In my last article, I shared 5 songs that have encouraged me lately. When times are tough, it’s easy to focus on our troubles instead of lifting our eyes to the Savior, who is the answer to our every problem.
Music helps me to do that. Some songs really speak to my heart, and they remind me of the hope that I have in Christ.
Whether I’m struggling and need to be reminded of who God is, or I simply want to praise the Lord, here are 5 more songs that I love listening to.
1. “IS HE WORTHY?” BY ANDREW PETERSON
“And I saw a mighty angel proclaiming in a loud voice, ‘Who is worthy to break the seals and open the scroll?’ . . . ‘See, the Lion of the tribe of Judah, the Root of David, has triumphed. He is able to open the scroll and its seven seals.’” (Rev. 5:2, 5)
“You are worthy to take the scroll
and to open its seals,.because you were slain,and with your blood you purchased for God persons from every tribe and language and people and nation. You have made them to be a kingdom and priests to serve our God,and they will reign on the earth.” (Rev. 5:9-10)
This is exactly what “Is He Worthy?” talks about: Christ, the Lamb of God who was slain, is worthy to break the seal and open the scroll! The scroll is the title deed to the earth. Giving it to Jesus is giving him the right to own and rule the earth.
This song, written by Andrew Peterson, really captures this Bible passage and makes you want to shout, “Yes! He is worthy!”
“Is anyone worthy?
Is anyone whole?
Is anyone able to break the seal and open the scroll?
The Lion of Judah who conquered the grave
He is David’s root and the Lamb who died to ransom the slave
Is He worthy? Is He worthy?
Of all blessing and honor and glory
Is He worthy of this?
He is”
2. “O LORD, MY ROCK AND MY REDEEMER,” BY SOVEREIGN GRACE MUSIC
During difficult and uncertain times, it’s easy to lose heart. It’s easy to forget who our God is. It’s easy to try and do things on our own instead of trusting the Lord to take care of us.
Sovereign Grace Music wrote a fantastic song called “O Lord, My Rock and My Redeemer,” and it talks about who our God is.
“O Lord, my Rock and my Redeemer
Greatest treasure of my longing soul
My God, like You there is no other
True delight is found in You alone”
Right away in the first verse, we see several “titles” of God. He is our Lord, our Rock, our Redeemer, our Greatest Treasure, and our God.
Are you struggling with something right now? Do you just need to remember who God is? Do you need words to worship him? Sing this song to him and praise our Father for who he is!
3. “IT IS WELL WITH MY SOUL,” BY HORATIO G. SPAFFORD
Horatio G. Spafford and his wife Anna had one son and four daughters, but his son died from scarlet fever when he was four years old. In 1873, Spafford wished to spend time with his family in Europe, so they planned to take a ship across the ocean. Business caused Spafford to stay behind while his wife and daughters went on ahead of him. On the trip, the ship ran into another boat and sank in less than fifteen minutes. Only his wife Anna survived.
Spafford took a ship to meet Anna where their daughters had drowned, and on the way, he penned the words of the famous hymn “It Is Well With My Soul.”
Leigh Gerstenberger says that “[u]nlike many heartbreak songs, it focuses less on what was lost and more on where hope can be found. No doubt Spafford was shattered by the loss of his daughters, but his heart turned to the faithfulness of God in the midst of loss and the work of Jesus to rescue sinners. The hymn does not diminish or gloss over pain and tragedy but rather proclaims that God is present in them and greater than them.”
“When peace like a river, attendeth my way,
When sorrows like sea billows roll
Whatever my lot, thou hast taught me to say
It is well, it is well, with my soul”
4. “SPEAK, O LORD,” BY KEITH AND KRISTYN GETTY
We sometimes play this song at church before communion. It’s a prayer, asking God to mold us into the people he wants us to be—for his glory.
“Speak, O Lord, as we come to You
To receive the food of your holy word.
Take Your truth, plant it deep in us;
Shape and fashion us in Your likeness,
That the light of Christ might be seen today
In our acts of love and our deeds of faith.
Speak, O Lord, and fulfil in us
All Your purposes, for Your glory.”
I love this song because it makes me want to lift my hands to the Lord in prayer. Whether we realize it or not, a lot of contemporary Christian music tends to focus on us. But this song is about worshiping our Lord and asking that he use us for his pleasure and glory.
5. SHANE & SHANE
No, this isn’t the title of a song. Shane & Shane are two men who sing both contemporary Christian music and hymns. They are very talented men who are using their gifts to bless others and encourage them in the Lord, and I believe that you too will be blessed.
I’ll give you some of my favorite songs by this group!
“Psalm 23,” “Psalm 130,” and “Psalm 139”
TURN YOUR EYES UPON CHRIST ALONE
Maybe you’re stressed with school. Maybe current events have you worried and anxious. Maybe you don’t know if you can handle the craziness of the world anymore.
I want to encourage you with this.
COVID-19, the lockdown this past spring, and the craziness of the latest presidential election did not take God by surprise. He knew exactly what was coming and when it was coming, and since it came, we know he allowed it for a reason.
I love this quote by Alan Redpath. He says, “There is nothing—no circumstance, no trouble, no testing—that can ever touch me until, first of all, it has gone past God and past Christ right through to me. If it has come that far, it has come with a great purpose, which I may not understand at the moment. But as I refuse to become panicky, as I lift up my eyes to Him and accept it as coming from the throne of God for some great purpose of blessing to my own heart, no sorrow will ever disturb me, no circumstance will cause me to fret, for I shall rest in the joy of what my Lord is—that is the rest of victory!”
Because God sees the whole picture while our gaze is limited, we have to trust him. Click To Tweet Take these songs and praise him for who he is, for even though our world might change daily, he never will (Heb. 13:8)!Remember, don’t use songs as a substitute for God’s Word. To really see who our God is, look at him in action. All throughout the Bible, we see that he keeps his promises, is trustworthy, and loves us so much. Use these songs as a way to praise him for who he is!
“Come, let us sing for joy to the Lord; let us shout aloud to the Rock of our salvation. Let us come before him with thanksgiving and extol him with music and song” (Psa. 95:1-2).
