‭‭Genesis‬ ‭49‬:‭8‬-‭10‬ ‭NIV‬ — Judah, your brothers will praise you; your hand will be on the neck of your enemies; your father’s sons will bow down to you. You are a lion’s cub, Judah; you return from the prey, my son. Like a lion he crouches and lies down, like a lioness—who dares to rouse him? The scepter will not depart from Judah, nor the ruler’s staff from between his feet, until he to whom it belongs shall come and the obedience of the nations shall be his.

‭‭This week we have been sharing worship songs that have Old Testament meaning. Today I want to highlight Judah, who is Joseph’s half brother. Judah’s widowed daughter-in-law, Tamar tricks Judah into sleeping with her. She conceives twin boys, the firstborn named Perez. Judah, Tamar, and Perez are in the lineage of Jesus. You can read about them, starting in Genesis 38. In today’s key verse, we read the familiar Name of God, The Lion of Judah, a powerful Name that comes from a story of brokenness. 

I encourage you to listen to the song, Lion by Elevation Worship, featuring Chris Brown and Brandon Lake. Some of the lyrics sing, “God of Jacob, Great I Am. King of angels, Son of Man. Voice of many waters. Song of Heaven’s throne. Louder than the thunder. Make Your Glory known.” Isn’t that powerful? Will you shine God’s glory through your brokenness? 

The Prophet Micah foreshadows the the lineage to Jesus in ‭‭Micah‬ ‭5‬:‭2‬-‭4‬ ‭NIV‬‬ — But you, Bethlehem Ephrathah, though you are small among the clans of Judah, out of you will come for me one who will be ruler over Israel, whose origins are from of old, from ancient times.Therefore Israel will be abandoned until the time when she who is in labor bears a son, and the rest of his brothers return to join the Israelites. He will stand and shepherd his flock in the strength of the Lord, in the majesty of the name of the Lord his God. And they will live securely, for then his greatness will reach to the ends of the earth.

We all have lion-sized hallelujah in our lungs. Let’s pray and worship through the song Gratitude by Brandon Lake.

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‭‭Genesis‬ ‭37‬:‭3‬ ‭NIV‬‬ — Now Israel loved Joseph more than any of his other sons, because he had been born to him in his old age; and he made an ornate robe for him.

This week we will be sharing worship songs that have Old Testament meaning. Today I want to highlight the story of Joseph and his ornate robe known as the coat of many colors. Joseph was the son to Jacob’s favorite wife, Rachel.  The robe symbolizes God’s love, grace, and how we are His favorite, chosen people. Just like Joseph’s robe was dipped in blood, Mark tells us Jesus wore a purple robe on His journey to the cross.

‭‭Genesis‬ ‭37‬:‭31‬ ‭NIV‬ — Then they got Joseph’s robe, slaughtered a goat and dipped the robe in the blood.

‭‭Mark‬ ‭15‬:‭17‬ ‭NIV‬‬ — They put a purple robe on him, then twisted together a crown of thorns and set it on him.

Take a moment to listen to The Coat Of Many Colors by Brandon Lake. Some of the lyrics sing, “Red was the blood that saved me. White was the light that pulled me from the dark. Gold was the crown You placed upon my head that showed me who You are. With mercy and grace, I’ve been embraced like no other. I  gave You my heart, You gave me a coat of many colors.”

Many of us have childhood memories of Dolly Parton’s, Coat Of Many Colors. Some of the lyrics sing, “Made only from rags But I wore it so proudly,” I was rich as I could be in my coat of many colors.”

We should all feel rich in God’s mercy, grace, and love. Are you proudly wearing the love of God for all to see His glory? 

Let’s pray. Dear Heavenly Father, thank You for Your mercy, grace, and love that You have so lavished on me. Help me to wear that love proudly for others to know You and Your glory. In the Name of Jesus I pray, Amen.

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In Matthew 6:16-18 NIV Jesus said — When you fast, do not look somber as the hypocrites do, for they disfigure their faces to show others they are fasting. Truly I tell you, they have received their reward in full. But when you fast, put oil on your head and wash your face, so that it will not be obvious to others that you are fasting, but only to your Father, who is unseen; and your Father, who sees what is done in secret, will reward you.

Join us on our YouTube Channel as we finish out the week on fasting.

The sermon mentioned in today’s video can be found at Oneplace.com. We encourage you to listen to “When You Fast” by Pastor, Philip Miller with Moody Church.

In is not a coincidence that Deborah just finished a week on fasting and Julie is starting a week on music and worship. A great way to tie those two weeks together is by listening to Dr. Mark Batterson with National Community Church serises on Beauty For Ashes as he preaches on Hard Fought Hallelujah.

