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2 Timothy 1:12
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This song is simply a prayer to ask the Holy Spirit to enable us to let go of all the stuff that prevents us from experiencing the full power of His presence.
Whether we come from a traditional or charismatic church background we can have cultural baggage which gets in the way of us genuinely releasing ourselves to the Spirit’s work in us. From either background there is a pressure to conform to what we think is the accepted norm and also to judge others around us on that basis.
Worshipping in Spirit and truth is a place where what happens is between us and God, the actions of others…. well that’s between them and God. What happens next? Well that’s between you and God. My prayer in this song is that you are able to let go of all your baggage and inhibitions and let the Spirit work in you.
A song about how God talks to us. If you are envious of people who relate stories of how God has spoken to them, join the club. That type of thing can be both encouraging and discouraging prompting us to think “why doesn’t God talk to me like that?” Perhaps God does and we just don’t recognise the voice.
Perhaps we are expecting thunderclaps and flashing light bulbs? Hmm …... I know God speaks to me but I often don’t realise it until some time afterwards when I have an “Oh, yeah” moment and often I don’t realise it at all.
The reality is that the Holy Spirit is whispering to us all the time “help that person, share your bread, your friend needs a hug etc etc”. And “shock, horror” the Spirit whispers to everyone, not just Christians. But the biggest revelation to me was that God speaks to us all the time through every part of his creation.
Listen to your own heartbeat and there is a whisper of God. “Every breath we take, every single heartbeat, every smile in the street” is a whisper of God’s voice. Wow!!!!!
I’ve always found it remarkable that on the night of Jesus’ arrest Peter was so afraid that he denied Jesus in the dark of night to a servant girl, and yet just a few chapters later he was standing in an open market place in the bright light of day declaring the gospel to all who would listen. This dramatic transformation can only be down to the work of the Holy Spirit. And that same spirit is at work in us today. Based on Acts 2 and the passage Peter reads from Joel, it’s a call for the same empowerment and release for us.
Resound Worship’s 12 Song Challenge this month was to take inspiration from the great creeds of the church. I was at the annual Resound Worship Songwriters’ Retreat at Wydale Hall in Yorkshire, UK so had plenty of time to reflection, and I took inspiration from the Nicene Creed. Pairing up with the very talented Sue Crossman of Hopestream Worship, we came up with this.
Each verse focusses on expanding, in language simple enough for children, each person of the Trinity. Since writing it, we’ve used it regularly in our Sunday School and family services and it’s a hit with young and old alike.
