Showing posts with label Worship. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Worship. Show all posts
Tuesday, July 3, 2012
I'm a Work in Progress
God gives me challenges to work through on a regular basis. Seldom are the answers simple. Usually the answer requires a great deal of time, prayer, and lost sleep before the light of illumination clicks on and I have my V-8 moment.
One of my greatest struggles has been thrashing me for years. And none of the books I read she'd much light on my dilemma. Now, to you, this may sound silly, but for me, it held an answer that I was desperate for.
WHEN & HOW DOES A PASTOR CELEBRATE THE LORD'S DAY?
Sunday is my busiest work day and I usually end up exhausted.
So what's a Pastor to do?
Overeat lunch and take a nap? Football? Catch up on yard work?
My "journey" for enlightenment on this topic made one thing clear, "GOD DEMANDS THAT EVERYDAY BE DEVOTED TO HIS GLORY AND HONOR -- NOT JUST ONE DAY OF THE WEEK".
OK, now that I made my sermon point for the week, back to my dilemma. So I am going to share some of my random, rambling observations and (God willing), perhaps something here may resonate in your heart and challenge you.
First, whatever I do, it must not interfere with me appreciating God for who He is and what He has done. This eliminates a lot of selfish things that turns the focus on my interests and distracts my from fellowshipping with God.
Second, since I spend all week counseling people and studying, my "Lord's Day" needs to be something "alone & physical". Something that moves me out of my routine and moves me closer to God.
Third, it needs to be something I am passionate about and puts gas in my spiritual tank so I can charge back into the ministry -- excited and motivated to serve.
So I have found that I am 110% passionate about HIKING. I love throwing on a pack and disappearing into the mountains. It not only pushes me physically, but God speaks to me and I am forced to shut up and listen.
I found that I love taking pictures of my hikes. Not professional pictures by any means, but it is a way to journal my experience with God.
Today, July 3rd, I was caught in a snowstorm that has less than 75 yards visibility. I could write a full book on the lessons the good Lord taught me today. I came off the mountain humbled because I knew, without a doubt, that I spent the day in the presence of Almighty God.
Hard to beat that.
When Moses went up on the mountain,
the cloud covered it,
and the glory of the Lord settled on Mount Sinai.
For six days the cloud covered the mountain,
and on the seventh day the Lord called to Moses
from within the cloud.
To the Israelites the glory of the Lord
looked like a consuming fire on top of the mountain.
Then Moses entered the cloud
as he went on up the mountain.
And he stayed on the mountain
forty days and forty nights."
Exodus 24:15-18
Saturday, January 28, 2012
Growing Faith
I spent a some time this morning discussing worship with a good friend. She finds it easy to worship God when she listens to Christian music. I observed that this is good, perhaps not best, because she is expressing someone else's worship to God. I think that listening to Christian music is a wonderful tool to move us closer to God. I encouraged her to open her Bible to a favorite verse in Psalms and sing it to her favorite Christian song. This will allow her to begin expressing her heart song to God.
Worshipping God is expressing your heart to God. That is intentionally vague. Because the more you know about God, the deeper your ability to love and appreciate Him. The more you are aware of what He is doing in your life, the more broad your ability to express appreciation for Him. The closer you get to the presence of God, the more clear it becomes what pleases God and what doesn't.
She asked me an incredibly practical question that I have never spent much time thinking about. "Why don't I hear God's voice every time I pray? Why don't I sense Him near every time I pray?"
I told her that according to 1 Kings 19:12, God speaks in a still small voice. That may be as subtle as a thought, an emotion, a nudge, a friends counsel, a Bible passage, a sermon point, a moment of clarity, or however God chooses to speak to His child.
Now for a word of encouragement. When you don't hear God or feel His presence, He is still there. God is growing your faith by letting go. It is much like teaching a child to ride a bicycle. At first, you hang on to the seat and run along behind. You do most of the steering and provide the forward motion. However, with time, as the child develops, it is natural for you to start letting go. You still run along behind in case the child gets in trouble, but you are close at hand in case of danger.
"be strong and courageous! Do not be afraid and do not panic before them. For the LORD your God will personally go ahead of you. He will neither fail you nor abandon you.”
