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worship Entries in worship (7)
"Promises of Wonder" A Worshipful Gift to the Church
Tuesday, April 30, 2013 at 09:12AM 
It’s good to share what you have with others. The folks at a Vineyard Church in Central Kentucky have a community of worshiping songwriters who happen to be skilled musicians, and the result of their sharing we have Promises of Wonder, a live album of fresh music honoring Father, Son, and Holy Spirit.
The Vineyard Music Group traveled miles off the Interstate to find a country church filled with Indie music: a textured acoustic sound wrapped around lyrics of depth and beauty. This is not your standard live-worship album with thumping beats designed for clap-along crowds. It’s gentle pace and thoughtful meanings are designed more to change the atmosphere in the room (or car, or ear buds).
Many of the songs are Trinitarian in nature, ascribing worth-ship to Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. The lyric-poetry stands up under repeated listening and invites you to plumb the depths of a fellow-traveling relationship with Jesus:
God, Your love meets
My heart like a song
And it echoes on and on
In bitter cold, winter’s storm
Your melody comes
Sets my feet on the path leading home. (From the title track)
Vineyard veteran Ryan Delmore sits in on the sessions, and it feels like Kentucky is his second home. The quality of play is first-rate, yet each musician is careful to play under one another, which creates a unified sound where the individual serves the whole. The vocals (especially Hannah Daugherty’s) are clear without being in your face—even the singers blend with the song. Nine of the thirteen songs are homegrown: this church has nurtured a songwriting circle for years, and it shows. (You can read more about genius behind homegrown worship at indigenousworship.com)
I recommend this album. It will not only show you the path to Jesus, it will give you an assurance He walks the path with you.
Meditation: What Captures God's Heart?
Monday, April 16, 2012 at 12:02AM 
The Creator of the Universe is not easily impressed. Some theologians suggest that because God knows everything, he cannot be moved, but I think some things can capture God's heart. Not power or beauty or intellect--those are the things that impress fools like us. But imagine that moment when the King of the Universe sits up and takes notice of you because of something you thought, said, or did. Could you stir his heart? I think it's possible.
Based on my reading of the scripture, here’s my simple list of what catches the Lord's attention. I’ll bet you could add a few more:
- Jesus loves humility. It turns his head. He told us not to worry about power or position: "Whoever humbles himself like this child is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven" (Matthew 18:4). The scripture says simply, "God resists the proud, but gives grace to the humble" (1 Peter 5:5). If we humble ourselves before him, he stops to listen.
- Jesus is impressed by faith. When he encountered genuine trust he was astonished. What’s more, he usually discovered faith in the socially unacceptable places of his day (Matthew 8:10 and 15: 28 are two examples).
- Jesus stops for the bold: A blind man screaming on the sidelines evoked this question from the Lord, “What do you want me to do for you?” (Luke 18: 35 - 43) Can you imagine Jesus interrupting his schedule to ask you--personally--”What do you want me to do for you?”
- Jesus defends outrageous acts of worship: When Mary crashed a party and lavished attention on Jesus, others criticized her impropriety. But Jesus said “Leave her alone!” (John 12:7) The Lord actually came to her defense. It leads me to ask, do I pour out my passion in a way that would bring Jesus to my defense?
Jesus loved these traits. They caught his attention. But there is one human trait that never seems to impress God: our intelligence. In fact, he said, "I will destroy the wisdom of the wise," and in Jesus he did just that. One thing is sure: God is never impressed by our intellect, but he is frequently impressed by our heart.
tagged God's Heart, boldness, faith, humility, worship
God's Heart, boldness, faith, humility, worship Monday's Meditation: What I Saw at Church
Monday, November 21, 2011 at 12:10AM 
Yesterday at church I saw heaven breaking into earth here and now.
I saw signs and wonders: children in sparkling tennis shoes that flashed multicolored lights as they danced in worship. I saw a four year-old offensive lineman soaking in the Spirit of Christ, unaware of how strong his body will grow or how he will use it to glorify God. I saw the Woodstock generation worshipping next to generations unborn. I saw the unlovely, enraptured by the bridegroom and made beautiful by the sight of of him. They became beautiful in my sight as well. I saw a rage-oholic find peace as he stood in the back of the room. He drank it in--the only peace he knows each week--in the Father's presence.
I heard voices normally used in the everyday business of life blended together in the unison of praise. Voices which sang without words, making new paths of melody, expressing what their hearts knew but their minds did not. I heard songs so new that no one had ever heard them but the singer herself, followed by the songs of saints dead a hundred years or more. I heard the sound of heaven surge through tongues, lungs, and throats of flesh and blood, like fountains made pure by the very water they released.
I tasted bad coffee. It was somehow made better because it was shared in common. I savored the sacred elements of donuts and fruit, muffins and juice, sanctified by people receiving the sacrament of family. I tasted and saw that the Lord is good.
