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Saturday, February 2, 2013

Worshiping together without fear

"Come let us worship and bow down.
Let us kneel before the Lord our maker.
For He is our God."
  (Psalm 95:6)

"Bless the Lord, O my soul, O my soul! Worship His holy name."
This is the opening lyric of an incredible worship song and video by contemporary Christian artist, Matt Redman. This song is also on my ipod and I find it hard to stop listening to it. I find myself adoring God in worship and praise through this powerful little song. Just recently I uploaded it to my Facebook page to share it with all of my friends. One of the first persons to "like" it was my dear friend in Iran. He will remain anonymous because of security reasons.
After he watched the video, we began to have a chat together. I was on my smartphone and he was on his pc at home in Tehran. I asked my friend what he thought of the video and he quickly responded that it was beautiful. What he said next was the cause of a profound worship experience.
My friend said, "Randy, it is my dream to go to church someday with you without fear."
I cannot adequately describe the emotions I had when he said that. I began to think of the song again by Matt Redman entitled, "10,000 reasons." In what I can best describe as a flash of light or vision, I could see myself and all of my friends in Iran, together worshiping God without fear.
I quickly texted my friend back and told him, "You dont have to be afraid..We are together now in heart and spirit. We may be miles apart but we are together worshiping God in spirit."
I told my friend to watch the video again as we chatted. Then I said, "Lift you voice and heart in praise with me right now. We are worshiping together. "
The I boldly told him. "There is no government in Iran that can stop our worship together."
My friend agreed with me and then told me, "My biggest dream is to go to church."
My heart goes out to my friend. His greatest dream in Iran is to worship Jesus without fear. Muslims in Iran are forbidden to convert to any other religion. It can cost them their life and that's why my friend lives in constant fear. A few years ago he became a Christian and because of that he must practice his Faith secretly.
However, God's word is not bound or restricted by government laws. Through the miracle of technology, My friend and I did go to Church together. For a few precious and unforgettable minutes, we worshiped together, reflecting on an incredible song by Matt Redman.
I told my friend, "Your dream is coming true right now. You and me are in church together as we worship. There is no distance in our worship."
 I can sing with Matt Redman "Bless the lord O my soul. Worship His holy name." For a few minutes, one night after work, God answered the prayer of my friend in Iran. It is moment that I will never forget.

Worshiping God together without fear

"Come let us worship and bow down.
Let us kneel before the Lord our maker.
For He is our God."
        (Psalm 95:6)

"Bless the Lord O my Soul. O my soul! Worship his holy name."
 This is the opening lyric of an incredible worship song and video by contemporary Christian artist Matt Redman. I also have this song on my ipod. I find it hard to stop listening to it. It stirs the emotions of my heart and causes me to lift my hands in adoration to our great God. I recently uploaded this video and put it on my Facebook page, anxious to share it with my friends. One of the first persons to "Like" this video was my friend in Iran. His name must remain anonymous because of security reasons. What my friend said next was the cause of a profound worship experience. I was on my smartphone and he was on his pc at home in Tehran.
My friend told me, "Randy, it is my dream to go to church with you without fear."
I cannot adequately describe in words the emotions I felt when he told me that.
I quickly texted him back and replied, "Dear brother. Do not be afraid. We can worship God right now together without fear." He agreed.
I told my friend, "Please watch that video again now. Raise you hands and heart with me. Your dream is going to come true right now. Even though we are miles apart we are together in spirit worshiping Jesus."
My friend clicked on and watched the video again. He told me it was beautiful.
I said to him, "Lift your voice and your heart in praise with me. Right now we are worshiping together without fear and no government in Iran can stop us!"
Why was my friend so afraid? In Iran, a Muslim is forbidden to change his religion. It could cost him his life! A few years ago, my friend converted to Christianity and now has to practice his Faith secretly.
However, the Word of God cannot be bound! God is not bound or restricted by governments!!
One unforgettable night after work, through the miracle of technology, My friend and I joined our hearts and spirits together in worship. God answered the prayer of my friend.
 For a few precious minutes, we worshiped together to an incredible song, "10,000 reasons," by Matt Redman. I can sing loudly with Matt, "Bless the Lord, O my soul. Worship His holy name."
It is a night that I will never forget!