Deuteronomy 31:6
Those times when God lets go of your bike and trots along behind, are the times when your faith grows by leaps and bounds.
Seeing and hearing does not require faith.
Growing faith requires not seeing and not hearing.
So when you experience a season when God doesn't seem to be near, relax, He is taking your faith out for some exercise.
"Dear brothers and sisters, when troubles come your way, consider it an opportunity for great joy. For you know that when your faith is tested, your endurance has a chance to grow. So let it grow, for when your endurance is fully developed, you will be perfect and complete, needing nothing." James 1:2-4
God promised He wouldn't let anything touch you without His preparing you to handle it.
"The temptations in your life are no different from what others experience. And God is faithful. He will not allow the temptation to be more than you can stand. When you are tempted, he will show you a way out so that you can endure." 1 Corinthians 10:13
My parting thought for you is to realize that King David felt exactly the same way you feel. Check this out:
"O LORD, why do you reject me? Why do you turn your face from me?" Psalm 88:14
"How long, O Lord? Will you forget me forever? How long will you hide your face from me?" Psalm 13:1
Now don't miss this:
"For a brief moment I abandoned you, but with deep compassion I will bring you back. In a surge of anger I hid my face from you for a moment, but with everlasting kindness, I will have compassion on you," says the LORD your Redeemer. Isaiah 54:7-8
Worshipping God is expressing your heart to God. That is intentionally vague. Because the more you know about God, the deeper your ability to love and appreciate Him. The more you are aware of what He is doing in your life, the more broad your ability to express appreciation for Him. The closer you get to the presence of God, the more clear it becomes what pleases God and what doesn't.
She asked me an incredibly practical question that I have never spent much time thinking about. "Why don't I hear God's voice every time I pray? Why don't I sense Him near every time I pray?"
I told her that according to 1 Kings 19:12, God speaks in a still small voice. That may be as subtle as a thought, an emotion, a nudge, a friends counsel, a Bible passage, a sermon point, a moment of clarity, or however God chooses to speak to His child.
Now for a word of encouragement. When you don't hear God or feel His presence, He is still there. God is growing your faith by letting go. It is much like teaching a child to ride a bicycle. At first, you hang on to the seat and run along behind. You do most of the steering and provide the forward motion. However, with time, as the child develops, it is natural for you to start letting go. You still run along behind in case the child gets in trouble, but you are close at hand in case of danger.
"be strong and courageous! Do not be afraid and do not panic before them. For the LORD your God will personally go ahead of you. He will neither fail you nor abandon you.”
Deuteronomy 31:6
Those times when God lets go of your bike and trots along behind, are the times when your faith grows by leaps and bounds.
Seeing and hearing does not require faith.
Growing faith requires not seeing and not hearing.
So when you experience a season when God doesn't seem to be near, relax, He is taking your faith out for some exercise.
"Dear brothers and sisters, when troubles come your way, consider it an opportunity for great joy. For you know that when your faith is tested, your endurance has a chance to grow. So let it grow, for when your endurance is fully developed, you will be perfect and complete, needing nothing." James 1:2-4
God promised He wouldn't let anything touch you without His preparing you to handle it.
"The temptations in your life are no different from what others experience. And God is faithful. He will not allow the temptation to be more than you can stand. When you are tempted, he will show you a way out so that you can endure." 1 Corinthians 10:13
My parting thought for you is to realize that King David felt exactly the same way you feel. Check this out:
"O LORD, why do you reject me? Why do you turn your face from me?" Psalm 88:14
"How long, O Lord? Will you forget me forever? How long will you hide your face from me?" Psalm 13:1
Now don't miss this:
"For a brief moment I abandoned you, but with deep compassion I will bring you back. In a surge of anger I hid my face from you for a moment, but with everlasting kindness, I will have compassion on you," says the LORD your Redeemer. Isaiah 54:7-8
Thursday, January 19, 2012
Come Close To God
"Come close to God, and God will come close to you. Wash your hands, you sinners; purify your hearts, for your loyalty is divided between God and the world." James 4:8
I personally experienced something this past Sunday that has taken a few days for me to process.
