A time of devotion

You may have noticed, on social media, that Mike Betts has been doing a series called ‘Messiah Devotionals.’ We want to draw your attention to this excellent resource and let you know the story behind it.

After receiving ‘The works of John Newton’ as a present, Mike delved into the section of the works where John Newton preaches through the different parts of Handel’s Messiah. There are 50 parts in all and Mike is working his way through each part, adding his own flavour and application for the current season as he goes. The idea is that you listen to his devotional teaching, then the corresponding section of Handel’s Messiah or the other way around! 

Learning from those who have gone before us can be a rich experience and combining scripture with music is something that caught Mike’s attention - he says ‘it’s interesting how Newton preached into the scripture text by using this popular music of the day.’ Scripture and music is such a powerful combination. In 1 Samuel 16, we read how Saul was distressed but when David played the harp, peace and comfort came to him. The Psalms are also so moving to read, where music and scripture go hand in hand. 

We hope that these devotionals will be of help and encouragement to you, particularly at the moment during this pandemic, where we recognise that there is a lot of online ‘noise’ available to us. All. The. Time. It can feel overwhelming. You may be finding it hard to concentrate in prayer for long periods of time at the moment or to know quite how to connect with the Lord in a meaningful way. Having a devotional routine can really help with this and by tuning in to the Messiah Devotionals, you can listen to Mike’s teaching and encouragement. Mike found himself starting these as a helpful way of bringing some focus for him during this season and also as a way of connecting with others. 

As well as being a helpful focus in this season, Mike also feels a sense of ‘reaching for something still to come’ in creative music being set to scripture, not so much sung worship, but devotional thought, coming out of scripture and creative music that provides healing, restoration and application of scripture to troubled hearts. 

If you are creative in this way, maybe this could help to bring some focus for you in this time as well. Would you consider collaborating with Mike or others like him, who love expositional preaching and devotional thought. If this is of interest to you, please get in touch with Annice