It's been awhile. Almost two years. Many things had changed after my last blog, and keeping it up was way down on the list. Pastoral changes are always the hard on me, and this last one was under difficult circumstances. But things are settled down now. We are under the leadership of a man after God's heart, and a real love for our church.
I have a post about christmas that I'm working on, so check back in a few days.
Wednesday, December 2, 2015
Tuesday, May 24, 2011
What is worship worth
I've spent a great deal of time praying for someone who means the world to me. In the midst of this, I've also been intised to buy a new car. ( I wont name names Ryan) as I was doing both, this thaought came to me.
It’s time to buy a new car.
Sometimes the idea is met with excitement and anticipation and sometimes with a sense of dread, depending on the situation. Rarely is it a stress free experience to walk onto a car lot, especially when the salesperson walks out with that classic smile to greet you.
Suppose you walk onto a car lot and before you sits a brand new Camaro. It looks amazing. It handles like a dream. It is a picture of perfection. It is sleek. It is fast. It is beautiful. …and it is very expensive, sporting a price tag of a whopping $65,000. Not that I really know what they sell for, I just picked the number out of my head.
If money were no object, this might be the ultimate dream car, and the price tag would not matter. However, if you are on a budget, you might admire it for a bit but it would never come home with you and spend any time in your garage.
Off to the side of the lot and tucked almost out of view, you notice a rusted out, beat up 68 Mustang Fastback. The seats are torn. It smells. All the windows are broken. The tires are flat. It is an absolute eyesore. To most people this would be a piece of junk, ready for the scrap yard.
But wait… what if you're not most people? What if you happen to be a fan of classic cars? What if you catch this hunk of metal out of the corner of your eye and it ignites a thrill in your soul? What if you’ve been looking for this particular car for years and it’s been your dream to find one and to restore it to how it was intended to be? When you look at it, you don’t see the mess that it is. You see its potential. You see beauty. You see value. You see all that it can be.
To you, this car is worth far more than a hunk of scrap. As a matter of fact, you don’t care about how much it costs because you are willing to pay anything for it. It is worth it to you
.
Two cars on the same lot. They sit at extreme opposites of the value spectrum, yet, until someone walks in and chooses to pay for them, neither of them is worth anything. They do not hold any value in and of themselves, they only have the value that you place on them. Their worth is found in what you, the buyer, are willing to pay for them.
God chose to pay the ultimate price for us. He has assigned onto us a value beyond measure. It is not dependent on us any more than the value of a car sitting on a lot has to do with itself. If no one chooses to pay for it, it just sits there.
The next time you feel worthless and good for nothing, remember, you have been bought with a price that is beyond anything you could ever dream or imagine. The One who bought you has placed immeasurable value on you. He thinks you’re worth it!
It’s time to buy a new car.
Sometimes the idea is met with excitement and anticipation and sometimes with a sense of dread, depending on the situation. Rarely is it a stress free experience to walk onto a car lot, especially when the salesperson walks out with that classic smile to greet you.
Suppose you walk onto a car lot and before you sits a brand new Camaro. It looks amazing. It handles like a dream. It is a picture of perfection. It is sleek. It is fast. It is beautiful. …and it is very expensive, sporting a price tag of a whopping $65,000. Not that I really know what they sell for, I just picked the number out of my head.
If money were no object, this might be the ultimate dream car, and the price tag would not matter. However, if you are on a budget, you might admire it for a bit but it would never come home with you and spend any time in your garage.
Off to the side of the lot and tucked almost out of view, you notice a rusted out, beat up 68 Mustang Fastback. The seats are torn. It smells. All the windows are broken. The tires are flat. It is an absolute eyesore. To most people this would be a piece of junk, ready for the scrap yard.
But wait… what if you're not most people? What if you happen to be a fan of classic cars? What if you catch this hunk of metal out of the corner of your eye and it ignites a thrill in your soul? What if you’ve been looking for this particular car for years and it’s been your dream to find one and to restore it to how it was intended to be? When you look at it, you don’t see the mess that it is. You see its potential. You see beauty. You see value. You see all that it can be.
To you, this car is worth far more than a hunk of scrap. As a matter of fact, you don’t care about how much it costs because you are willing to pay anything for it. It is worth it to you
.
