For two weeks I've been battling a sore throat and a cough.  We went to the doctor and he said it's not viral so over-the-counter stuff from my local store should help.  The pharmacist at Wal-Mart suggested even using warm water with honey and lemon.  Probably works better than the ice cream remedy I'd been trying.

It's vital that I recover because I'm singing at a wedding this weekend, preaching in Baltimore on Sunday, and preaching at a youth retreat next week.  But as I wait for healing, I wonder what would happen if our voices were taken away...and we could not praise or proclaim Jesus Christ at all.  Would we be sad?  Would we be depressed?

There are those all over the world facing persecution for their beliefs, whether they be in a country with a government hostile to Christians or in a boardroom or classroom here in the States where Christians are mocked and considered weak.  That's real.  But there are many more times when we who have the ability to speak simply let our own voices go silent from lack of use.  Days go by when I don't go beyond token thoughts and into actions.  The instruments God gave us to praise and proclaim gather dust, and when your throat's full of dust, it ain't much good.

How will we praise God today?  How will we proclaim Him today?

"...his word is in my heart like a fire, a fire shut up in my bones.  I am weary of holding it in; indeed, I cannot." - Jeremiah 20:9b NIV

"Therefore, I urge you, brothers, in view of God's mercy, to offer your bodies as living sacrifices, holy and pleasing to God -- this is your spiritual act of worship." - Romans 12:1 NIV

"'I tell you,' he replied, 'if they keep quiet, the stones will cry out.'" - Luke 19:40 NIV, Jesus responding to Pharisees who tell him to quiet the crowds and disciples as they cheer his triumphal entry into Jerusalem