music – Page 7 – Peaceangel Song

Angelsong.Shepherds — Peace, said the Angel to the Shepherds. Source/Internet

Sometimes it’s difficult to walk by faith. God’s word says that He “calls
things that are not as though they are” and He asks us to trust Him. He asks us to see beyond what our eyes can perceive, beyond what our ears can hear, or our minds can comprehend as real.
God gives us promises that seem impossible to come true yet it is impossible for a holy God to lie. His word declares, “For no word of God will ever fail.” Luke 1:37

ANGELSONG.GOLDEN.Shepherds — Angel Choir Sings to the Shepherds/Source:Internet

As Christmas approaches I think about the people to whom God chose to reveal His Son more than 2000 years ago on a starry night in the hills of Bethlehem.
Shepherds were among the lowest ranking groups in society yet God opened up the heavens and gave them a concert led by a host of angels from His own royal courts. The world may not have thought much of those shepherds, but God highly favored them.

AngelSONG.Shepherdsat night — Angels sing to the shepherds/Source:Internet

They were so important to God that they have been forever engraved in His holy scriptures, while the lives of almost everyone else who lived back then have been written in the dust.
Every year almost since the church began children and adults have dressed up as those shepherds to re-enact the Christmas story. The drama has been played out in movies, operas, plays, pageants, songs, stories, and sermons.
There is no end to the references to the common shepherds whom God elevated that night on the Judean Hills when He opened up the heavens and sent an angel choir to sing the announcement of the birth of His Son to them.

Those humble shepherds had a choice to believe the angelic vision or
disbelieve. Filled with the glory of Heaven they followed the shining star over the
humble manger and found everything the angels sang about to be true.

ANGELSONG.Shepherds. Manger — Shepherds Find Baby Messiah

Everyone was looking out for a Savior to deliver Israel from her oppressors. But an infant born into poverty was not the type of Savior King they expected. The shepherds, Mary, Joseph, even the Magi who were to enter the Christmas story later all had to accept by faith God’s word that this Baby was God’s Messiah.

What is faith? The author of Hebrews 11:1 writes, “Faith is what makes real the things we hope for. It is proof of what we cannot see.” The bible says of Mary that “she treasured all these things up in her heart.” And Jesus later asked His disciples to hide His word in their hearts. Why? Because “Faith comes by hearing and hearing by the word of God.”

Mary, Joseph and the shepherds would have to wait 33 long years for the angel’s promise to bear any fruit. For Jesus had to grow up before He could become the Messiah. Then He would again defy appearances and challenge their faith because He was not going to be the kind of Messiah they expected.

ANGELSONG.Starry Night Sky — Bethlehem Star/Source:Internet

“Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace, good will toward men,”
~was the song the angels had sung to the shepherds that first Christmas night. (Luke 2:14) Jesus was not just going to save Israel but the Gentiles too. He was going to save people spiritually not deliver in a political way. When Their Promised Messiah was sacrificed on the cross don’t you know their faith had to be severely challenged!

The people God chose to bear His Son were normal people like us with fears and doubts who struggled to believe God’s promises just like we so often do. But God gave them the grace to keep going forward because they kept saying “yes” to God. They kept trusting Him despite appearances. They kept choosing to walk by faith even when all hope seemed lost, even when it posed a risk to their very lives and reputations. They never gave up.

Elizabeth said to Mary when she came to her, “Great blessings are yours because you believed what the Lord said to you! You believed this would happen.” (Luke 1:45)

It is not easy to walk by faith. That is why God downloads a portion of Himself in the Person of His Holy Spirit into our hearts when we accept Jesus as our Savior. The minute we say “Yes” to Him, Christ gives Himself to us and then helps us to believe one day at a time. We just have to keep on choosing to say, “Yes, Lord, I believe, help Thou my unbelief.”

Dear Heavenly Father, thank You for understanding us so well, and for giving us Thy own Holy Spirit to help us in our weakness. Help us to walk by faith, knowing that You will never leave or forsake us, nor fail to keep every promise You make to us. We love You. In Jesus’ name, Amen.

8.ANGELSONGShepherds — Shepherds on Judean Hills/Source:Internet

Merry Christmas to all my readers! I’ve made a Christmas video just for you from one of the songs from my Christmas album, “*Christmas Joy.” I hope you will enjoy & be encouraged by “The Shepherds’ Song”! God Bless you with a Beautiful Christmas!
I love you all! ~Suzanne ♥

*All profits from the sales of my albums “Christmas Joy” & “God’s
Rainbow Promise” go to ministries that benefit the homeless & survivors
of Abuse. Thank You for your support of my music & for these
ministries. God Bless You Always!

