Acts 16:22-26 The crowd joined in the attack against Paul and Silas, and the magistrates ordered them to be stripped and 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 and fastened their feet in the stocks. 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. At once all the prison doors flew open, and everybody's chains came loose.

Job 13:15 Though he slay me, yet will I hope in him;

Ps 42:5-6 Why are you downcast, O my soul? Why so disturbed within me?
Put your hope in God, for I will yet praise him, my Savior and my God.

Worship is a matter of choice. It is our response to Him for all He has done. True worship is not contingent on our feelings or circumstances which are always in flux. How we feel or what we are going through have no effect on who He is and what He has done. He is God, sovereign and almighty. This song was written on a brief get away to Mt Alvernia, a Catholic retreat center in the Hudson Valley. Many of you know that I have been "diagnosed" with rheumatoid arthritis and that I have days when I need a cane to get around. It can be pretty discouraging and discouraged is how I was feeling as I hobled though the hallways at Mt Alvernia. It's almost as if my pain and lack of mobility helped illuminate the scriptures that this song is based on. I received a fresh insight into how to worship in the midst of adversity as I found example after example in the scriptures of people worshiping God inspite of their circumstances. I saw their worship as a great testimony to their faith. It is one thing believe in God but another to trust and worship Him in our darkest hours. For those who are currently facing life's storms I pray this song is an inspiration to you. That it would help you turn to Lord, not just to pray for relief, but to worship Him in the midst of your personal crisis.

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