When you hear of someone experiencing God's presence or God's power in a mighty way, it is always in the rear view mirror. You know, a past tense story. And you hate to discard it because in the off chance that it really did happen. So often when the topic of God's presence comes up, I nod my head in a religious fashion and try to remain openminded.
God draws near...
A couple times a year, a very talented local Christian family provides special music for our church. Usually it is their 3 teenage daughters. Our church has the highest respect for their love for God and their God given ability to minister through music. Our church has fallen in love with them and relishes each and every time they visit. This last Sunday, they had 3 songs practiced and ready to worship God.
At 11:15 they stepped to the platform and began to sing. From the first verse of the first song, the Spirit of God swept over the church.
By the end of the second song, the church body sat in stunned silence - then as one, the church body leapt to their feet in a standing ovation. In my 40+ years in church, I have never experienced this vivid outpouring of God's presence in a service.
What makes this even more remarkable, the 3 teenage girls were just as shocked as I.
In fact, as I watched them, I could see that they were struggling to process what God was doing in that life impacting service.
As they completed the third song, I looked around the sanctuary and tears were flowing from most everyone. Distractions were long gone. Obstacles were removed. Hearts were open and God's Spirit was freely touching lives.
A basic principle of God's Word is that when you brush against the presence of God, you come away transformed.
One of the endearing strengths of the 3 teenage girls is that they have no clue how much talent God has given them. Humility is a rare trait.
As a pastor, I watch people for 3 necessary traits. (a) a deep desire to know God and His Word; (b) humility; (c) honesty.
When I find all 3 of these traits in someone, my heart is blessed beyond words because I know there is no limit to what God will accomplish in that heart. In the case of my 3 teenage friends, they all demonstrate these 3 attributes.
At the risk of sounding proud (guilty), I get to share my pastor's heart with you.
You cannot walk away from a service like we experienced last Sunday, without forever knowing that you were standing on holy ground.
For the rest of those 3 teenage girl's lives, they will know they will know without a doubt that they worshipped in the presence of God Almighty and He poured out His Spirit without restraint.
They will forever remember me as the pastor that sat on the platform weeping tears of joy while they led us in worship.
When they are married with children of their own, they will look for a church that resembles when they experienced last Sunday.
Why?
Definitely not because we spend our limited funds on extravagant buildings. We are a 110 year old 1 room building with 2 out houses and a cemetery.
Definitely not because we have a full band to back up our worship team. Our band is one faithful brother on an acoustic guitar.
Definitely not because the pastor has a doctorates degree in Theology and dazzles them with complex homiletics. When God moved last Sunday, I very effectively hadn't said a word. My ministry Sunday was to stay out of God's way as He ministered to hearts.
So "why"?
Simply because God blesses His church when they humbly and honestly give heartfelt honor His Word.
"Work hard so you can present yourself to God and receive His approval. Be a good worker, one who does not need to be ashamed and who correctly explains the Word of Truth" 2 Timothy 2:15
I will wrap this up with this thought:
If you draw near to God on Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, Friday, and Saturday, then on Sunday, God will honor His promise to draw near to you.
This should come as no surprise.
If you spend every day of the week living a self centered life, giving no thought to God or His desire to walk with you through every thought and decision, then it should come as no surprise when your "blesser" is busted when you come to church on Sunday.
"Come close to God, and God will come close to you. Wash your hands, you sinners; purify your hearts, for your loyalty is divided between God and the world." James 4:8
I personally experienced something this past Sunday that has taken a few days for me to process.
When you hear of someone experiencing God's presence or God's power in a mighty way, it is always in the rear view mirror. You know, a past tense story. And you hate to discard it because in the off chance that it really did happen. So often when the topic of God's presence comes up, I nod my head in a religious fashion and try to remain openminded.
God draws near...
A couple times a year, a very talented local Christian family provides special music for our church. Usually it is their 3 teenage daughters. Our church has the highest respect for their love for God and their God given ability to minister through music. Our church has fallen in love with them and relishes each and every time they visit. This last Sunday, they had 3 songs practiced and ready to worship God.
At 11:15 they stepped to the platform and began to sing. From the first verse of the first song, the Spirit of God swept over the church.
By the end of the second song, the church body sat in stunned silence - then as one, the church body leapt to their feet in a standing ovation. In my 40+ years in church, I have never experienced this vivid outpouring of God's presence in a service.
