ushered in

We are in week 7 of 9 of our Pure Praise study as a worship team. Today Dwayne talked about how God is creative, and since we were made in His image, we are also creative and should create.

The older I get, the less time I find (or make) to be creative. Adult responsibilities (did I just say that?! I’m getting old…) can rule our lives to where we no longer take time to create. I’m not even talking about something big like writing a book or an album – what about even just making a card for our spouse (I made my wife’s birthday present this year which she loved and it was so refreshing for me!)?

So, today, Dwayne challenged us to write a poem. He gave us some guided advice and had us write something just four lines long.

After praying and brainstorming, the below poem came out and I’m really excited about it. It did not take that long and was a refreshing expression, a wonderful way to begin my morning.

I hope I can make some time to create more often.

Snow reflects.

Light created, glory that always was.

Sin expiated, love for daughters and sons.

Snow reflects.

I had a cool moment yesterday.

Sometimes I have a hard time focusing as I pray in the morning. I’ve been learning that it’s good for me to try different things to connect with God.

Yesterday I put headphones in and just started worshiping God through some of my favorite music. The song “Forever and ever etc.” by David Crowder Band came on (amongst others) and I found myself going crazy. There were moments of tears, singing, clapping, and dancing.

The line that struck me in this song was “I’m finding everything I’ll ever need by giving up gaining everything…I am Yours forever, and ever, etc…”

It is comforting to just sit in the arms of Jesus and worship Him knowing that when I give up my life and everything with it, I find everything I’ll ever need. Then, on top of that to think that I am His, forever is crazy. Forever. I’ll be with Him forever.

It was overwhelming and refreshing in the midst of a busy, fast paced week to just be with Jesus.

I hope and pray for more of this in my life.

(Oh, if you want that song…click here)

I just finished reading Francis Chan’s Forgotten God. This book was challenging and timely. It is basically a call for yourself and your church to be filled with and living in the power of the Holy Spirit at all times. I have not blogged about it yet because I would have just typed everything he says – the best thing I can tell you is to read the book for yourself. Slowly. Prayerfully.

I will write one thought for you today. Hopefully it will make you think some about the Spirit and maybe encourage you to go through this book.

Francis mentions the story of Gideon’s army and how God started them with 32,000 men strong – in the end there were only 300. The only way they could win the battle was with God’s power. In the end, no one could say, “look what we did;” rather, they could only say “look what God did.”

Francis writes, “When I live by my own power and strength, relying solely on my natural talents to see me through, then people naturally praise me for how I am living. But when I am living in a way that requires me to depend on the Holy Spirit, people respond by praising my Father in heaven.”

I desire this in every area of my life. I want to depend on the Spirit when I’m planning songs for the worship gatherings, teaching kids bucket drumming in southeast Canton, hanging out with family and friends, leading worship, and talking to my neighbor.

I want to be led more by the Spirit than by Andrew.

I want God to be seen more in my life than myself.

Hearing God’s voice has been the topic of study for our worship team this week, and a timely one. It’s important for every believer to hear from God and obey His voice. As leaders of worship, we need to be in tune with His voice, as sometimes God has a different plan than we do in our worship services.

However, this is easier said than done. It can be easy to get so busy that we don’t even take the time to listen to God, and pretty soon we’re not sure what His voice sounds like anymore. I know I needed to be reminded of this danger this week.

This week we were reminded that listening takes practice and requires us to intentionally focus our thoughts. God’s words to us will often challenge our faith and require courage. They may even clash with our flesh or another’s human wisdom, but they will always be consistent with the Bible.

Over the past several months my wife and I have felt a call to really love the people of our city, and even move closer to the inner city. God’s voice in this matter has challenged our faith, required courage, and at times clashed with our flesh. We are just trying to be obedient to what He is saying. Dwayne’s thoughts on hearing the voice of God were confirming to me this week as our decision to move and be more involved in the city has not been the easiest.

In the specific area of worship leading, Dwayne writes that just before any time he leads worship, he goes into a room alone and kneels before God asking Him for help and proclaiming to God that He can’t do it alone. I’ve put this exercise into practice since this summer, and it has changed the way I lead worship – I have experienced God’s voice as I’m leading and His power moving through me like never before.

Whether on or off stage, hearing God’s voice is critical to our lives as believers. It’s not always easy and takes practice. I’m glad for Dwayne’s reminders this week – I needed to hear them for my own personal life, and my role as a worship leader.

This week the study our worship team is going through is looking at the attributes of God. Today we looked at his faithfulness, holiness, and mercy. In regards to faithfulness, Dwayne Moore writes, “It’s always a healthy practice to recall how God has come through for us in the past.”

