Category: Worship

Honoring Our Military – “Raw Worship”

Posted in Discipleship, Life Happens, Worship2 Comments

(Written 10/23/2008)

“God is spirit, and his worshipers must worship in spirit and in truth.”John 4:24

Can you remember the most moving worship service you ever attended? I can, because it was only two days ago, on Easter Sunday.

My wife and I entered the Chapel Service at the Lackland Air Force Base in San Antonio, Texas with our son wearing his sharp “dress blues.” Around us sat 1,000 young, uniformed men and women, at all stages of military basic training–“zero weekers” to “new airmen.”

Music videos played as we entered. Toward the beginning of the service, the worship leaders and band led some upbeat worship music along with a jazzed-up version of a moving hymn.

Then IT happened–the most powerful worship moment I can remember! The Mark Schultz video, Letters from War, began to play. In amazing unison, the soldiers leaped to their feet, let out a yell, and started passing around boxes of tissues. As the song began, every soldier was singing and every soldier was crying.

The moment was raw….the moment was real! They seemed to understand that God helped them through another week of “Hell on earth” as they prepared to serve our country. That week, the God of the Bible had been their God, their helper, their strength.

The most touching moment was the point in the video when the soldier came home. As his car turned down the lane to his farm on the video, the soldiers let out an enormous cheer. Wow! Patriotism and the Spirit of God was as powerful as any moment in my life.

Later, during the offering, I watched my son count out 10% of his small, military salary and place it in the basket as it passed. Words can never adequately describe how I felt at that moment!

The truth is, our churches are starving for that level of raw worship. Assimilation rates will dramatically improve if we achieve worship that is real….worship that is raw…worship that is relevant! Even though I have been a Christian for 34 years, I personally long for that kind of worship. I fear that we may have to experience a great trial in our lives, similar to these soldiers, if we ever hope to cling desperately to God again.

Prayer: “Lord, whatever it takes. Let us see You. Let us sense You. Let us experience You. Let us worship You in a way that is raw and real. Let us serve you with a living sacrifice which is our reasonable service because You are worthy!”

Adopted

Posted in Life Happens, WorshipLeave a comment

This morning at Shelbyville First Baptist Church, Holly Prosser shared her testimony about adopting her daughter Ellie.  Ellie’s story is a heart-wrenching, fascinating drama about moving from an Ethiopian orphanage to a loving, American family where she is growing and flourishing.  Check out the picture of Ellie and “mom” this past Christmas.  Also, be sure to checkout Holly’s blog here!

God does the exact same thing for us when we place our faith in the Lord Jesus.  He moves us from a position of helplessness to a position of hope.  He adopts us as His own child and promises to provide and care for us throughout eternity.  When business guru Peter Drucker was asked why he became a Christian, he simply answered, “There’s no better deal!”  Indeed, there’s no better deal than being adopted by God Himself.

Look how the Apostle John describes this awesome deal of adoption:

     1How great is the love the Father has lavished on us, that we should be called children of God! And that is what we are! The reason the world does not know us is that it did not know him.  2 Dear friends, now we are children of God, and what we will be has not yet been made known. But we know that when he appears, we shall be like him, for we shall see him as he is.  3 Everyone who has this hope in him purifies himself, just as he is pure.  1 John 3:1-3 (NIV)

 

 

The “3-Minute Rule”

Posted in Church Chat, Ministry, Worship2 Comments

Have you ever heard of the 3-Minute Rule?  I believe every church could benefit greatly from practicing the rule after each worship service.  Here’s how the 3-Minute Rule works.  After the morning worship service ends, all the regular attenders spend the first 3 minutes talking with guests, newcomers, or simply people they do not know, before they begin talking with their friends.  If possible, they introduce those they meet during the 3-Minute time to their friends with the hope of including them in the group.  We should always keep in mind that . . . .

We are a culture craving relationship. In the midst of our crowded existence, many of us are living lonely lives. We live and work in a sea of humanity, but we end up missing out on the benefits of regular, meaningful relationships.  (Andy Stanley)

I think we should practice a similar rule before the service as well. We could call it the 2-Person Rule. Strive to meet at least two new people before the service begins. Imagine how many people you would meet after a few weeks. Remember . . . .

People are not merely looking for a friendly church; they are looking to make friends at church.

What do you think?  When’s the last time you met someone new at church and were genuinely interested in getting to know them?  Make a genuine effort this Sunday to connect with others–it will be a blessing to them as well as to you.

The Barbarian Way

Posted in Discipleship, Evangelism, Worship1 Comment

barabarian3This afternoon I listened again to Erwin McManus, senior pastor of Mosaic in Los Angeles, preaching his sermon, The Barbarian Way. Wow, what a needed reminder that I should be living on the edge for Jesus. McManus also wrote a great book by the same title.

Read this quote from his book, The Barbarian Way:

Perhaps, the tragedy of our time is that such an overwhelming number of us who declare Jesus as Lord have become domesticated–or, if you will, civilized. We have lost the simplicity of our early faith. Beyond that, we have lost the passion and power of that raw, untamed, and primal faith.

Jesus did not suffer and die so that we could build for ourselves havens, but so that we might expand the kingdom of His love….Christianity has become docile, domesticated, civilized.

God’s will for us is less about our comfort than it is about our contribution. God would never choose for us safety at the cost of significance. God created you so that your life would count, not so that you could count the days of your life.

What about you? Can you remember how passionate you were about Jesus during those early days? Do you remember how burdened you were for your family members and friends who were not followers of Christ?

May God help us to return to that simple, unhampered, all-out, barbarian approach to following Christ!