Cross Way Publications Monthly News
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Poem of the Month
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Autumn Praise
By: Douglas Rose
It always seems to restore my faith
So I look forward to Autumn rain;
It happily beams blessings to me
Walking under wet-dripping tree lanes.
In November rain I'd love to stay
To me it holds such Thanksgiving bliss;
It seems to elegantly wash away
Every melancholy gray mist.
It makes me feel warmly connected
To my dear Creator each rainy day;
It's then I thank God for my blessings
And I give Him Autumn Praise.
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Scripture of the Month
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Psalm 40:3 (NKJV)
3 He has put a new song in my mouth -
Praise to our God;
Many will see it and fear,
And will trust in the Lord.
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Quote of the Month
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"An awareness of the vast diversity of cultures on the earth should help us appreciate the fact that God is much bigger than any one musical style or preference."
From Bob Kauflin
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Poet Notables
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1. We are truly grateful for the financial contributions of Gabriele Embry, Donna Hendrix, Laurie Jenkins, Marie Catherine Neubauer and Linda Reich. Thank you for your continued support of this ministry.
2. Welcome to our October 2010 members. Please be sure to stop by their Poet Pages to enjoy their poetry:
Joel Bjorling
Caroline Brock
Ronny Darcy
Janice Alicia Edwards
LaShawn Edwards-Ashley
Esau Kadoko Gondwe
Charles Griggs
Alex Hagen
Regina S. Hall
Porter D. Hampton
Arthur Horne
Brian Jamelske
Tineka W. Johnson
Daniel Hall Kleinmeier
Dorene A. Lang
Sherri D. Lawson
Willis Paul Lay
Stephen Moore
Linus Nwoga
Charles C. Robey
Nancy K. Sullivan
Carol Suttibugha
Eve S. Thornton
Helene M. Trebesch
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This Month's Devotional Thought
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Any time anything is repeated often in Scripture it is meant to catch our attention. The phrase, "new song", appears nine times in the Bible. Five times we are commanded to sing a new song to the Lord, (Psalm 33:3; 96:1; 98:1; 149:1; Isaiah 42:10), Three times we read of someone singing a new song unto the Lord as a voluntary act, (Psalm 144:9, Revelation 5:9; 14:3), and in this text, (Psalm 40:3), God is seen as the source of the new song. God always provides us with what He commands of us, and places within us the will to do what He commands; and so it is with His command to sing a new song - He puts the new song in our mouth, and gives us the desire to sing it.
God loves the praise of His people and He loves that praise coming through the avenue of music. The idea of singing a "new song" may have the meaning of recent, as opposed to old. God has made us with some degree of creativity that we may express to Him in a new way, with new words, new melodies, and differing tempos, our thanksgiving and praise to Him. Many songs are written out of experiences where God has revealed Himself in ways the song writer never knew before, and those expressions in music please the Lord and are a delight to Him. Those new songs show to all of us that He is the Living God and He is still working in the lives of His people. Another idea that may be expressed with the use of the word "new" is that of fresh, as opposed to stale. So that even the old psalms and old songs and old hymns should be sung with a fresh new vigor and enthusiasm. Singing His praises should never grow old and mundane - it should always be a refreshing and revitalizing act.
The new songs God puts in our mouths are praises to Him, and so it should always be that the song will draw attention to the God of the singers and not to the singers themselves. He is certainly worthy of the highest quality songs sung by the most talented among us, but we are confident in knowing that what He really loves is a sincere and joyful sound, (Psalm 100:1).
We have been given the duty of angels who are the "morning stars" that sing together, (Job 38:7). There is a scene in the heavenly vision of John where four angelic creatures accompany the twenty-four elders in singing their new song of praise to the Lamb of God, (Revelation 5:8-10). It seems silly to debate whether or not angels sing when their loftiest task is to praise God; especially given the fact that God Himself sings, (Zephaniah 3:17), and takes such pleasure in songs of worship and adoration. The playing of music and the singing of songs must have the kind of prominent place in our worship of the Lord that it has with the heavenly hosts.
There is immense value given to the songs of the saints as they are joined together in their music and singing. We are commanded not to forsake the assembly, (Hebrews 10:25), and in the assembly, not to neglect our singing, (Colossians 3:16; Psalm 149:1). Consider David who was not permitted to build a temple for God, but took great care in arranging for the services of the temple for the time when Solomon would build it. In his arrangements, there were 288 musicians who were to be "instructed in the songs of the Lord", (I Chronicles 25:1-7), and who were separated into twenty-four divisions of twelve, (I Chronicles 25:8-30), so that the temple, where God was to dwell, would continuously be filled with music. Indeed, God is worthy of such praise.
Think of what it must have been like to have been there. It would be hard to imagine that the music of the temple was anything less than vibrant. And although its primary purpose was to exalt the Lord, it would be equally difficult to imagine that the music of the temple did not also affect those who heard it. May our songs of praise not only magnify the Lord, but impact the people of God and have a saving influence to the world around us. That is what happened with the songs of David. Psalm 40:3 ends with this expectation: "Many will see it and fear, and will trust in the Lord." - Yes, his new song was a song of "praise to our God", but it was an evangelical praise. Do not miss this! Singing the praises of the Lord has an impact on the world around us. Is there a greater testimony than when God gives us a song as we are going through difficult times? People are watching us and "many will see it". God only knows how many souls have been won for Christ through the means of music - by the penetrating words of a new song sung for the glory of God in the joy of the Lord.
Philip Hoffman
