Why I have a love/hate relationship with the “worship wars”

•April 30, 2012 • Leave a Comment

Worship wars are nothing new. Ever since there was music in the church there have been people on either side of an arguement on what worship in the church should look and feel like. People use terms like charismatic, traditional, contemporary, reformed, etc. to try and define their liturgy, musical genre, or even dress.

Martin Luther loved music and said that “next to the Word of God, the noble art of music is the greatest treasure in the world”. He was responsible for much of the revolution from the Roman Catholic Church in theology, art, and music. Meanwhile, John Calvin was saying that we should only sing the Psalms (exclusive congregational metrical Psalmody in unison). Anything from Gregorian chant, pipe organs, harmony, electric guitars, and LCD projectors have, at some point, been debated.

But the point of this post is not to give a detailed history or argue for one side or the other. I just want to stand back and made some broad(er) statements on the worship wars in general and how I would “mediate” both sides.

- I love that people are talking about what worship should look like. It means that they care to protect and be responsible for something that God has ordained. I have always been a strong supporter of Christians who know what and why they believe something and will research, think, and pray about it.
- I hate that we call it a war. It should not be two sides fighting against one another with the idea that one side will eventually win. This does not communicate the right kind of attitude we should be having about the subject, especially as Christians.
- I love that working through these issues can and should bring unity in the church. I do believe wrestling through these topics are important especially for pastors, worship leaders, etc., and can bring a strong sense of their direct vision to the team.
- I hate that the discussions have been driven into the floor so hard that it is pitting two good things against eachother. Examples: head versus heart, doctrine versus devotion, passion versus reverence, or being rooted versus being relevant. We should be saying AND and not VERSUS. I can’t see any scenario where you should have one without also having the other.

At the end of the day, I hope that we can put our preferences aside, love eachother, and just worship Jesus. That is, afterall, what it is all about anyway.

You make all things work together for my good

•March 21, 2012 • Leave a Comment

“Upon some points a believer is absolutely sure. He knows too that God is always wise, and knowing this, he is confident that there can be no accidents, no mistakes; that nothing can occur which ought not to arise. He can say, “If I should lose all I have, it is better that I should lose than have, if God so wills: the worst calamity is the wisest and the kindest thing that could befall to me if God ordains it.” We know that all things work together for good to them that love God. The Christian does not merely hold this as a theory, but he knows it as a matter of fact.”
-Charles Spurgeon (Morning and Evening Devotional from August 5th)

“And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love Him, who have been called according to His purpose.”
-Romans 8:28

Video: Old Hymns for Our Day

•February 13, 2012 • Leave a Comment

Originally posted at The Gospel Coalition blog.

How the moments prior to worship gatherings could be the most important

•February 8, 2012 • Leave a Comment

**This is a post from a friend’s blog that I felt contained some things that are important to think about. Hope you enjoy it! **

We’ve all experienced the chaos of Sunday morning church. If you have children, you’ve probably experienced a double dose of this chaos. Waking up, eating breakfast, getting the family dressed and ready to go, getting the family loaded into the mini-van, and getting to church can be CRAZY. This or something similar is the somewhat “normal” chaos that must happen for us to get to church to worship. Often times, by the time that we get in our seat in the church sanctuary we are somewhat frazzled, if not altogether distracted. And odds are, we are just minutes away from the start of the worship service (unless we are already late, which is a great possibility). These moments, the moments as soon as we get to our seats before the service starts, can be some of the most important moments of our week.

Here’s why… preparing ourselves to encounter, experience, and worship God is important. The scriptures are clear that God is very interested in the condition of our hearts in worship. In Psalm 11 David reminds the congregation that God “observes everyone on earth; his eyes examine them.” God tells us through the prophet Jeremiah “I the LORD search the heart and examine the mind. . .”.( Jer. 17:10) And Paul reminds the Corinthian believers that they ought to examine themselves before worshiping through communion (1 Cor. 11:28).

So how do we examine and prepare our hearts to worship God? I want to offer a few simple suggestions that I believe can turn seemingly unimportant moments prior to the start of a worship service into some of the most important moments of your week.

1) Get there early.

- I know. . . it’s difficult. Try to make an attempt to get to church early enough to get into the room before the service starts. It’s tough, in some churches this can even be considered counter-culteral, but I think it could make a huge impact in your life.

2) Remind yourself why you are here.

- We are here to glorify God. We are here to exalt and proclaim His excellencies. We are here to give, to worship, to offer our praises.

3) Open your heart to God.

- Take a moment and examine yourself. Confess your sinfulness. Ask God to be present in the moments ahead.

4) Get a head start.
- Go ahead and begin to worship God on your own. Read a Psalm and respond in your heart to what you are reading. Take a moment and pray to yourself, praising God who He is and what He’s done. The best primer for worship is worship.

As difficult as it is to take the time to prepare ourselves for corporate worship experiences, just think about what our churches might look like if more of us started priming our hearts before the services started. How open to hearing God’s voice and leading in our services would we be if we made it a point to be ready for what the Lord had to say to us on a given Saturday or Sunday.

I’m swimming again!

•February 4, 2012 • Leave a Comment

I grew up swimming my entire life. I think my Dad threw me in the pool around the age of 4 just hoping I would float. Everyone in my family swam. Some of us swam more seriously and competitively, but I ended up swimming year round and had some Top 16 times and continued pretty much all the way through High School and swam on the Leesville team 2 years as well. It is a grueling sport and I have been pretty out of shape since college. The picture below is me swimming (on the right) from this morning:

My Dad told me about a US Masters Spring Nationals meet in Greensboro so I have been swimming in the mornings before work (about a mile or so) trying to gain it all back again. I don’t know why I felt like posting this here on my blog but I figured since it has been taking up a good chunk of my time, energy, and focus I might as well give it a mention.

Check out some of the competition I will be facing! This video is from last years meet for my age group… Yikes.

My book reading list for 2012

•January 24, 2012 • 2 Comments

A Call to Die – David Nasser
My best friend Ryan got me this book I don’t even know how many years ago and I am going to be picking it up and finally using it. Perfect timing with my church doing a fast this week also!

Leaders Who Last – Dave Kraft
I am already half way done with this one. I have just been slowly reading it and taking it in. Real good stuff!

Worship Matters – Bob Kauflin
This will be my 3rd or 4th time studying this book and I look forward to it everytime. Helpful and biblical insights on the topic of worship! Doing this one with some staff members.

How to Read the Bible For All its Worth – Gordon Fee
I think I am looking forward to this one the most. I think it will help me the most in the long run.

AW Tozer – Reclaiming Christianity
It’s been recommended by 3 people to me last year so thought I’d give it a chance if I can get to it. I dont own it yet.

The Gospel Comission – Michael Horton
When I first came across this book I thought it would be helpful to read sine it seems like a similar themed book to the mission of our church. I have also never read anything by Horton before.

When Sinners Say I Do – Dave Harvey
I got this one to read before I was married and I never got around to it. Hopefully I will this time!

Engaging with God – David Peterson
Also another book that has been highly recommended. I have skimmed this book before but I think its worth more than that. This one is towards the bottom of the stack and is probably the largest book on the list, but we’ll see!

Christmas songs by Shelly Moore, Aaron Williams, and The Gate Called Beautiful

•December 21, 2011 • Leave a Comment

Just some cool and different versions for you to enjoy. I am lucky enough to know all these guys too! Merry Christmas!

 
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