What makes this even more remarkable, the 3 teenage girls were just as shocked as I.
In fact, as I watched them, I could see that they were struggling to process what God was doing in that life impacting service.
As they completed the third song, I looked around the sanctuary and tears were flowing from most everyone. Distractions were long gone. Obstacles were removed. Hearts were open and God's Spirit was freely touching lives.
A basic principle of God's Word is that when you brush against the presence of God, you come away transformed.
One of the endearing strengths of the 3 teenage girls is that they have no clue how much talent God has given them. Humility is a rare trait.
As a pastor, I watch people for 3 necessary traits. (a) a deep desire to know God and His Word; (b) humility; (c) honesty.
When I find all 3 of these traits in someone, my heart is blessed beyond words because I know there is no limit to what God will accomplish in that heart. In the case of my 3 teenage friends, they all demonstrate these 3 attributes.
At the risk of sounding proud (guilty), I get to share my pastor's heart with you.
You cannot walk away from a service like we experienced last Sunday, without forever knowing that you were standing on holy ground.
For the rest of those 3 teenage girl's lives, they will know they will know without a doubt that they worshipped in the presence of God Almighty and He poured out His Spirit without restraint.
They will forever remember me as the pastor that sat on the platform weeping tears of joy while they led us in worship.
When they are married with children of their own, they will look for a church that resembles when they experienced last Sunday.
Why?
Definitely not because we spend our limited funds on extravagant buildings. We are a 110 year old 1 room building with 2 out houses and a cemetery.
Definitely not because we have a full band to back up our worship team. Our band is one faithful brother on an acoustic guitar.
Definitely not because the pastor has a doctorates degree in Theology and dazzles them with complex homiletics. When God moved last Sunday, I very effectively hadn't said a word. My ministry Sunday was to stay out of God's way as He ministered to hearts.
So "why"?
Simply because God blesses His church when they humbly and honestly give heartfelt honor His Word.
"Work hard so you can present yourself to God and receive His approval. Be a good worker, one who does not need to be ashamed and who correctly explains the Word of Truth" 2 Timothy 2:15
I will wrap this up with this thought:
If you draw near to God on Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, Friday, and Saturday, then on Sunday, God will honor His promise to draw near to you.
This should come as no surprise.
If you spend every day of the week living a self centered life, giving no thought to God or His desire to walk with you through every thought and decision, then it should come as no surprise when your "blesser" is busted when you come to church on Sunday.
"Come close to God, and God will come close to you. Wash your hands, you sinners; purify your hearts, for your loyalty is divided between God and the world." James 4:8
Sunday, January 15, 2012
The Power of Music
God uses music to prepare our hearts to meet Him.
"For in the day of trouble he will keep me safe in his dwelling; he will hide me in the shelter of His tabernacle and set me high upon a rock. Then my head will be exalted above the enemies who surround me; at His tabernacle will I sacrifice with shouts of joy; I will sing and make music to the Lord.". Psalm 27:5-6
Today we had three remarkable young ladies provide praise and worship music for our church. I have seldom experienced the Holy Spirit's presence as powerfully as I did this morning. As they sang, my heart was drawn into an expression of worship that was honest and humble. As they sang, all distractions were removed as the Spirit spoke to hearts. As they sang, the Holy Spirit was nudging the sermon in a different direction than I anticipated. God seized control of the service in a wonderful way.
OK, so my point to this blog is, "Does your choice of music draw you closer to God or move you further from God?"
James 4:8 says, "Draw near to God and He will draw near to you".
And before you start throwing tomatoes at me, I am not talking about "rock" verses "Christian". I tried for years to define "Christian" music and in my simple mind, music breaks down into 2 categories: music that pleases God and music that does not please God.
I will give you two verses to ponder on this and I will leave you to your musings.
Psalm 19:14
"May the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be pleasing to you,
O LORD, my rock and my redeemer."
Philippians 4:8
"Fix your thoughts on what is true, and honorable, and right, and pure, and lovely, and admirable. Think about things that are excellent and worthy of praise."
Proverbs 4:23
"Guard your heart above all else, for it determines the course of your life."
