Ep. 85 | The LORD Will Provide | Louder Than Words

Listen in as Lucas Lott shares today’s daily devotional featuring the song "The Lord Will Provide." Let’s be Formed by The Word together!

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Transcript

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Music has a unique way of touching the heart. A song can bring back a memory, lift our spirits, comfort us in a difficult season, or help us express what words alone cannot. That's one reason music has always been an important part of worship. Through the songs we sing, we celebrate God's goodness, declare his truth, and remind ourselves of his faithfulness. Over the past several weeks, we've been formed by God's Word as we've journeyed through Genesis. Over the next two weeks, while Pastor Eddie is away on a mission trip, several leaders from the Orchard Community Church will guide us through a special formed by the Word series called Louder Than Words. Together we'll explore the scriptures, truths, and personal stories behind some of the worship songs that have shaped our faith and encouraged our walk with Christ. Our prayer is that these devotions will help you listen more carefully to the songs you sing and deepen your appreciation for the God those songs celebrate. So wherever you're listening today, lean in and open your heart. The God who spoke in the beginning is still speaking today. Let's listen together.

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Well, hello and good morning, and welcome to the Formed by the Word podcast. If you are a member at the Orchard, or if you attend the Laiboak location, you probably recognize my voice. But my name is Lucas, and I have the privilege to lead worship and student ministry at the LIBOK location. And I have the challenge of filling some really big shoes today as I fill in for Pastor Eddie Blaylock. I'm so blessed to be part of this staff, and honestly, it has truly been so rewarding to serve at the Orchard Community Church. Well, let's dive in. As you know, we've been going through a series based on the testimonies and theology of some of the worship songs we know and some of which we sing fairly regularly on Sundays. So today's episode is titled Jehovah Jirah, the Lord Will Provide. Matthew chapter 6, verses 25 through 34 says this. Therefore I tell you, don't worry about your life. What you will eat or what you will drink, or about your body, what you will wear. Isn't life more than food and the body more than clothing? Consider the birds of the sky. They don't sow or reap or gather into barns, yet your heavenly father feeds them. Aren't you worth more than they? Can any of you add one moment to his lifespan by worrying? And why do you worry about clothes? Observe how the wildflowers of the field grow. They don't labor or spin thread. Yet I tell you, not even Solomon in all his splendor was adorned like one of these. And if that's how God clothes the grass of the field, which is here today and thrown into the furnace tomorrow, won't he do much more for you? Now listen to this because we're going to come back to this, O you of little faith. So don't worry saying, What will we eat, or what will we drink, or what will we wear? For the Gentiles eagerly seek all these things, and your heavenly father knows that you need them. But seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things will be provided for you. Therefore, don't worry about tomorrow, because tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own. You see, we sing songs on Sunday morning that they they ultimately point us to Jesus, and most of the time our songs are vertical. The lyrics are all about Jesus and his work on the cross. However, we also sing songs from time to time that are testimonial, songs that often allow us to recall and recount God's faithfulness in our lives. And I want to share with you a moment in my life that drew me back to this certain passage of scripture titled The Cure for Anxiety, a passage that the Lord will provide, a song that we sing regularly on Sundays was written out of. You see, if you're like me, and if you have ever dealt with any form of anxiety, this song probably resonates with you too. A few years back, I was going through a serious bout with anxiety. It was strange, honestly, because my parents, being the Christians they were, had always taught me to have faith and that everything would be just fine and that God would provide. However, I found myself as a parent and as a husband always feeling this pressure to provide for my family. When we first moved back to Live Oak, we had not yet sold our house in our previous town, and we were paying rent and mortgage at the same time. And it seemed like every month we struggled to make ends meet. Money was tight and we made it through, but sometimes it just seemed like we barely made it. And through this season, Someone Anonymous would always provide a certain amount of money for us as a gift. It was a huge blessing, honestly. It oftentimes helped us pay rent for that month. But me being me, I still had this anxious feeling that something was going to happen, and we wouldn't be able to afford life, that we would need new tires or major car repairs, that an unwanted hospital bill would come around, and those thoughts crept into my mind daily. Well, Christmas time came around that year, and we all know we want to provide something for our kids at Christmas, even if it's just something small, something to let our kids know that we love them and that we are thinking of them. Well, typically, when I received that anonymous monetary gift, it was the first Sunday of the month, and December had come, and honestly, that Sunday's worship service was great. It was awesome. However, as the service concluded and I left the church building, I had not received an envelope. Me being me, I began to worry. I began to stress about the holidays, travel cost, to see distant grandparents and cousins, gifts for family, and those things on top of our monthly bills and expenses for that month. I found myself once again overwhelmed with anxiety. If you've been around the orchard any amount of time, you probably know that the first Tuesday of every month, we have something we call refuel. It's a really cool gathering where our staff invites anyone in our church and other churches to come and fellowship with us. Oftentimes we have some worship music followed by a devotional led by our lead pastor chip. Well, the following Tuesday came and it happened to be a refuel Tuesday. I was supposed to be leading worship that morning, and as I made my morning commute to work, I gotta be honest, I was in tears, broken, overwhelmed with that same fear that I had felt before. How am I going to provide? I walked into our meeting, and God hit me with one of the strongest reminders of his faithfulness that he ever has. Oh, you of little faith. My friend Matt walked up to me and handed me an envelope. This envelope was filled with money to help our family make ends meet. He probably doesn't remember this, and honestly, I'm very emotional thinking about it right now. But he looked at me and he said, Hey man, I'm really sorry, but I forgot to give you this on Sunday. I was broken. Broken because I had forgotten the God in whom I serve and follow. Jehovah Jira, the God who provides. And for God to drive home the point even more. The next Sunday, a ladies' group who meets at our location brought me and my wife a box full of Christmas presents for our kids. Again, drawn back to Matthew chapter six in those moments. And I want to share this truth with you today. That if our great God cares for the sparrow and the wildflowers in the field, the least of these, how much more does he care for us? How much more does he provide what we need? So why worry at all? As the song says, He's faithful to provide. The powerful God who created the universe intimately cares for you. It's so amazing. So I'll leave you with this last thought from Matthew chapter six. But seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things will be provided for you. Therefore, don't worry about tomorrow because tomorrow will worry about itself. Would you pray with me? Thank you, Lord, for always providing for our needs. As I look back over my life, help me to remember all the things that you have provided for me. In seasons of anxiety and worry, help my unbelief. Thank you for this reminder today that you are not lofty and far away, but rather you are close and near to us, intimately caring for our needs. Thank you, Jesus. In your name I pray. Amen.

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Thanks for joining us today. We are so glad that you chose to spend a few moments with us in God's Word. If this episode has encouraged you, we ask that you leave us a review or maybe share this episode with a friend. Also, would you consider sending us a note to let us know what God is doing in your life? Pastor Eddie would love to hear from you. You can find this email in the show notes. Until next time, stay in the Scriptures, keep following Christ, and allow your life to be formed by the Word.