Midnight Songs

A couple of small orders of business or just a little

note to the family, we have a couple of changes coming up. I

know you're like, I think we've had enough anyway. But

this one, I think these are a couple of them that I feel are really

good. I shared with you all at some point, at least I think I did.

When my mom was passing and I was in the hospital with her that

week, she was giving me instructions, final

instructions. My mom and my dad pastored and I was

talking to my mom. I had crawled up in bed with her and I said,

mom, tell me, what do you want with your church? How do you wanna do

this? What do you wanna do? And she had two instructions. And those two

instructions were, number one, she said, do not tax the people. And

number two, don't make it harder than it has to be. And that has

just been awakened in my spirit recently. And there are a couple of things I

would like to do that I feel like for fall into those categories.

Number one, we are going to, on August 2nd, move our

gatherings back to. It's not gonna. Well, yeah, it will affect you guys.

You get out earlier anyway. 9 and 10 30,

the meetings will not be. The services will not be

identical. But what you might lose if you're in first gathering

is you might lose one song or something like that. But as far as

the teaching and the worship, we're going to go the same places, but It'll

be a one hour gathering and then we'll start the second

gathering 10:30. That means you get out at

noon. And I think that's helpful for people, especially if you got young kids

and it's nap time and it's your nap time. And anyway,

so you're. I just. That was something that was in my spirit. The other

thing was to move our services back to

Wednesday night. And the reason that I feel like that's important is

because I've had so many families who have

kids that are. Want to be in sports and your family is

involved in that. And that means that you have to make a choice between whether

your kids can be here in youth or whether you can

allow them to pursue things that they are gifted in and that they

enjoy. So the simple solution to that for me is

that we're gonna go back to Wednesday nights. You still get

cafe food from five to six, you still get fed, but it will

be on Wednesday nights from 6 to 7. And we're gonna begin that on

August 5th. So I hope, it would be my hope that that's a

blessing to you that that's something that makes life a little easier

for you and maybe takes away some of the difficulties. I

know because I've talked with some of you, and it's been a difficult choice

for you, and my hope is that you won't have to make that choice now.

So let your kids run. Let them

do what, you know, God gifted that little football player and that little

cheerleader. Let's let them do it and still come and be with their friends

and their family here on Wednesday nights. I guess that was about all I

really wanted to share with y'. All. Maybe not. This has been a

journey, guys. And I don't know if you remember when I first

two weeks ago, I said, I feel like, you know, all the Lord's given me

so far is three weeks. Well, this is week three. Y' all are in so

much trouble. This is week three. But fortunately,

because of the blessing of the Lord, we have other teachers in this house that

God has called. So next week, Pastor Justin will be bringing

a word on Saturday sacrificial worship. And he'll be talking to you about

Jesus and the price that he paid in his worship. And this one. This one

tickles me, guys, because what I gave Pastor Jonathan was

the title Even More Undignified than this.

He's so happy. Anyway, but about the worship

that David presented to the Lord. So the next two weeks, we have

powerful men of God bringing the Word according

to worship, and we are going to worship anyway, right? But I have

felt like these last three weeks have kind of been our own

Valley of Baca. Our scripture base for

this church is Psalm 84. It's why we're called

Springhouse. It says when they pass through the Valley of Tears,

they make it a place of springs. And the Lord has allowed

this over many years with this body, that when people

pass through the Valley of Tears, they find the springs.

They become the wells and the springs. And I'm excited

that he's given us the opportunity to walk through that valley.

But I also see in my spirit that we are just on the other

side of it. So I'm excited about that as well.

This week, I'm going to talk to you guys about

midnight songs. Midnight songs.

And I would imagine most of you who are biblically

literate and enjoy the Word, you know that I'm gonna talk to you about Paul

and Silas and their midnight songs. And I felt

like when the Lord was just kind of taking me through this, I felt like

that's kind of where we've been you know, that's kind of where we've been. Having

to find a midnight song, having to find the place of worship and

praise that's on the inside of us when our circumstances were not

necessarily what we would have chosen. And this isn't the first

time that any of us have been through a hard place. Right? And it

won't be the last time. So how wonder that

God would teach us how to birth a midnight song in

those places and give us the opportunity to not only learn it for ourselves,

but to teach it and model that for the generation behind

us. This is what you do when you walk through a hard place. This is

what it looks like, this is what it feels like. We're not denying it, but

we're also not gonna live in the valley of tears. We're just not going to.

