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Why Singing?

2010-03-11T15:52:00.000-08:00

Worship is an intentional response to something...or someone. For the followers of Jesus...God is the object of their worship. So if one can worship through so many different ‘vehicles’, why do we sing when we gather as the church?

From what I've experienced and from what I read in my bible, singing has been a unique and special expression of worship for a really long time. I mean, you got the whole book of Psalms…beautiful words put to music. Exodus 15 describes how Moses & the Israelites sang a song to the Lord. In fact, according to biblegateway.com, the word “sing”, present or past tense, is used 131 times throughout the bible.

The people of God have a rich tradition of singing and making music to Him. When we sing together at our meetings, we are participating in an expression that has been taking place for thousands of years! We join an ancient chorus declaring that our God is the one true God and proclaim that He is alive and reigning!

It’s something a majority of us can do together…though some may sound better than others…everyone can participate. Even if you are unable to make noise with your mouth, the bible even says to do it in your heart. (Eph. 5:19-20)

God is obviously passionate about us singing to Him…and my bias opinion is that we should be passionate as well.

What do you think?

Do We Devalue Worship?

2010-03-01T08:25:00.000-08:00

Do we devalue worship by saying that worship is everything? Granted…worship is a response…and in our case…a response to God…and one can respond to God in many ways that honor Him and bring Him joy. But what about the uniqueness of getting together as a larger group/body of people to worship God using the vehicle of music?

Throughout the bible, Old & New Testaments, we are told by multiple writers to ‘sing’, ‘worship’, ‘praise Him’, ‘make music.’ That’s rather specific. Paul does indeed say to do everything for God’s glory…not ours…which I believe whole heartedly we should do. But if you compare just the amount of times we are told to ‘sing and make music’ to God versus doing ‘everything’ for God’s glory, the first exceeds the later.

I’m in no way saying that worship through music is more important than doing everything to God’s glory. The only thing I’m pointing out is that, for some reason, there is a huge, specific emphasis on worshipping God through the vehicle of music & singing. The song is not more valuable than someone painting to God’s glory, or writing, or building something. BUT…using the song & music is, as shown over and over in scripture, a specifically unique response to God that we are instructed to do.

I’m going to talk about why it’s unique in my next post…as well as what can happen when we worship God through the vehicle of music.

What are your thoughts?

Shame & Worship

2010-02-11T13:38:00.000-08:00

Shame is a huge barrier in the worship and enjoyment of God. Believe me...I know this first hand...I've experienced it & seen it. The reality is that God is a good Father. He isn't waiting to slap you on the hand for saying something wrong. He isn't setting you up for failure so He can prove how weak or stupid you are.

The fact is that God deeply loves, deeply accepts & deeply heals. He sets free. He restores. He comforts. He is gracious. He is compassionate.

It's not because of what we do that He loves us...His love is not dependent on performance or achievement. He doesn't love you because you have a 'quiet time'. He doesn't love you because you work at a church. He loves you because you are made in His image...His likeness. And because God loves Himself...He loves us...

He will never love us more than He does right now...and He will certainly never love us less.

"Therefore, there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus..." (Romans 8:1)

"The condemnation of shame says to cover your sin because it makes you unlovable and unforgivable; the conviction of the Holy Spirit says you are loved, so bring your sin to God in repentance and be forgiven." -Joel Balin

2 Corinthians 1:2-4 (God of comfort)
Psalm 103 (attributes of God)
Ephesians 2:4-5 (saved by grace)

Worship & Expectation

2010-01-28T10:58:00.000-08:00

Expectations can be a good thing...but they can also be a bad thing that will lead to disappointment when they're not met.

When we come together to worship God, do we expect Him to be there & move? Psalm 22:3 talks about God inhabiting or dwelling in the praises of His people. That's rather epic. In Matthew 18 Jesus straight up says, "When two or three of you are together because of me, you can be sure that I'll be there." (Matt. 18:20, msg)

So if God - Father, Son & Spirit - promises to be wherever we get together in His name, we can expect it to be so. He isn't trying to trick or confuse us. He is simply there & present in all His 'offices'. All powerful Son of God Jesus - who heals, restores, reconciles, frees & forgives is here in our midst! We will not be disappointed because He is who He says He is!