1 Peter 5:6 NIV — Humble yourselves, therefore, under God’s mighty hand, that he may lift you up in due time.

Take some time to read this article by Bible Gateway titled Why Should I Fast? 7 Examples of Fasting In the Bible.

How has God spoken to you this week about fasting? How will you respond? 

Let’s pray. Dear Father, thank You for the sacrifices made by Your Son Jesus Christ for me. Open my eyes, ears, mind, and heart to receive Your individual message for me about fasting. Prepare me to receive Your will for me and may I respond as You would have me. In Jesus name I pray, Amen.

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Philippians 3:10-11 MSG — I gave up all that inferior stuff so I could know Christ personally, experience his resurrection power, be a partner in his suffering, and go all the way with him to death itself. If there was any way to get in on the resurrection from the dead, I wanted to do it.

Fasting can occur at any time, not just during the time of Lent. Years ago I applied and interviewed for a particular job. After several days passed without hearing the result of the interview, I felt led to pray and fast so I could clearly hear God’s direction. I chose to give up coffee. If you know me well you know how much I enjoy coffee so giving it up was a drastic measure, but isn’t that what a fast should be? Shouldn’t it be something that is a sacrifice and an act of self-denial? In the meantime, I decided when the fast was over I would invest in a coffee machine with a carafe instead of using one that used single serve pods. A friend had an extra pot she said I could have. The days seemed to move by slowly. I waited day by day, hour by hour, minute by minute and during the time that seemed to never end, I fasted and prayed. I decided to go ahead and pick up the coffee pot from my friend even though I knew I wouldn’t use it until I had an answer about the job and ended my fast. As I walked into my house with the coffee pot, I received the phone call informing me I didn’t get the job. What perfect timing God has when He answers prayers! I could have been heartbroken and devastated that I didn’t get the job, but instead I had peace. I have no doubt I was at peace because I had spent so much time talking to God about the job. As it turns out, because I took a chance on that job, I later was offered my current job. Go God!

Have you ever fasted? What did you fast and what were your reasons for fasting? Did you grow closer to God through your act of fasting? 

Let’s pray. Dear Father, thank You for the sacrifices made by Your Son Jesus Christ for me. Open my eyes, ears, mind, and heart to receive Your individual message for me about fasting. Prepare me to receive Your will for me and may I respond as You would have me. In Jesus name I pray, Amen.

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In Matthew 6:16-18 NIV Jesus said — When you fast, do not look somber as the hypocrites do, for they disfigure their faces to show others they are fasting. Truly I tell you, they have received their reward in full. But when you fast, put oil on your head and wash your face, so that it will not be obvious to others that you are fasting, but only to your Father, who is unseen; and your Father, who sees what is done in secret, will reward you.

Many denominations recognize today as Ash Wednesday. Ash Wednesday marks the beginning of Lent which is the 40 days leading to Easter and commemorates the 40 days Jesus spent in the desert fasting and praying before His ministry began. 

Have you ever fasted or have you ever considered fasting? Fasting is a time of self-denial. In the traditions of Lent, often people choose a food, habit, or attitude to fast over the 40 days. The idea is to allow the lack of items to be a time of reflection to draw you closer to Christ. In the past when I have fasted a food and have been tempted to partake of it, I take that moment to stop and pray. I ask God to help me to be mindful of Christ’s sacrifice for me and allow God to lead and direct my steps. As today’s featured scripture reminds us, when you fast, you should not let your time of denial become an outward time of sadness as to draw attention to yourself. Instead, allow your time of fasting to be a private time of reflection between you and your savior. 

Let’s pray. Dear Father, thank You for the sacrifices made by Your Son Jesus Christ for me. Open my eyes, ears, mind, and heart to receive Your individual message for me about fasting. Prepare me to receive Your will for me and may I respond as You would have me. In Jesus name I pray, Amen.

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Matthew 4 NIV

Are you familiar with Lent? No, I am not referring to the collection of particles you clean out of your dryer vent. I am referring to a tradition some religions practice. Lent is a time of prayer, fasting, and self-denial and is meant to commemorate the 40 days Jesus spent in the desert being tempted by Satan. This week we will dive a little deeper into the practice of fasting. Take a moment to watch this short video by The Bible Project titled The Purpose of Fasting,

Let’s pray. Dear Heavenly Father, as we start this week exploring the concept of fasting, open my eyes, ears, mind, and heart to receive Your individual message for me. Prepare me to receive Your will for me and may I respond as You would have me. In Jesus name I pray, Amen.

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