Bible, we see Jesus connect faith to the power of prayer. In James, righteousness is tied to the power of prayer, and Jesus connects humility to powerful prayer. We also see how failing to pray can cause us to fail in that endeavor. Key to all of it is abiding in Christ at all times -- never letting ourselves be disconnected from the True Vine, as a branch dependent on Him.

Prayer -- what is it and why is it so important? In this episode, we look at Philippians 4:6-7 piece by piece and what each phrase really means. We also look at the Lord's Prayer in Matthew 6:9-13, phrase by phrase.

https://www.lorettochapel.com/blog/lords-prayer-explained