AngelSong: Walking by Faith: © 2013 Suzanne Davis Harden, All Rights Reserved. “The Shepherds’ Song Music Video created by Suzanne Davis Harden, Music & Lyrics © 2013 Suzanne Davis Harden, All Rights Reserved. / Picture credits: Internet

Detail, Worshiper, Painting by S.D. Harden © 2013 All Rights Reserved

The Rusty Nail

A few weeks ago I posted a blog and music video based on Psalm 51:10, the Psalm King David wrote after he’d committed adultery with Bathsheba, gotten her pregnant, and then murdered her husband to cover up his sin.
God sent Nathan the prophet to confront the king and David repented, praying, “Create in me a clean heart, O God. Renew a loyal spirit within me. Do not banish me from your presence, and don’t take your Holy Spirit from me.” ~ (Psalm 51:10-11)

For those readers who did not have an opportunity to read my original post about this beautiful psalm and how David repented of his sin, I encourage you to take a moment to do so.
I took down my music video a few days after posting it with the promise that I would repost it again for you soon.
I created my original music video for my prayer song “Create in Me a Clean Heart” as a worship aid for a special prayer night at our church. The Lord gave me the song the day of the prayer service!
Our Lord is very generous with His gifts! I had not asked Him for the song; in fact the worship leader and I were planning to do a different music video I had already created. But the Holy Spirit had a different plan so I got busy preparing the song and video the Lord gave me. I had only 3 hours in which to record the song and create the video that day.
I am not a trained videographer. All my training is in art and writing. I never sought to be a musician, a singer, or to create videos. One day a few years ago, I went to the altar at church to pray about some burden I had. The Lord spoke to my heart and asked me if I would sing for Him.
“My Suzy, will you sing for Me?”
This request had nothing to do with my issue I was praying about. And besides that, to sing for anyone was the LAST thing I wanted to do, having a terrible phobia of public performance of any sort.
I didn’t want to be disrespectful of the Almighty, but I couldn’t help but think He HAD to be joking. I like to draw cute little dressed up animals. If I were to draw myself as an animal I would be a shy little, timid mole hiding behind her little art desk painting and writing and drawing. Never singing.
“Lord,” I said, to Him, “not to be disrespectful, but I don’t think You are remembering who I am…I can’t sing, I’m an artist.”
He only said, “My Suzy, won’t you sing for Me?”
I peeped around as I knelt at the altar wondering if anyone could see how exasperated I was.
“Lord,” I said, “Have You forgotten how bad a singer I am…so bad that when I sang “Jesus Loves Me” to My child when he was 6 years old he HOWLED?!”
I felt like crying because I had once sung praises to The Lord in my quiet times up until that had happened. Many years had passed and I no longer sang to Jesus because of that incident with my little boy. The enemy used it to make me think I had a terrible voice and I kept silent after that.
When Christian grew up he said, “Mama, I only howled because the dog across the street was howling with the wind that night. I was howling with him. I loved your singing.”
But when I was at the altar that day I didn’t know that.
I only knew that I believed I had a terrible voice and that there was no way I wanted to sing for God because I was so ashamed of my voice ever since that day.
“My Suzy, will you sing for Me?” Jesus asked me for the third time.
I knew it was God’s voice. And I could not say no if I loved Him.
Then He said, “My Suzy, will you trust Me?”
I knew I had to lay down something. I had to lay down my fear, my pride, and give God my will and allow Him to make me what He wanted me to be.
Singing was the last thing I wanted to do because I never believed I could be good enough.
Though I never trained to be a musician, nor did I ever sing until I became a Christian and then only in my quiet times, yet God has blessed me with many beautiful songs inspired by His word. Whether piano solos or prayer songs, The Lord continues, ever since that day at the altar when I reluctantly said yes, (though I was terrified) He has given me over 350 pieces of music for His glory. I have recorded them all.
My new video includes my worship painting based on Luke 7 that I’ve been working on for the last several months. It was not finished yet when I made the first video. That video made heavy use of a lot of images pulled from the Internet that may have been copyrighted and I did not have time to get permission or check the copyright status of all those images I used.
My new video includes more original content and makes use of some classical works of several great artists from the past and present whose works are in the public domain.
I’ve always believed that God can anoint a rusty old nail if He chooses to use it for His glory. So it does not matter what I have to give Him, as long as I give it by faith in humble obedience to His will, He can bless it and use it to bless others.
My prayer is that this music video will bless and inspire you, and draw you closer to the God who died on the cross for each of us in order to create in us a clean heart, and renew a right spirit within us.

Heavenly Father, Help us know that you do not desire perfection from us in what we give You, just trust & obedience. You will supply all the rest.
Create in us clean hearts that serve You & worship You in sincerity & truth. Thank You Lord. In Jesus name. Amen