That deserves a big 'Booya!' So awesome!

The Kingdom

2009-10-14T10:48:00.000-07:00

We've been discussing the Sermon on the Mount at His Place...and the conversations have been amazing. As we start, and/or continue to agree with what the Spirit is doing we are going to see God do some awesome stuff.

We're already seeing it! The sick healed, the demonized delivered! We are seeing the rule and reign of Jesus in action...

Good stuff!

Forgotten God - Francis Chan

2009-09-04T11:17:00.001-07:00

Forgotten God Widget testgreat free widgetsWidgetbox

Looking forward to reading this...

John 17:1-5 (MSG)

2009-08-27T14:35:00.000-07:00

Jesus said these things. Then, raising his eyes in prayer, he said: Father, it's time. Display the bright splendor of your Son so the Son in turn may show your bright splendor. You put him in charge of everything human so he might give real and eternal life to all in his charge. And this is the real and eternal life: That they know you, the one and only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom you sent. I glorified you on earth by completing down to the last detail what you assigned me to do. And now, Father, glorify me with your very own splendor, the very splendor I had in your presence before there was a world.

Beholding & Seeing...

2009-08-17T12:38:00.000-07:00

If you're married, or in a relationship, you probably love looking at the other person...you behold them. Sometimes, not even saying anything.

As we see God for who He is, we can't help but behold Him...to be amazed...

But, if we're not seeing God for who He is, as shown to us in the word & by His Spirit, then there won't be much to behold...and we will be rather unimpressed and unmoved. We won't be enamoured by Him and beholding Him will become a chore or a dry ritual...

Questions...

2009-08-11T11:33:00.000-07:00

If Jesus is who He says He is, and I believe He is, why don't we 'see' more of the supernatural in our Sunday morning meetings? If the Holy Spirit is in us, why don't we experience the gifts of the Spirit? If the Father is who He says He is, then why do so many feel they are without a father? Why don't we see more healing? Why don't we experience deeper intimacy with Him? Why don't we see deliverance and people being set free?

I'm not saying that these things are not happening at all at HPC. Signs and wonders are not the end goal...the end goal is Jesus...the Father...the Spirit...signs and wonders are an evidence of sorts of His power and reality. The Word says that the Spirit points us to Jesus...and Jesus reveals the Father.

I get scared because I feel so comfortable...that all we do is so planned out that we make this thing about a system, rather than God...who He is, what He did and what He does...

God Loves Himself

2009-07-30T15:22:00.000-07:00

I've been thinking a lot about how much God loves Himself. Think about it...if God loved someone more than Himself...then He wouldn't be God...because there would be something/someone greater than Him worth loving.

And then I think of the relationship God shares with Himself...Father, Son & Spirit. The Son and the Father share intimate relationship with each other...and Jesus constantly talked about how He came to show us the Father...and that They are one.

I really believe we present an incomplete gospel at times. We leave the thought at, 'Jesus saved us so we wouldn't go to hell.' True...but we need to follow that thought further...doing that will lead us to the very heart and nature of God.

Since God loves Himself...He loves to behold Himself. Man is made in God's image. We chose something other than God to give ourselves to. God desires the relationship with us to be reconciled. He sends Himself to do what only He could do, and in doing so, makes a way once more for us to be together...sharing in the same intimacy He shares with Himself.

I absolutely love this thought.

I Absolutely Can't Wait For This...

2009-06-18T15:36:00.000-07:00

September 24th can not come quick enough...

Phil Wickham - Heaven Song

2009-06-16T11:31:00.000-07:00

Where We'll Be September 24, 2009

2009-05-27T10:55:00.000-07:00

Heather and I like being married. We like it so much that we do something super cool every anniversary. Well...this year, it just happens that U2 is on tour and will be playing the day of our 4 year...in New York.