Two cars on the same lot. They sit at extreme opposites of the value spectrum, yet, until someone walks in and chooses to pay for them, neither of them is worth anything. They do not hold any value in and of themselves, they only have the value that you place on them. Their worth is found in what you, the buyer, are willing to pay for them.
God chose to pay the ultimate price for us. He has assigned onto us a value beyond measure. It is not dependent on us any more than the value of a car sitting on a lot has to do with itself. If no one chooses to pay for it, it just sits there.
The next time you feel worthless and good for nothing, remember, you have been bought with a price that is beyond anything you could ever dream or imagine. The One who bought you has placed immeasurable value on you. He thinks you’re worth it!
Saturday, September 18, 2010
True worshippers???
John 4:23-24
Yet a time is coming and has now come when the true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and truth, for they are the kind of worshipers the Father seeks. God is spirit, and his worshipers must worship in spirit and in truth."
Those of us who are saved worship God. But how many of us worship Him the way He requires us to worship Him? According the scripture, God clearly wants us to worship Him in Spirit and in Truth.
To worship in spirit, we must stay connected to The Holy Spirit through prayer and communion with Him. To worship Him in Truth, we must know the truth. To know the truth, we must read His Word and Pray daily so He may reveal to us the truth we need to worship Him.
Wow! Are you showing up on Sundays to sing, praise and worship God after a week of not reading the bible, listening to or talking to God?
Today, make a commitment to stay connected to The Holy Spirit through prayer, and to know His truth by reading God's Word.
Tuesday, September 7, 2010
So Where's the Fruit or Sneaking apples from another man's orchard
So here it is... Fall is upon us once more. I must confess that it is my least favorite season. I always approach it like a defendant waiting for his sentence to be handed down from the judge. "I sentence you to 6 months of cold dreary dark, dank winter. You will spend your winter shoveling snow until you suffer a heart attack and die". YUCK.
But there are a number of things that I do enjoy. the colors, the sunsets that I'm still awake to enjoy, and the sun rising as I go to work to name a few.
After our nightly walk today, Ali and I were sitting in the backyard admiring the fall colors when we noticed the neighbor's apple tree. After sneaking half a dozen tasty apples (they were hanging over my fence after all) we were commenting on how fruitful the tree was.
Ali: Isn't it amazing how from one tiny apple seed a tree grows and matures and produces an abundance of fruit. It produces it for years. All it's life in fact. right up until it's death.
At this we both couldn't help but feel that we have a lot to learn from nature. How much fruit do we produce? do we (I) look like that tree? Hundreds of apples every year. Year after year. For 30-40 years.
Make me like that tree lord. I bear fruit, but not as a fruit tree. Not by a long shot.
But there are a number of things that I do enjoy. the colors, the sunsets that I'm still awake to enjoy, and the sun rising as I go to work to name a few.
Ali: Isn't it amazing how from one tiny apple seed a tree grows and matures and produces an abundance of fruit. It produces it for years. All it's life in fact. right up until it's death.
At this we both couldn't help but feel that we have a lot to learn from nature. How much fruit do we produce? do we (I) look like that tree? Hundreds of apples every year. Year after year. For 30-40 years.
Make me like that tree lord. I bear fruit, but not as a fruit tree. Not by a long shot.
Monday, September 6, 2010
Expecting Worship
Each week when we gather together in church for worship, I'd venture a guess to say that maybe only half of us are "ready" to come in and give God thanks. There's so many factors that can lead to how we feel on a given Sunday, aren't there?
I mean, I can think through my Sunday morning process, and there's so many variables that can determine how I feel when I get to church. Did I cut myself shaving? Did I sleep well? Did I get my morning caffeine? It would be interesting to see how many different things affect our attitudes not just on Sunday, but throughout the week.
So if we multiplied the number of variables throughout the week that we all experience by the number of people we have in church on a Sunday, then we're talking about an astronomical number of things that can change the "feeling" of the room once we all get to church.
And then you have someone like me get up on stage and say that we need to be excited about being with God!
I remember that it was generally thought that worship wasn't about emotions--that we should be able to take whatever we're feeling and push it all aside and focus solely on God. That never sat right with me, to be frank. To me, that always felt that we were disconnecting a part of ourselves from experiencing God's presence.
