Hillsong Young & Free (Hillsong)

Produced by the youth ministry of Hillsong Church in Sydney, this new album marks an effort to reach the next generation for Christ. 

Gateway Worship (EMI)

This collaborative effort between Gateway Worship and Women of Faith includes an extended version of “Revelation Song” and draws from a diverse group of worship leaders and songwriters. 

Nothing in life is certain, except for death, taxes … and change. God never changes, but we do. Through sanctification we are transformed from sinful, carnal creatures into the image of God’s Son.

Becoming like Jesus requires a lot of change—and often involves difficult periods of transition.

Transition can take many forms. It can be like the transition during labor—intense pain followed by a clear reward. Or it can be like the momentary transition that takes place when you switch gears in a car to face the challenge of the road ahead.

For an instant you are between gears. The engine is roaring, but you have no control. You may not know what the road ahead is like or whether you even want to move to a higher level. But when the shift occurs, you are connected once again with the power of the engine and are translated into a higher level of operation—the next gear.

Transition can also be a time that seems as if it will never end—a long, dark night of the soul when all around you seems dim and you lose sight of God’s promises to you. In this season, you may lose your sense of God’s presence and feel that He has abandoned you.

Don’t give up! I have learned that no matter how uncomfortable the period of transition is, change is a good thing. It keeps us moving forward.

Forward motion starts with just one step, and we have the assurance that our steps “are ordered by the Lord” (Ps. 37:23). This means that God has a plan for us. He knows what is needed to conform us to the image of Christ.

But taking that first step often requires the kind of faith Peter had when he stepped out of the boat and walked on water in response to Jesus’ command to come (see Matt. 15:28-32). Faith allowed Peter to do something that was impossible in the natural, but the roar he heard in the natural—the wind—distracted his faith, and he began to sink.

Don’t allow the storms of your transition to cause you to lose sight of God’s promise to see you through. To the degree you see or hear the natural, you can’t hear God.

Weathering transition successfully also requires trust. Suffering, Job said, “Though He slay me, yet will I trust Him” (Job 13:15). And David declared, “Whenever I am afraid, I will trust in You.” (Ps. 56:3). God rewarded David’s trust with refuge and deliverance. Know that you serve One who is trustworthy.

Whether in birth or in the darkest night, each period of transition in your life will lead you to a glorious new place. Allow God to use each one to take you to a higher level spiritually, with the ultimate goal that you become like Him. 

PRAYER POWER FOR THE WEEK OF 9/23/2013

This week embrace change and thank God that He is moving you to a new level of trust when you weather storms of transition in your life. Continue to pray for those who have suffered great loss due to fires on the east and west coasts, and floods in the Midwest. Praise God for the outpouring of love from Christians and the private sector during this time of recovery. Pray for the families of those who died in the recent mass killings at the Navy Yard in Washington, DC. Remember those persecuted for their faith and victimized in Syria and other Middle East countries. Pray for revival in our nation and that President Obama and his administration would seek God as they lead the country during this difficult time of national and international challenges. Pray that righteousness will be restored to our executive, judicial and legislative branches. Remember our troops and their families. Psalm 37:23; Matt. 15:28-32

Robin Donica Wolaver
Guideposts Books

The Song of Annie Moses: A Musical Quest, A Mother’s Gift by singer-songwriter Robin Donica Wolaver releases this month. The book tells Wolaver’s family saga from the cotton fields in Depression-era Texas to the halls of Julliard and beyond. Wolaver and her husband raised six musicians, eventually forming the Annie Moses Band, a family band named after Wolaver’s grandmother. The book emphasizes family roots, hard work and living by biblical truth.

Mark Batterson
Zondervan

The lead pastor of National Community Church in Washington, D.C., challenges readers to fully surrender to the lordship of Christ, saying the gospel doesn’t cost anything but demands everything. 

Ron Phillips 
Charisma House

Discover the truth behind the world’s greatest mysteries of the Bible, from the flood to lost Atlantis to the Antichrist and more.  

7eventh Time Down 
BEC Recordings

For the follow-up to 7eventh Time Down’s 2011 album Alive in You, each group member co-wrote the majority of the 10 tracks, while also lyrically collaborating with respected songwriters Ian Eskelin, Jeff Pardo and Tony Wood.

Creflo Dollar 
FaithWords

Find out what role the Holy Spirit can play in the arena of making and managing money. 

Steve Foss 
Charisma House

Foss teaches readers how to be free—for good—from the bondage of sin, strongholds, lack and demonic oppression, entering into the fullness of Christ through His grace.

Jentezen Franklin 
Charisma House

New York Times best-selling author Jentezen Franklin helps readers understand the devil’s strategies by listing 10 warning signs that a person is under attack. Franklin explains specific ways to fight back and overcome.