(FYI: this word "guard" in the Hebrew is the same word for "gatekeeper")
One of my favorite old hymns is:
"The Savior is patiently waiting to enter your heart,
why won't you let Him come in.
There's nothing in this world to keep you apart,
what is your answer to Him?
Time after time,
He has waited before,
and now He is waiting again.
To see if your willing to open the door.
Oh how He wants to come in."
"For in the day of trouble he will keep me safe in his dwelling; he will hide me in the shelter of His tabernacle and set me high upon a rock. Then my head will be exalted above the enemies who surround me; at His tabernacle will I sacrifice with shouts of joy; I will sing and make music to the Lord.". Psalm 27:5-6
Today we had three remarkable young ladies provide praise and worship music for our church. I have seldom experienced the Holy Spirit's presence as powerfully as I did this morning. As they sang, my heart was drawn into an expression of worship that was honest and humble. As they sang, all distractions were removed as the Spirit spoke to hearts. As they sang, the Holy Spirit was nudging the sermon in a different direction than I anticipated. God seized control of the service in a wonderful way.
OK, so my point to this blog is, "Does your choice of music draw you closer to God or move you further from God?"
James 4:8 says, "Draw near to God and He will draw near to you".
And before you start throwing tomatoes at me, I am not talking about "rock" verses "Christian". I tried for years to define "Christian" music and in my simple mind, music breaks down into 2 categories: music that pleases God and music that does not please God.
I will give you two verses to ponder on this and I will leave you to your musings.
Psalm 19:14
"May the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be pleasing to you,
O LORD, my rock and my redeemer."
Philippians 4:8
"Fix your thoughts on what is true, and honorable, and right, and pure, and lovely, and admirable. Think about things that are excellent and worthy of praise."
Proverbs 4:23
"Guard your heart above all else, for it determines the course of your life."
(FYI: this word "guard" in the Hebrew is the same word for "gatekeeper")
One of my favorite old hymns is:
"The Savior is patiently waiting to enter your heart,
why won't you let Him come in.
There's nothing in this world to keep you apart,
what is your answer to Him?
Time after time,
He has waited before,
and now He is waiting again.
To see if your willing to open the door.
Oh how He wants to come in."
Sunday, December 25, 2011
Puzzles....
My wifey loves putting puzzles together on the kitchen table. This year she has tackled a 2000 piece puzzle of the Lord's Supper. I look at the 2000 pieces and all I see are a jumbled mass of the same color and roughly the same basic shape. The attraction that draws her to this, eludes me.
I notice that during the warm summer months, no puzzle is allowed out of its box. Apparently the only time puzzles are allowed out of their captive environment is during damp, cold, wintery weather. My conclusion is that puzzles are a last ditch effort to retain sanity when all else has failed.
My final observation on puzzles that leaves me puzzled (pun intended) is that after spending 100 hours of intense labor putting it together, it is then unceremoniously scrapped, roughly tore apart and reinserted into the box until next winter. if I worked that hard on something and invested that many hours on a project, no one would destroy it without losing teeth
"Come away by yourselves to a desolate place and rest for a while." For many were coming and going, and they had no leisure even to eat. Mark 6:33
Either come apart or your will come apart. Jesus frequently went apart into a mountain to pray and rest. If I have learned one life lesson this winter, it is the importance of taking care of myself and learning to rest.
For each of us, rest means something different. For my wifey, it is turning off the accounting part of her brain and putting together a puzzle. For me, it is curling up in my chair and writing.
My question for you is, what do you do to recharge your batteries?
Worship in Silence
The hardest tasks for a Believer is to get to know God and keep our hearts pure.
The only way to accomplish both of these is through "silence". Psalm 46:10, "Be still and know that I am God."
in silence you discover a taste of eternity.
in silence your body is forced to listen to words.
in silence your tongue is forced to listen to your thoughts.
in silence your thoughts are forced to listen to your heart. Proverbs 4:23
in silence your heart is forced to listen to God's Spirit.
"The Spirit Himself testifies with our spirit that we are God's children" Romans 8:16
I notice that during the warm summer months, no puzzle is allowed out of its box. Apparently the only time puzzles are allowed out of their captive environment is during damp, cold, wintery weather. My conclusion is that puzzles are a last ditch effort to retain sanity when all else has failed.