I think that a large part of our worship is made up of our emotions--it has to be, doesn't it? If worship (how do you define worship? When it comes to worshipping God, to me is expressing love and thanks for who he is and what he's done...) is an expression of our love back to God, then emotions have to play into it. Otherwise, it's an intellectual experience only.
When you read the Psalms, you can see how the writers there poured out their emotions to God. I can't read those passages and not hear the vocal inflection in people's writing. I can't read it monotone as if Spock was reading them. They are filled with emotion: honest, open, raw, and even violent emotions at times.
So when you come to worship on Sunday, bring your emotions with you. God's not afraid of how you feel--he'd much rather have you be honest and frustrated with him than put on a show--that "everything's happy" church face.
And your worship does not have to be singing along with me and the band. Yes, we sing a lot of songs that are celebratory--that's intentional. We want to express thanks and adoration back up to God. But we also sing a lot of songs that have deeper meaning than that. Maybe one of those songs helps you connect with God this week.
You know you don't even have to sing and you can still be worshipping your hearts out. On weeks when I'm not leading, There's some conversations that I've had with God in my head that are the most honest and open that I've been with Him (or anybody!).
At any rate, worship is more than just group singing. Our times of worship are designed to be moments where we can connect with the heart of God--we want to be open in front of him, regardless, no maybe because, of how we feel. Maybe in those moments of complete honesty with him something life changing happens to us.
What are you expecting from worship this week?
Change the Key boys
As many of you are aware I sometimes like to worship God through praise and worship songs. Now this is a reoccurring theme that keeps creeping up between the worship teams.Some songs that I do are too high for Brenda, and some songs Brenda does are too low for my team. I have also become aware of the fact that for some of you the key in which we sing is a hindrance to your vocal chords. So let me impart a few tips to make your praise and worship time in church more vocal, and and a little easier.
Now let me start way back when a lot of our old hymns were written.. I am thinking of Hymns by the gifted composers such as Fanny Crosby and Charles Wesley.
Did you know that the majority of tunes for these wonderful hymns were written by some of the most gifted men in history. Why? Well, because the men were the ones who were educated in the writing of music.
So why are these hymns and the modern hymns so difficult for men to sing in church..
Let me give you an example or two…
Blessed assurance Jesus is mine.. This wonderful hymn is so high to sing that men are standing on their toes to reach the high notes. How Great thou Art.. now this stumps me at times and I sing pretty high.. SO. .. let me give you a few tips here my friends…
Men.. you are not intended to sing these hymns in the same octave as the women… you my brothers at times try to sing at exactly the same pitch as the women, but your voices are different .. therefore it cannot be done! So what do you do? Well, you sing the song an octave lower than the women. If you struggle, relax your voice and move down an octave. Now it is the same note, just an octave lower.
I am going to defend the music writer here my friends.. The worship music is not written for women’s voices. If you take the time to study some of the higher worship songs you will find they are written by men and originally sung by men.
I can only Imagine” A truly wonderful song of adoration sung by MercyMe… Now have you ever tried to sing this? It is almost impossible for a woman to sing this as it is written for a tenor voice, therefore for girls to sing it in the key in which it is written and in our octave, we would need a hot air balloon to get to the heights required.
Of course, there are times when the person in control of the team should consider lowering the music a key or two. I certainly don't want you to stand in church and feel robbed of the ability to worship through song because you just can’t reach the notes.
So my friends what I am really trying to say is this.. Music is NOT written for the female voice. It's not written for the Male voice.It is written for THE voice, what men and women need to do is forget how it sounds.. sing it high, sing it low,, start singing from your heart and not your head.
Now let me start way back when a lot of our old hymns were written.. I am thinking of Hymns by the gifted composers such as Fanny Crosby and Charles Wesley.
Did you know that the majority of tunes for these wonderful hymns were written by some of the most gifted men in history. Why? Well, because the men were the ones who were educated in the writing of music.
So why are these hymns and the modern hymns so difficult for men to sing in church..
Let me give you an example or two…
Blessed assurance Jesus is mine.. This wonderful hymn is so high to sing that men are standing on their toes to reach the high notes. How Great thou Art.. now this stumps me at times and I sing pretty high.. SO. .. let me give you a few tips here my friends…
Men.. you are not intended to sing these hymns in the same octave as the women… you my brothers at times try to sing at exactly the same pitch as the women, but your voices are different .. therefore it cannot be done! So what do you do? Well, you sing the song an octave lower than the women. If you struggle, relax your voice and move down an octave. Now it is the same note, just an octave lower.
