"LAYING DOWN MY CROWN"

Hi everyone,

I have just returned from a great conference. Everything about it was really good, the company was just tops, the worship was magnificent, and the ministry was diverse and really hit the spot!

One of the songs we sang has the line, "Laying down my crown". I'm a great believer when it comes to worship of the singing kind, (because worship is so much more than a song) that these songs are prayers set to music, so it's really good to think about what we're singing and interact with the lyrics while we sing!

A moment I have always anticipated with great relish is that moment when I see HIM face to face, and lay down my crown at His feet. But I've always viewed it with the thought that it really isn't MY crown, but HIS. In a sense this is true, because we don't have anything that we haven't received.

But something came to me with such clarity while singing that line this weekend. It is MY crown. It is a unique crown, a "Lynda Crown". It's unique because it's a magnificent reflection of my journey on planet earth with Him. It is fashioned by who I am, those moments and decisions that only He and I know about, and then of course the journey of working those decisions into daily obedience.

It is embellished with jewels won by our personal victories. Think about it, the colours and cut of every piece is being produced by our 'wins'. What kind of wins?

• A broken habit that we know is destructive.
• Choosing to love and forgive
• The creation of a good habit
• Victory over fear, or bitterness, or grumbling... or whatever!
• Choosing to stay with our commitments, when all we want to do is quit.
• Bringing someone else to know Him.

On and on it goes. The precious moments of worship, the development of our character, and everytime we get a win for Him....it's going to make that crown even more beautiful.

WOW! I want to lay the most beautiful, 'tell-a-story' kind of crown at His feet. I reckon when I do, we are going to exchange a look that says, "We know exactly what this is about!" It will be a crown that represents a history that He and I have shared alone.

So let me encourage you.....today...whatever you are facing, face it with Him, face it for Him. Turn this day into a crown-fashioning day of worship, and maybe when we stand before Him you and I will take such huge delight in laying down our crowns at His feet, side by side!

Much love,
Lynda