The only reasonable thing to do was to join their fan club, get in on their special pre-sale and snag a couple of tickets! We also found a super cheap flight on JetBlue.

What could make all of this better, you ask? Muse is opening.

This is gonna be amazing...

Late Morning Distraction...

2009-05-07T10:36:00.001-07:00

Set List & Recap :: 4/19/2009

2009-04-20T16:01:00.000-07:00

Awesome Is The Lord Most High (Able/Tomlin)
Unchanging (Tomlin)
From The Inside Out (Houston)
Holy God (Doerksen)
Take My Life (Underwood)
Refiner's Fire (Doerksen)

Man...this morning Doug, lead pastor at HPC, brought it big time. We were continuing our series in 1 Thessalonians and we were talking about sanctification, holiness and sexual integrity. You could have heard a pin drop as he talked about what so many in the church don't like/are uncomfortable talking about...sex.

He did a killer job communicating the truth w/o laying on guilt...cause if as a Christian you've wrestled with sexual sin...you know there is enough guilt from everywhere & everyone else.

It was an incredible morning...and there is hope!

Thoughts On Buying A House

2009-04-15T07:52:00.000-07:00

So we've been looking at houses the last few days and will be going out again on Friday. There's one house we really like...being 2 blocks from the lake & less than a mile from downtown CDA would be quite fun.

The place is smaller than what I was originally thinking of...but the more houses I see...the more I like this one.

We've had some cool conversations about what we need...the place will fit us perfectly, but we'd have to get rid of some 'stuff'. It's a funny thought to buy a bigger place so we can fit all of our things in it.

It's a super cool little bungalow that was remodeled 3 years ago.

Hmmm...

We're Looking For A House

2009-04-10T09:34:00.000-07:00

Something I was convinced that would never really happen for us was owning a home. We've been throwing down rent for our whole independent lives...and now, for the first time in our lives, we're looking for a house to purchase. Crazy.

We're headed out with our realtor Monday afternoon for the first time. We're stoked...and we're praying the God would lead us to the right spot.

We came up to Idaho with a limp & a prayer...and in the practical AND the emotional/spiritual...God has been providing for & healing us in amazing ways...

We'll keep you posted.

Johnn Cash Is On Twitter...

2009-04-04T11:43:00.001-07:00

It has finally happened. Our dog, Johnny Cash, has set up his own Twitter account. Follow him here. @JohnnyCashDog

Northwest Ministry Conference

2009-03-29T17:32:00.000-07:00

So we went to the Northwest Ministry Conference this weekend. There wasn't really anything offered re: worship ministry...or...better stated...the few things that were offered re: worship ministry didn't really interest me. But there was redemption! Francis Chan brought it...and brought it big time. He spoke about many things...the bible, the church, love, poverty, marriage...and it was all pretty dope.

The biggest bummer was that the conference only gave him 12 minutes in the morning general session...which was a big mistake on their part...and followed his powerful talk on poverty & equality with a comedian...

All in all...the time away was good..and has helped me rethink a lot of things. Plus, the fact that my wife got to come with was a pretty sweet deal!

Unknown Comments...Pt. 3

2009-03-16T12:34:00.001-07:00

There was an 'Unknown Commenter" that didn't have the courage to leave their name last week, complaining about "not being able to worship" because we haven't done a hymn in a while...and asked me to "throw them a bone."

Well...before I heard or knew of their complaint, I picked the following weeks set list...which included a hymn...Jesus Paid It All...Stanfill style.

This week there was another Unknown Comment that read, "Thank you for the bone."

There is much irony here...at least for me...

I'm bummed that people think that if they complain we will change what we're doing. I'm pleased that this person was 'able to worship' yesterday because of my song choice...but it's a little silly to me.

May His Place be a community of passionate Jesus followers who are amazed, in awe and overwhelmed by God's mercy, love, grace...His Son & His Spirit...and may He be the reason we worship, not song selection and/or complaining...

A.W. Tozer Quotes from "Worship: The Missing Jewel"

2009-03-13T17:30:00.000-07:00

"Why did Christ come? In order that He might make worshippers out of rebels."