This reminds me of the word Ebenezer that we find in the hymn Come Thou Fount. An Ebenezer basically means “a stone of help.” In 1 Samuel, Samuel sets up an Ebenezer where the Israelites finally defeated the Philistines and took back the Ark of the Covenant (the Israelites had been defeated by the Philistines twice before and the Ark was stolen).

This stone was a visual reminder to the people of Israel of God’s faithfulness.

As Christ-followers it’s important to remember those times when God was faithful to us. Living life requires us to make decisions based on faith, which can sometimes be unsettling. However, if we can look back into our mind’s eye and view those ebenezers – those moments when God was faithful – it makes stepping forward easier.

What are some of the ebenezers in your life?

Recently, God has been revealing to me that my view of worship is very narrow. In Pure Praise, Dwayne Moore points out that the living beings in Revelation 4 keep on saying “Holy, Holy, Holy is the Lord God, the Almighty…” It’s present tense. There is worship going on in heaven 24/7.

The Bible also tells us that creation cries out to God.

Then, if you consider the idea that there’s 6 billion people on this planet, it’s very possible that ceaseless praise is occurring around the globe from some mixture of Christ-followers.

All this to say that worship does not just happen when I lead it! Sometimes I catch myself asking God to show up in our worship time – wait, He’s already here! We just join in with the ceaseless praise that’s already occurring in heaven and on earth! Now, I’m not saying it’s a negative to ask the Holy Spirit to anoint a worship service or a person to deliver a message, but it’s just interesting how feeble my idea of worship can be at times.

This week, our Pure Praise study is on the attributes of God. Again, it’s revealing to me that sometimes I think of God smaller than He really is. As a limited human, it is easy for this to happen – however, God is not limited, He is infinite. I hope and pray He will continue to widen my view of worship and Himself so that I might have a greater understanding of true biblical worship and of who God is.

This week is the first of nine weeks our worship team is doing a study together called Pure Praise, a heart-focused study on worship written by Dwayne Moore.

This first week has really just been laying a basic understanding of what biblical worship looks like. Dwayne talks about how there are three directions of worship: inward (how we inwardly love God with our heart), outward (how we love the people Jesus died for), and upward (offering praise and thanksgiving to God – what many think of when they think of worship).

This week the inward direction really stuck out to me. Dwayne had us read Proverbs 4:23 – “Above all else, guard your heart, for it is the wellspring of life.”

In response, he says, “A wellspring is the source from which water flows. Likewise our hearts are the source of all our thoughts, motives, and actions. The importance of this inward direction of worship cannot be overemphasized…God is searching the earth not to support those who sing the best or shout the loudest. Rather, he seeks for those whose hearts are fully committed to him. As worshippers and worship leaders, that must be our foremost goal. Without that commitment, all other expressions of worship are actually sickening to God.”

That is a pretty strong statement. But it’s true.

I had a brief moment in my office this week listening to music and my heart was overwhelmed with my love for God and His love for me. I long for a heart that longs for Him more – and I desire to see this in the body of Christ as well (even more than I already see it). Genuine outward worship will only result from a wellspring that is full of love for our God and King.

The book of Hebrews has always been a source of encouragement to me. I remember finally grasping the concept of the “old” vs. the “new” covenant at a younger age as taught in this book; understanding this revealed new depth for what Jesus really did for me. Even now, I continue to learn more and more about Christianity as I read this book.

Recently, the Lord has shown me a pleathora of things in Hebrews I have not seen in the past. In chapter 9 we see that offering sacrifices were merely external regulations – they did not (or do not) clear the conscience of the worshiper. But, Jesus changed all that through sacrificing Himself. Verse 12 says,

“He did not enter by means of the blood of goats and calves; but he entered the Most Holy Place once for all by His own blood, having obtained eternal redemption.”

The results? Not only forgiveness, but a cleansed conscience so that we can serve the living God…

“How much more then, will the blood of Christ, who through the eternal Spirit offered Himself unblemished to God, cleanse our consciences from acts that lead to death, so that we may serve the living God.”

Now, there are several lessons in this passage and in Hebrews in general. But the big thing God has revealed to me recently from this passage is this: I can serve Him with a clear conscience without fear or a feeling of inadequacy – sure, I am inadequate on my own – but through His sacrifice (which He paid once for all) He has “made perfect forever those who are being made holy” (10:14).

Sometimes I  approach or serve Him with a feeling of anxiety or fear because I know I’m not good enough – but Jesus, through His sacrifice, has changed that forever. Hebrews portrays a type of life for the believer in which we can come to Him boldly and serve Him with a clear conscience as a result of the ultimate sacrifice – the unblemished gift of Jesus Christ our Lord and Savior.

Hello everyone. Welcome to the new site. Feel free to browse around; it’s pretty self-explanatory and I’ll be adding and updating as life goes on. That used to be a TV show. Enjoy.