We're not called to. Scripture says they passed through, they pass through.

So now when we go to Acts 16, if you have your

Bibles, I'm gonna encourage you, man.

Bring your Bible as often as you can. And if you need one,

let me know. We'll get you one, but we're gonna go.

Paul and Silas, let me set this up for you in chapter

16. Paul and Silas are ministering and there is this woman that

keeps following behind them and she is shouting and she's

bothering them and she's interrupting basically what they're doing. And she is

a fortune teller and she's actually a slave.

And she, because of her fortune telling abilities, she

is earning a lot of money for the people who own her. Well, so she's

following Paul and Silas and she's yelling and interrupting and yelling

and interrupting. And finally it says after several days, which tells you how

patient Paul must have been, you know. Cause most of us would have snapped back

like the first time, you know, he's like, you're gonna stop anyway. But

what he does is he turns around and after several days he turns around and

he rebukes the spirit that's in her and tells her to come out.

Come out. And it does. And of

course her owners are really upset because they lost their

source of income. And so they're furious and they go to the

magistrates and they have Paul and Silas. They convict

Paul and Silas. And it says in verse 22, the crowd

joined in the attack against Paul and Silas, and the magistrates ordered them to

be stripped, beaten. After they had been

severely flogged, they were thrown into prison and the jailer

was commanded to guard them carefully. Upon receiving such orders, he

put them in the inner cell not the outer cell. There was

no daylight here. And fastened their feet in stocks.

And here's where we're going. About midnight,

Paul and Silas were praying and singing hymns. Do you ever wonder what

hymn they were singing? Seriously,

don't think it was Amazing Grace, but what hymns?

See, it could have been a psalm of ascent, because we know

that David had songs of ascent and that the

children of Israel sang songs as they traveled. You don't know

what that is, but that's interesting. About midnight, Paul and

Silas were praying and singing hymns to God. And the other prisoners

were listening to them. Suddenly, there was such a violent earthquake that

the foundations of the prison were shaken. All. All at once, the prison

doors flew open and everybody's chains came loose.

Father, I thank you for your word. I thank you for the truth of your

word. It is where we stand, Lord. It is what

lights our path. It is what shows us which way to go

and which way to turn. So, Father, we thank you for your word and we

thank you for the Holy Spirit. That explains it to us. Over and

over again, I ask, Lord, that my stuff fall in your stand

in Jesus name. Amen. The cool thing

here is that the chains come off.

And when the jailer wakes up and sees that the chains are gone,

he grabs a knife and he's gonna kill himself because he just

assumes that all the prisoners have run out. But they didn't.

They didn't. They did not run out. And Paul tells

him, don't do that. Don't do that. We're all still here.

So here's the thing. Midnight worship is the worship that rises from

prison floors. Midnight worship is that place where you're

like, you know, Paul and Silas, let's see, beaten,

flogged, stripped, beaten with canes,

humiliated. You would think they might have had a reason,

sitting on that prison floor, to begin to complain and to

gripe. I'm probably. I think I would have been crying just a little bit.

I mean, like, did you see? I was just stitching me anyway. But that was

a Paul and Silas, they had a reason to

worship. And that's what came up. Because, see, to Paul and Silas, it was never

about Paul and Silas. It was about a message that they had to

carry. It was about a word of hope that was supposed to be released

to a people. And they had seen it with their own eyes. And they knew.

They knew that message needed to go, and so they just worshiped. They knew that

the situation did not matter. It says about midnight, Paul and

Silas were praying and singing hymns to God,

midnight worship is not a song of understanding, but a song of

anchored trust. Remember when we talked about anchored trust?

That allows us to sink that anchor into the place where we

just trust God, no matter what's happening here or

here or here or here or at home or at work or any

of those things to go. God, I trust you.

That's where your anchor is. Guys, everybody's not gonna like what you

do. Everybody's not gonna agree with what you do.

They're not going to be able to. You know what your assignment is?