I caught the fragrance of the unwashed who had been embraced by the Rose of Sharon. I discovered that his aroma overpowers theirs: the aroma of life to those who are being saved, and the stench of death nowhere in the place.
I heard the Holy Spirit whisper secrets to the pastor, who announced them to the church. I watched as the people miraculously flashed the inspired words around the world even before the sermon had ended. I saw sojourners who had no home find a place to call home, if only for an hour.
I saw in the church the fulness of him who fills every thing in every way. I discovered the pillar and support of the truth as they put the wisdom of God on display--not for themselves, but for the powers and principalities in heavenly places--unaware they were being watched.
Yesterday at church I touched all these things and more. What did you see?
Monday's Meditation: Experiencing His Presence
Monday, October 10, 2011 at 12:06AM 
One night God came to dinner with me and five of my friends. We’ve never been the same.
We were a team of six college students who found ourselves unexpectedly joined together because our backyard Bible study had blossomed into a small church. Our ragtag group of believers were like the Lost Boys in Peter Pan--not a true adult among us. We sang silly songs and engaged in Bible teaching, even though we ourselves knew nothing. We had seen our fellowship grow into 120 people, but the only thing we knew for sure is that the six of us were called by God into mutual commitment to him and one another.
Alone in a church basement, around the scent of roast lamb rising from our plates we celebrated what God had done between us. We ate a covenant meal and expressed our commitment to one another.
What happened next changed my life: God became present in a tangible way. He was in the room with us. We stopped praying and sat in silence. The room was heavy: the air lay upon my shoulders like a weight. None of us dared speak. The silence was so thick it seemed like a substance. Each of us knew that God had joined us. We felt small and insignificant even while we also felt eternity welling inside of our very bodies.
After he left, we sat together stunned, and shared our experiences. My tiny mind knew that, technically, God was everywhere all the time, but in that moment I experienced his presence for the first time. In the decades since I have encountered God again and again, now aware that there is a difference between the knowledge of his omni-presence and the experience of his presence.
I’ve listened to other people speak of their experiences as well:
“God met me in a hotel room one night;”
“God visited me in my childhood as I looked out my bedroom window;”
“The presence of God filled the room like a cloud as we worshipped.”
I know their accounts are true simply because I have eaten at the same table and sipped the same wine. I’ve read the accounts of people like Jacob the slickster, who awoke one night and gasped, “‘Surely the LORD is in this place, and I was not aware of it.’ He was afraid and said, ‘How awesome is this place! This is none other than the house of God; this is the gate of heaven.’” (Genesis 28: 16-17)
This week’s Meditation is a two-fold invitation to this community of readers:
- If you’re never experienced the presence of God in a tangible way, ask him to come and open yourself to the possibility.
- If you have experienced his presence, click on the comments below and share your story. Let deep call to deep so we might all hunger again for that banqueting table.
One True Thing: Worship
Tuesday, June 7, 2011 at 12:02AM 
From September, 2010: Worship in the Midst of Doubt
Then the eleven disciples went to Galilee, to the mountain where Jesus had told them to go. When they saw him, they worshiped him; but some doubted. (Matthew 28: 16-17)
Why doesn’t everyone include verses 16 and 17 in the “Great Commission?” I suspect because these two verses include topics rarely discussed in the lives a disciple: obedience, worship, and doubt. Can we worship in the midst of doubt?
Imagine the scene around the resurrected Jesus: his best friends giving him worship in a private setting, yet in some minds and hearts there was still doubt. Yet their doubt did not disqualify them. He still received them, and he gave the “Great Commission.”
Doubt is a solitary struggle. Most expressions of worship are outward: we sing, kneel, pray, dance, bow, read, listen, and fellowship. Others see our actions, but this passage reminds us Jesus knows our hearts and thoughts as well. What kind of doubts did some of the disciples have? Matthew does not tell us. We are left to speculate: perhaps, “I don’t belong here . . . I denied the Lord . . . Have I gone mad? . . . Is this really Jesus? . . . What will he require of me?” I believe their worship was sincere; so were their doubts.
The doubting disciples had obeyed. They had made their way to Galilee, just as Jesus instructed. Jesus did not turn away the doubters, he received their worship and included them in his mission. Disobedience would have kept them from hearing his voice; doubt did not.
What if worship is giving all of ourselves to God--even the parts that struggle to believe, to trust, to surrender? Perhaps that day the doubters discovered Isaiah’s description of Jesus was true: “A bruised reed he will not break, and a smoldering wick he will not snuff out.” (Matt. 12:20)
Earlier in his ministry Jesus told his friends, “true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and truth.” Some people have interpreted "truth" to mean "doctrine," but what if Jesus also meant the truth about ourselves? Here’s a meditation worthy for the week: can I bring my doubts as an act of worship?