Sing to the Lord a new song; sing to the Lord, all the earth. Sing to the Lord, praise his name; proclaim his salvation day after day. Declare his glory among the nations, his marvelous deeds among all peoples. For great is the Lord and most worthy of praise…Worship the Lord in the splendor of his holiness; tremble before him, all the earth.  Psalm 96:1-4, 9

DEVOTION

The song, “Holy,” was born out of a desire to realign our focus and our affection on the one thing that it belongs to: God. In worship, we often sing and write songs that are internally focused, that reflect change that has been made in our lives because of God. Obviously there is nothing troubling about this kind of worship–it’s testimonial in nature and glorifies him! But we had a longing to truly write a song about who God is and why he alone deserves the glory. He alone deserves the praise. He alone is holy.

This was a difficult task. How do people who aren’t holy write about a God who is? The Lord led us to Psalm 96, written by King David. The poetic nature of this Psalm inspired us to continue in our endeavor to write about “worshipping the Lord in the splendor of His holiness.” 

This Psalm is actually an excerpt from a sacred song which King David composed at a very significant time in history. The ark of the covenant had finally been brought to its resting place in Jerusalem. In 1 Chronicles, we find that David has created a place for it and has gathered all of Israel together to give praise to God. The words he wrote were instructions in how we should praise him. 

Can you envision a day like this? A day in which a long journey ends … a chapter closes … everyone takes a collective deep breath and says, “We made it.” A day where there is finally a place to gather and praise the God who has brought them through so many difficult seasons. And, at David’s urging, the people of Israel are now moved to worship God and give him the praise and glory he truly deserves. I imagine, if even for a short time, the Israelites felt freedom and peace like never before.

Sounds kind of like something we could have used in 2020 … a deliverance of sorts, reminder in our spirits that we will make it, and we will see his glory on the other side. After all, only a God who loves us could deliver us to a place of freedom like this—over and over again since the dawning of time. What will worship look like for you on the other side of 2020? 

PRAYER

God, we pray our worship would be an offering to you. We pray our hearts will forever remember your great deeds and all you have done. Let us never forget how deserving you are of our praise, even on the hardest of days. May our lives be a representation of your mighty love, and may we always point the world back to you and your holiness. 

Amen.

Lindsey Haugen

Worship Ministry Associate

lhaugen@crossings.church

"HOLY" LYRICS

There is no one like You, God

Oh, none that can compare

You’re worthy

You’re worthy

All of Heaven’s singing of

The wonders of Your love

You’re worthy

So worthy

Oh worship the Father, the Spirit and the Son

Our God and King forever

He is the only One

Holy, Holy

Are You, Lord

Holy, Holy

Are You, Lord

Strong and mighty

Are You, Lord

Holy, Holy

Are You, Lord

From age to age we stand

In the greatness of Your plan

You’re worthy

You’re worthy

Let every breath we breathe

Be to you an offering

You’re worthy 

So worthy

Let the heavens sing out

Let creation bow down

We praise You, we praise You

Every tongue, every tribe

Let our hands reach the sky

We praise You, we praise You

Let our voices cry out

Let our knees hit the ground

We praise You, we praise You

You deserve all our praise

All the glory and fame

We praise You

You’re Still Moving, the latest worship album from the Crossings Venue Worship Team, features seven inspiring songs intended to encourage you to live by faith, be a voice of hope, and be known by love. Listen to the song, "Holy," right here, or listen to the entire album on Spotify, Apple Music, Amazon Music, YouTube Music, and SoundCloud.