Your assignment is to hear from the Holy Spirit and do

what he says to do, because everybody will have an

opinion about what you should or shouldn't do. You need to hear

from the Holy Spirit. If you will hear from the Holy Spirit,

he will direct your path. His word is

a lamp unto my feet. It is a light

unto my path. That's where I'll walk, and

that's where you need to walk every day of your life.

Every day of your life. I asked the Lord, I said, lord, give me examples

of this. And of course, you know which example he would give me. Job.

Job, listen. He had just lost his family.

He lost all of his kids. He lost everything.

The things he owned. He lost his cattle. He lost his stock. He lost

his servants. Everything was lost.

Everything was lost. And this is what he said when all of

the news came to him. When everything. When the last bit

of bad news came, he said, at this, Job got up,

he tore his robe and shaved his head.

Then he fell to the ground in worship and said, naked I came

from my mother's womb, and. And naked I will depart.

The Lord gave, and the Lord has taken away.

May the name of the Lord be praised. In all this, Job did

not sin. By charging God with wrongdoing.

So often we begin to blame God for things that

God's goodness was in the middle of this.

He just couldn't see it yet. God's goodness

is in the middle of these painful places, if we

will just look for it. Here's what I know.

Job's darkest night gave voice to his deepest worship. His

midnight song. I came to this planet with nothing,

and I will leave this planet with nothing. But I will

praise the name of the Lord every single

day, regardless. Every day, regardless. God

is good and he is. Is faithful. And that's where I

will stand, the next one that he gives me. Of

course you're gonna get a quote from David because David was known for being the

radical worshiper, right? I will bless the

Lord at All times, his praise shall continually be

in my mouth. Do you know, when he wrote that

he was fleeing, he was pretending that he was a crazy

man because of King Asaph.

Saul was chasing him. He'd been hiding in caves. He'd had

to leave his home. He was running for his life. And he

says, as I will bless the Lord at all times,

his praise shall continually be in

my mouth. He was probably in one of his most

difficult seasons, and he chose the midnight

song of I will bless the Lord at all times.

Hmm. But here's the thing. The most powerful

prisons are not the ones around us. They're the ones within us.

Nobody else holds you captive.

It's the things that we grab onto in our spirits and convince ourselves that we're

captive because in Christ, it was for

freedom that he has set us free.

He has done that. One of the most powerful images I feel like he gave

me one time was there was this

bar or chain or fence, and there

was a handcuff clipped to that. And

then there was an open part of the handcuff down here, and it was

open, and it was just hanging there. Just hanging there, connected to metal,

Open wide. And I just kept walking back over and putting my arm in it.

I just kept walking back over and putting my arm in it. He's like, when

do you realize that you're free? Or are you so

used to the chain that it has become your most familiar place?

These things that bind us. See, I believe it's significant that they

put Paul and Silas in the innermost prison,

because I believe that's where we struggle is in the innermost prison,

where we have to find a way to praise way out

of it. Here's what I believe. God is looking for people who will trust him

enough to worship. Before the breakthrough, that's what Paul and Silas

were doing. They were trusting God before the breakthrough.

They weren't singing hymns and songs because God had delivered

him. They were singing hymns and songs because they knew the

God who could. They knew the God who

could.

Immediately, all the doors were opened and everyone in

chains were unfastened. What, not just

theirs. Not just theirs. You know,

everybody is affected when you get free,

because everybody's affected when you're bound. Do you really

think your bondage does not affect your family?

Do you really think those places that we carry are just limited

to us? They're not. There's nothing like watching

somebody get free. There's nothing like watching somebody get

free. Nothing watching. And it just sets everything

free. I

was thinking about the Fact that the earthquake could have just gone right there,

could have just gone there to Paul and Silas, could have just loosened

their chains, could have just opened their doors, but it didn't. It went to

everybody. Because it says that everyone was

listening. Everyone was listening. So the

testimony was not, we're gonna worship and we're gonna get free.

The testimony was, we're gonna worship and we're all gonna be free.

We're all gonna get free. I love that even the winds and

waves obey him. The earthquake was not random. It was heaven's

response to a midnight song. Let me explain this

now, guys. This is not Bible. Well, it is kind of, but it's my

interpretation of something. I believe worship affects the

elements. I believe it shifts the room. I believe

that it changes the atmosphere. And I believe that

the earth responds. Scripture tells us that if we don't

cry out, the rocks will cry out. Right? It says that the trees

in the field will clap their hands. We know that

the seas parted at a word. We know that at a command, the

Jordan was split. We know that fire was called

down from heaven. We know that at some point the sun stood

still in the sky. And we know that Jesus commanded the ocean

waves. Right?

