Mighty To Save

This past Sunday I had the great opportunity to lead worship again at church. Our opening song was Mighty To Save, a song that I have lead time and time again. In my week's preperation for the worship set I really thought about this song. I opened my bible to one of my favorite verses. Zephaniah 3:17 "The Lord your God is with you, He is mighty to save..." The verse goes on to say that he celebrates and sings because of you. Being that I have been leading worship for a number of years this verse has always stood out to me, to picture God singing and rejoicing because of me is an amazing concept. I have read Zephaniah a handful of times and found it to be an amzing message to the nations but it has never resonated with me the way it did when preparing for this worship service. God gives this message to Zephaniah and is like look at what is going on around you and with your neighbors: false gods, killing, all of this sin, tell these people that I am going to destroy this nation, i will cut them down (in the words of Johnny Cash) my favorite part "They will no longer act haughty on my hill." God is showing Zephaniah that destruction is coming but in chapter 3 verse 17 there is this message. " I am with you, I am mighty to save, i celebrate and sing because of you, and I will refresh your life with my love." God says NO MORE!, I am about to show you my power, I am going to rock your world but I love you, come to me, I will save you, I will refresh you with my unconditional love. The sermon on Sunday was about the great flood. Destruction so that God could once again have intimacy with his creation. Sin corrupts the world, and God is calling us and reaching for us to draw near to him to accept his refreshment. The same God who can and who did destroy the world that man was following is the same God who sees us when we dance, sing, and fall before him and says Wow, look at that! My son, my daughter is so beautiful. When we fall he says hey, it's ok. I am here, I love you. Come to me, I will refresh your life, I celebrate because of you, I sing because of you, I am here with you and I am mighty to save!!