I am going to defend the music writer here my friends.. The worship music is not written for women’s voices. If you take the time to study some of the higher worship songs you will find they are written by men and originally sung by men.
I can only Imagine” A truly wonderful song of adoration sung by MercyMe… Now have you ever tried to sing this? It is almost impossible for a woman to sing this as it is written for a tenor voice, therefore for girls to sing it in the key in which it is written and in our octave, we would need a hot air balloon to get to the heights required.
Of course, there are times when the person in control of the team should consider lowering the music a key or two. I certainly don't want you to stand in church and feel robbed of the ability to worship through song because you just can’t reach the notes.
So my friends what I am really trying to say is this.. Music is NOT written for the female voice. It's not written for the Male voice.It is written for THE voice, what men and women need to do is forget how it sounds.. sing it high, sing it low,, start singing from your heart and not your head.
Sunday, August 15, 2010
Having Some Fun
I'm having such a blast listening to this song by Don Francisco. I love his lyric writing. Very nice… not hugely a fan of his music style, but then, I know it's awesome!
You should check these lyrics out! It's so great… in case you want to download the mp3, it's free, and I'm attaching the link at the end of this post. Please listen to it! It's fun! The lyrics are here:
The Package
by Don Francisco
I was wakened in the morning' by a knockin' on the door
So I got up and went to see what all the knockin' was for
There stood the Devil with a box addressed to me
He said "Boy, I've got something here I think you oughta see
I said, I know that I don't want it if it's anything from you
'Cause I hate everything you say and don't like anything you do
But then he pointed with his finger and he smiled kinda sly
'Cause the package said "from God" there in the corner, way up high
So I said, "if it's from God, then why'd He send it here by you"
He said, "He always sends me when there's dirty work to do"
And this box is full of misery, poverty and shame
To perfect you thru your suffering 'till you're worthy of His name
Well, I'd been pretty patient, but that last line took the cake
I just couldn't take no more, I'd taken all that I could take
So I told him what I thought of him and all his filthy lies
Then I fired a shot that got him right between the eyes
I told him "Jesus took my sickness and my poverty away
You nailed Him to the cross yourself when you murdered Him that day
The suf'ring that I do will be for love and not for shame
I'm already worthy by His blood, to wear His name
And I know my Father loves me and has only good in store
So you just take that jive and get away from my front door
You can write my name on packages until I'm ninety two
But every single one I'm sending back to Hell with you"
Go on get out of here
http://songoffaith.com/mp3s/Albums/ThePackage/TP_ThePackage_DonFrancisco.mp3
You should check these lyrics out! It's so great… in case you want to download the mp3, it's free, and I'm attaching the link at the end of this post. Please listen to it! It's fun! The lyrics are here:
The Package
by Don Francisco
I was wakened in the morning' by a knockin' on the door
So I got up and went to see what all the knockin' was for
There stood the Devil with a box addressed to me
He said "Boy, I've got something here I think you oughta see
I said, I know that I don't want it if it's anything from you
'Cause I hate everything you say and don't like anything you do
But then he pointed with his finger and he smiled kinda sly
'Cause the package said "from God" there in the corner, way up high
So I said, "if it's from God, then why'd He send it here by you"
He said, "He always sends me when there's dirty work to do"
And this box is full of misery, poverty and shame
To perfect you thru your suffering 'till you're worthy of His name
Well, I'd been pretty patient, but that last line took the cake
I just couldn't take no more, I'd taken all that I could take
So I told him what I thought of him and all his filthy lies
Then I fired a shot that got him right between the eyes
I told him "Jesus took my sickness and my poverty away
You nailed Him to the cross yourself when you murdered Him that day
The suf'ring that I do will be for love and not for shame
I'm already worthy by His blood, to wear His name
And I know my Father loves me and has only good in store
So you just take that jive and get away from my front door
You can write my name on packages until I'm ninety two
But every single one I'm sending back to Hell with you"
Go on get out of here
http://songoffaith.com/mp3s/Albums/ThePackage/TP_ThePackage_DonFrancisco.mp3
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