Don't tell me worship doesn't shift something. If one word can part a

sea, what do you think a thousand people worshiping him does? What

do you think can happen in a space when everybody

finds a voice of midnight worship and begins to

call on the name of the Lord before the breakthrough and tell him how good

he is? God has stuff for this

house. I want you to know that God has

moves in this house that we have not experienced before.

And I believe that there is a contingency. There is a thing that's

gonna happen in our worship that is gonna shift an

atmosphere and change some things. And I'm good

with that. I want what he wants. I believe that

there's gonna be healing. I believe that there's gonna be deliverance. I

believe that there are gonna be chains that fall off of people's

lives. I believe there's gonna be generational blessing

released in this house. The Holy

Spirit does. Anybody else does.

All we want is him to do what he does best.

Amen. Amen. That's what I want. That's where we're going.

Oh, my goodness. The Word says, he has sent me to proclaim

liberty to the captives. Jesus did not just come to forgive

sinners. He came to free prisoners.

You're not supposed to walk bound. You're just

not. You know what's beautiful about this. This is all the

way back in Isaiah, this prophetic voice. In Luke 4,

you see Jesus stand and he reads this passage from

Isaiah. He reads this whole thing. I have set

people.

In the eye.

The power, that word

in your presence. That's the power. And

see, that has been released into this atmosphere,

the atmosphere that we live in today. That has

been released. That God.

That God. Oh, that's the one I want. The earthquake did

not stop at Paul's cell. And that's the power of personal

breakthrough. It becomes corporate freedom.

Personal breakthrough has the potential to

become corporate breakthrough because all of the other prisoners were listening.

All of the other prisoners were listening. And if we'll just

listen, God has breakthrough. Guys, I

meant this. I just believe,

you know, in my own spirit. I look, you know, it's felt a little bit

like crossing the Jordan. These last few weeks have

felt a little bit like that. But in all of it,

I just. I see the other side of the river.

I see the other side of the river. And it's good. It is good

if we will keep our eyes fixed and set on him.

See, here's the thing. We are in the middle of this. I believe every life

leaves a legacy. The only question is whether yours will be one of

bondage or freedom. Your

life will leave a legacy.

My father started out as a pastor. He wound up in

alcoholism. He wound up in different things. And it's like

these things that we leave behind. And I

don't want to leave anything behind that overshadows the

goodness of God in my life. My legacy. I pray.

And, guys, I have failed so many times,

but my prayer would be that my legacy for my children would be to

go. God is good and he is faithful, and you can trust

him. No matter what, no matter what you're facing,

find your midnight song. Because he is worthy of. Of

that song. Will your legacy be one of

grumbling and complaining and fighting and staying bound? Or

will your children see you get free?

If we live chained? Our children learn to survive in prisons. But when

we worship through darkness, they learn that prisons do not have

the final word and freedom is possible.

And here's the beautiful thing about this one, guys. Your freedom becomes someone

else's theology. Your freedom becomes someone

else's theology. What do I mean? When Israel finally

crossed the Red Sea, the generations forever would remember. Our God

delivers. Our God delivers. What are

you gonna take from this moment in time? God met

us. God met us. He supplied us.

He covered us. He cared for us. He never

left us. He never. He didn't offer sin, forsake us. He

was faithful. He was faithful because

we could get so focused on the earthquake and on

that particular miracle. But you know what the greatest miracle was? The greatest

miracle at that prison wasn't the earthquake. It was the guard's salvation.

It was the guard's salvation. Somebody who was on the brink

of suicide and desperation.

And because someone was faithful enough to sing a midnight

song and then stick around for a little while

to see what God would do.

The purpose of God's power is not merely to amaze people, but to

redeem them. It's to redeem them. God

does the most amazing things. But even parting the sea was

about saving the people.

That's who he is. That's the God. That's

the God. And he is

still out redeeming the people. See,

sometimes God leaves you in a difficult place because someone trapped there needs your song.