"Worship means "to feel in the heart". A person that merely goes through the form and does not feel anything is not worshipping."

"Worship also means "to express in some appropriate manner" what you feel. And what will be expressed? A humbling but delightful sense of admiring awe and astonished wonder. It is delightful to worship God, but it is also a humbling thing."

"And if there is one terrible disease in the Church of Christ, it is that we do not see God as great as He is. We’re too familiar with God."

"We’re here to be worshippers first and workers only second. We take a convert and immediately make a worker out of him. God never meant it to be so. God meant that a convert should learn to be a worshipper, and after that he can learn to be a worker. The work done by a worshipper will have eternity in it. Labor that does not spring out of worship is futile and can only be wood, hay, and stubble in the day that shall try every man’s works."

Worship: The Heart & The Mind

2009-03-12T13:05:00.000-07:00

Worship is a response to something or someone...in our case, God. God reveals who He is to us and we respond. We experience freedom, healing & restoration from Jesus...we respond. We learn who He is in His word and we respond.

The more we see and experience Him, the more amazed and in awe we are...His power, beauty, love & holiness.

Worship also involves sacrifice. Words are easy to say...but to follow through with those words with a life lived in unabashed surrender involves yielding ourselves to Him...it involves giving up & letting go.

To worship with just the mind is dry and not robust. To worship with just the heart is empty and vague.

It can flip flop either way...and worship without both the heart and mind engaged is either flat or fluff. We write off engaging the heart in order to keep things controlled and manageable. We write off the mind to keep things in 'abstracts' and never get around to knowing who we are worshipping.

I fear it going either way...God cannot be contained in knowledge, yet He desires us to know Him. He reveals Himself in His word, yet desires us to know His heart and agree with what His Spirit is doing.

I want my worship to be as big and robust as God is...

It's Not About Doing...

2009-03-10T16:24:00.000-07:00

I absolutly love Romans 8 in The Message. And especially the end of verse 4...

"And now what the law code asked for but we couldn't deliver is accomplished as we, instead of redoubling our own efforts, simply embrace what the Spirit is doing in us."

I think a lot of us get stuck in thinking the bible offers us just 'principles to live by.' I think we sell the gospel very short when we see the bible as just 'guidance for life'...like a book you'd give a high school graduate...you know?

I think we get stuck in talking about 'how to live right'...that we don't get around to exercising a real relationship with the Father, Jesus & the Spirit.

It's not a matter of 'doing', 'striving' or even 'trying'...it's about agreeing with what God is already doing in and around us. When we talk about striving to be perfect, or trying to do the 'right' things...we're not getting the large picture.

I have felt guilt and shame about not having an early morning 'quiet time' with God...a lot of that came from well intentioned people that were hopefully encouraging real relationship with God...but it's the 'shoulds', 'coulds' & 'woulds' that can kill someones passion.

I understand that there are many times I don't feel like worshipping God...and in these cases it comes down to being reminded of who God is that changes my perspective.

He is desiring a real relationship with His children. One that engages the mind as well as the heart...and one that is intimate and close.

More later...

Cold Weather Is For The Horses...

2009-03-02T15:26:00.000-08:00

Took my wife out last night and we ran around Downtown Spokane together for a few hours. It was really good to get out and blow the stink off of us. Sometimes this weather really gets me bummed out...and while I'd like to say that something silly like the weather doesn't bother me...it does.

I'm really looking forward to the summer...

Bluegrass & Frank Peretti

2009-02-28T17:04:00.001-08:00

So...Frank Peretti, author extraordinaire, plays banjo...amongst a handful of other instruments...I did not know this. We went to this bluegrass benefit concert for a pregnancy center...which my wife is a board member of...crazy.

Anyway...the last band goes on and it's Frank Peretti on banjo. I fancied the opportunity to get my mug with him...and apparently...he was quite amazed that my phone had a nifty little camera in it.

In the 30 seconds that we chatted, he seemed like a nice, genuine guy who handled a small mob of people well...

Thanks Mr. Peretti. I shall visit with some of your books soon...