Faith and Songs of Celebration

I will sing to the Lord, for he has triumphed gloriously; he has hurdled both horse and rider into the sea. Exodus 15:1 NLT

The book of Exodus is quite an adventure story. We have the story of Moses’ birth, his subsequent flight into the desert, his calling back to Egypt and the encounters with Pharoah. So many highs and lows are imbedded in the beginning chapters.

But we finally come to chapter 15. As I read this wonderful song of thankfulness and celebration I was overwhelmed and so encouraged. The first thing I noticed in the song is the very first word-I-! I will sing. Not my brother not my sister, my mother or my father or friend, I will sing. My voice is important to Him. He wants to hear me celebrate and worship, and He wants to hear your voice.

Verse 3 continues with: The Lord is my strength and my song. A similar thing with the (I) ! The very act of personalizing the fact that the Lord is my strength brings it substance in a real way. The Lord is my song. Will I choose to sing a song of lament, or a song of victory? It is much easier to sing a song of celebration when we remember He is our Lord.

He has given me victory. Once again, we can look around and see others victories, but declaring and understanding that I have victory is so encouraging. It makes the trials and tests seem much more doable!

This is my God, and I will praise him. Again, personalizing He is MY God changes our perspective in so many ways. Try it! You might find you like it! If you do this all the time, you know the blessing. If you are nervous about declaring He is your God, remember He adopted you into His family. He is your father as well as your God.

This song celebrates the victory after the Israelites walked across the Red Sea on dry land. They had just witnessed God destroying their enemies right before their eyes! Oh, my friends, we need to celebrate more often both the big and small victories we see our God do–not only for ourselves, but for others.

One of my father’s favorite songs was “Victory in Jesus”. He sang it with such gusto and declaration that you just knew he wasn’t simply singing songs, but was testifying of His God. When he declared, “my savior forever”, you knew he knew Him. Maybe you aren’t a songwriter, it doesn’t mean you can’t adopt one. One of my favorite go-to songs when I find myself in a hard place, is another old fashioned chorus “My Lord knows the way through the wilderness”. Declaring “MY” Lord sets me on the path of releasing my faith and reminding me “all I have to do is follow”. If you are unfamiliar with this song, google it! It is catchy, simple and full of encouragement even though it was written around 1951! It is not nearly as elaborate as the one in Exodus 15, but it works.

My friends, if you are going through a harder place right now, I am sorry. Can I encourage you to read this scriptures aloud? There is something powerful that happens as we hear our own voices declaring God’s truth. Often it breaks the power of our head voices and those lies that try to keep us imprisoned inside our own minds. If you are brave, set it to your own tune.

Father, I thank you for these amazing stories we find of your power, might and promised victory for your children in the book of Exodus. It gives us hope that we too, will receive our own victories. Thank you for teaching us how to celebrate every victory. In Jesus’ Name. Amen.