Guys, we ought to be singing

and then stay a little longer. I love

that. They could have got up and ran,

but it says they didn't. And because of that, the

jailer was saved. And then that jailer goes and he

washes the wounds of Paul and Silas.

He washes the wounds of Paul and Silas, and then

his whole family gets saved. And you know

what's also really cool in this is that

the next day, the magistrates come and they find out, oh,

wait, Paul and Silas were Roman citizens. And they're like, oh,

man, we could be in big trouble here.

And here's what they do, because this is what we like to do. We like

to just, like, just leave quietly.

You're released. Go ahead and go.

And Paul goes, I don't think so.

I'm a Roman citizen. What you did was illegal.

You can publicly apologize and you can come escort me, and then I will

leave the prison. And that's exactly what they

did. And so they escort him out and they're going, you can

go now. He's like, no, I think I'm going to go visit my friend

Lydia for a little while. And then after we've eaten and had a good

day, then I'll probably head out. But thank you anyway.

Deliverance looks like Deliverance looks. They

stayed. They stayed. And the Lord did what he

did. I love that. Here's the thing, guys. Midnight never

gets the final word. Midnight never gets the

final word. Weeping may endure for a night, but joy

comes in the morning. And you want to know something beautiful?

Look at this. God has never failed to send one

single sunrise. Not one time. Not

one time. And if joy comes in the morning and he's sending the

morning, we are in pretty good company, don't you think?

Joy comes in the morning. Paul and Silas did not

sing because they liked where they were, but because they knew who was

with them.

Never confuse the presence of pain with the absence of God.

Never confuse. Just cause it hurts doesn't mean it isn't God.

Just cause you don't like it doesn't mean it isn't God. Never

confuse the presence of pain with the absence of God. And

I just ask you this. What if God is waiting on your midnight song for

you to break free from whatever it is, whatever you're still carrying,

whatever you're still thinking, whatever's still holding you back? What

if all it will cost you is a song? What if I

reach down to center place where this

word or this hurt or this pain has bound you

and find that song? Here's what I believe

your midnight worship declares. These chains will not define me.

This prison will not hold me. This past no longer

owns me. This pain will not take my

voice. Because God has the final word.

God gets the final word. He does. And I'm so grateful

that he does. That's the word that I need.

That's the word that I need. And I was thinking about this. Let me. I

think if I'll grab this. Cause I wanted to read it to you. I was

thinking about when I was thinking about all the elements and how they

move and worship and respond. I

was thinking about these songs.

I was thinking about hard places and people who faced them.

And I thought, if stone walls could sing,

Jericho's song would be Sound the trumpets,

raise your voice like a mighty shout and worship till

the walls fall. Worship

till the walls fall.

If seas could sing, the Red Sea song would be.

All who are fearful, trust him. Your

captivity is behind you. The God

of the breakthrough is before you. Just move.

Just move.

If tombs could sing, there is one

that would cry out. He called my name. He called

my name. The grave clothes fell and I

can breathe again. The

song. And if prison

walls in Philippi could sing, their melody would be

O beaten, bound,

battered, chained and long held captive.

Sing your song at midnight.

Sing your song at midnight.

Sing your song at midnight.

Ah, Jesus. I know we are called

in all of it to worship anyway. To

worship anyway. And so that's what we're getting ready to do.

This is week three. And I believe in my spirit that

this is significant. So I'm gonna come down here with you guys

and I need as many of you that will come. We're getting

ready to sing I'm Free. I'm free.

Thank God. Thank God. We're gonna sing it. And as we

sing it, here's what I want you to imagine in your mind.

Any chains that have held you back, any

disappointment that has broken your heart, any

unforgiveness. You need to release anything

that has bound you, whether it's been for three weeks or three

years or three decades. We're gonna make a

declaration and we're gonna come together and we're gonna worship through. And

I know that it's a new song for you, but it's not a new song

for the ages. Because over and over and over,

people have been set free by this God that we love.

Serve

God. I am free. So, Father, I ask that you would

just meet us. We're going to worship for just a minute. We're going to

tell you it is because of the price that you paid. It is because

of everything that you have done, not because of anything that we have

earned, that we are free. And we are going to give you the glory

for it. Father, in Jesus name. Let's crank it up.

Jonathan.