"There my burdened soul found liberty."
This phrase is the exact opposite of what I believed about christianity in my early adulthood.
I spent much of my late teens and twenties as an atheist and I saw atheism as freedom, and christianity as a burden. With no God looking over my shoulder, I can live life however I please, but that christian life is just rules, judgment, guilt, and shame.
When a life in Christ is seen as the source of guilt and shame and not the cure for it, something has gone terribly wrong, both in the heart of the viewer and in the teaching of the church.
If you ever wonder why it can be difficult to talk about Christ with non believers, it is in part because the thing which Christ has freed us from is the very thing we are harboring in our churches; guilt and shame.
We are giving saltwater to thirsty people.
If you ever find yourself stranded on a desert island, every survival expert will tell you the same thing, do NOT drink ocean water. Ocean water is so salty it causes your cells to release water and you actually become more dehydrated by drinking saltwater.
Christ offers water to the thirsty, but many non-believers, whether right or wrong, see the church handing out saltwater instead.
In my own journey this was my biggest stumbling block. I donât have that one life changing moment I hear many christians talk about. Rather, I often tell people God had to wrestle me into submission. I saw Christianity as a burden, as a place of death, not of life. This belief came from past experiences with church legalism amplified by my own stubbornness. To finally understand Christ as the one who frees us from guilt and shame was a revelation.
The word gospel means âgood messageâ or âgood newsâ
Think about this when you share the gospel. Are you sharing good news or bad news?
I always wondered how Christians could tell me about sin and hell and how bad a person I am and call it good news?
None of that is the gospel. It may be true. But it is NOT the gospel. The gospel is that those things no longer have any power over us. The cross is greater.
I donât think anyone needs to be convinced the world is messed up, that people are messed up. I have never talked to a single person who didn't believe in sin (though they would call it something else). But I have talked to many who didnât believe there was a solution.
And I want them to know that their burdened souls can find liberty - At Calvary.
The Annual $5 Multitrack Sale starts today!
www.reawakenhymns.com/backing-tracks
All the Multitracks on Reawaken Hymns are only $5 each for the next 2 weeks! If you've ever purchased multitracks before you know that is absurdly cheap. Sale ends Wednesday May 15!
"Riches I heed not,
nor manâs empty praise."
If ever a phrase was easier said than done; âRiches I heed not, nor manâs empty praiseâ
âNot let my worth be defined by how well I can financially support my family or by how much people like me?âŚ. No problem.â - no one ever.
Riches and praise. It may be easy to see the idolatry of these things in their sinful expressions:
Becoming a millionaire by cheating everyone you meet. Leaving your spouse for someone who flatters you more often. Not being generous because you donât want to give up your hard-earned money. Talking behind someoneâs back because it will make others like you.
But what about the âgoodâ expressions?
Becoming wealthy by working hard and serving your customers well. Receiving praise for your kindness and integrity.
Idolatry is not determined by how âgood or badâ something is. Idolatry is determined by what is first in your heart.
I am a worship leader and content creator. My job is to stand up in front of everyone (whether literally or figuratively) and perform something they love (worship songs).
Then they tell me how they feel about it.
Reawaken Hymnsâ YouTube channel has grown tremendously, but I still try to read and answer everyone's comments. Which means every week I sit down and read hundreds of comments from people telling me how much they like or dislike my songs (and occasionally, me).
Manâs empty praise sure doesnât feel so empty in those times. Whether getting a big head from all the compliments or becoming despondent over all the hate, it is absolutely vital that I keep my worth in God as first in my heart.
Because peopleâs opinions of us will give us a wrong sense of self. Godâs opinion of us will give us a right sense of self. Completely humbled by our sin and completely accepted by his grace.
With the arrival of social media and âside hustlesâ, money and fame are at the forefront of our culture. We are told constantly that if we have more money and more people like us we will finally be happy and content.
We wonât.
Contentment comes from God and God alone. As the next line of Be Thou My Vision says:
âthou my inheritance now and alwaysâ
"Nothing but the Blood" by Reawaken Hymns is the free multitrack of the month on multitracks.com! Just use the code HYMNS at checkout.
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The work of love is always redemption, never corruption, never rejection.
The crucifixion was an act intended to corrupt the person whose name is Love.
The burial was an act intended to reject the person whose name is Love.
They both failed.
It was by that very cross and grave that Loveâs redeeming work was done. Christ is Risen.
Your sacrifices are useless.
They wonât earn you forgiveness, they wonât earn you love.
You already have forgiveness. You already have love.
It is finished.
âBut our High Priest offered himself to God as a single sacrifice for sins, good for all time.â - Hebrews 10:12
I just started a TikTok channel. Do all those young whipper snappers on TikTok want to see hymns?...probably not, but we are going to try to put some hope in some feeds anyway!
Please follow my channel (or like or whatever you do on TikTok, I am not hip enough to understand TikTok). I currently have 0 followers so any followers will help the the videos reach someone!
www.tiktok.com/@reawaken.hymns
"Christ the Lord is Risen Today" streaming everywhere you listen to music: fanlink.tv/christ-the-lord-is-risen-today
âAwake my soul and sing,
of Him who died for theeâ
In my more than two decades as a worship leader, there have been moments when leading worship felt like a daunting task. Some days, you just donât feel like leading worship. I vividly recall a conversation with a church member a few years back who asked me, âHow do you lead worship when you donât feel like it?â I sat there for a moment and then answered,
âI lead worship anyway.â
Since then, Iâve thought about the answer I gave that day and how I know the Holy Spirit guided my words. I've gained more insight from reflecting on my own answer than I initially understood in the moment.
My feelings may come and go, but God remains the same.
The key is that the worship of God transcends our transient feelings. Worship is an acknowledgment that, regardless of my emotional state, I can direct my soul toward God and point people to Jesus as Savior. Worship isn't about me; it's about revealing the God who loves humanity enough to sacrifice Himself for them.
There have been many times when I havenât felt like leading worship, and I know many more will come because my feelings can change without warning. But I've discovered that in the process of preparing and leading worship, my feelings change.
To just âlead worship even when you donât feel like itâ is not a call to be disingenuous. Itâs a call to be faithful.
When I dive into another week of song selection, service planning, Scripture reading, and prayer, I find myself not only shaped by the process but profoundly impacted by the content. The truth of the gospel is life-changing; it has the power to awaken our hearts, even for those who find themselves feeling otherwise empty.
Through the power of the Holy Spirit, we can sing lyrics like "awake my soul and sing of He who died for thee" and overcome the feelings of burnout with the truth of the gospel.
While I don't claim to always get it right, some of the most rewarding times in worship have come when I pushed through moments of spiritual lethargy in faithful perseverance. The beautiful truth is that even though we fall short, God never fails.
-by Jimmy Cooper
Check out more great worship leader content on Jimmy's channel: youtube.com/heyworshipleader
Old hymns. New life.
Reawaken provides resources to help incorporate the hymns you love in the church you serve.
Chord charts, lyric videos, backing tracks, music, and more hymn resources available at www.reawakenhymns.com