My final observation on puzzles that leaves me puzzled (pun intended) is that after spending 100 hours of intense labor putting it together, it is then unceremoniously scrapped, roughly tore apart and reinserted into the box until next winter. if I worked that hard on something and invested that many hours on a project, no one would destroy it without losing teeth
"Come away by yourselves to a desolate place and rest for a while." For many were coming and going, and they had no leisure even to eat. Mark 6:33
Either come apart or your will come apart. Jesus frequently went apart into a mountain to pray and rest. If I have learned one life lesson this winter, it is the importance of taking care of myself and learning to rest.
For each of us, rest means something different. For my wifey, it is turning off the accounting part of her brain and putting together a puzzle. For me, it is curling up in my chair and writing.
My question for you is, what do you do to recharge your batteries?
Worship in Silence
The hardest tasks for a Believer is to get to know God and keep our hearts pure.
The only way to accomplish both of these is through "silence". Psalm 46:10, "Be still and know that I am God."
in silence you discover a taste of eternity.
in silence your body is forced to listen to words.
in silence your tongue is forced to listen to your thoughts.
in silence your thoughts are forced to listen to your heart. Proverbs 4:23
in silence your heart is forced to listen to God's Spirit.
"The Spirit Himself testifies with our spirit that we are God's children" Romans 8:16
Wednesday, December 14, 2011
This Pastor's Perspective.... Worship
As usual, I will summarize my thoughts into a bite-size summary that would better be served in volumes, written by masters far wiser than I.
Worship. Our severely confused and messed up world believes you can only worship inside a designated building with a steeple on the roof. And it is commonly accepted that worship is only offered in music. There is a touch of truth in that but, but it is far from a complete grasp of what God expects from His children.
True worship that brings a smile to the majestic face of God Almighty is offered every moment of every day. This is clearly explained in 1 Corinthians 10:31, "and whatever you do in word or deed, do all to the glory of God".
We are called to practice worship every moment of every day in everything we do.
God is not dazzled by shallow religious pomp and circumstance. Psalm 51:16-17 "God desires not sacrifice or I would bring it; You do not take pleasure in burnt offerings. My sacrifice, oh God, is a broken spirit; a broken and a contrite heart you, God, will not despise".
My point is this, every moment of every day, God will take pleasure in your honest and humble attitude before Him. You must not disconnect from God as you exit the church building.
My final shot at this is that God intimately knows the motivations of your heart. If you worship God on Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, Friday, Saturday, then your heart will be properly groomed to continue worship very naturally on Sunday.
So if you find Sunday worship cold and shallow, carefully examine your worship schedule. If it is full every day of the week, then your heart will approach Sundays with a heart of gratitude and humility before God and He will find delight in your worship.
If you approach Sunday with a cold critical spirit then the Holy Spirit is going to be "quenched" and your worship will cause God to raise His eyebrows in question.
God bless you
Pastor Shane
Worship. Our severely confused and messed up world believes you can only worship inside a designated building with a steeple on the roof. And it is commonly accepted that worship is only offered in music. There is a touch of truth in that but, but it is far from a complete grasp of what God expects from His children.
True worship that brings a smile to the majestic face of God Almighty is offered every moment of every day. This is clearly explained in 1 Corinthians 10:31, "and whatever you do in word or deed, do all to the glory of God".
We are called to practice worship every moment of every day in everything we do.
God is not dazzled by shallow religious pomp and circumstance. Psalm 51:16-17 "God desires not sacrifice or I would bring it; You do not take pleasure in burnt offerings. My sacrifice, oh God, is a broken spirit; a broken and a contrite heart you, God, will not despise".
My point is this, every moment of every day, God will take pleasure in your honest and humble attitude before Him. You must not disconnect from God as you exit the church building.
My final shot at this is that God intimately knows the motivations of your heart. If you worship God on Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, Friday, Saturday, then your heart will be properly groomed to continue worship very naturally on Sunday.
So if you find Sunday worship cold and shallow, carefully examine your worship schedule. If it is full every day of the week, then your heart will approach Sundays with a heart of gratitude and humility before God and He will find delight in your worship.
If you approach Sunday with a cold critical spirit then the Holy Spirit is going to be "quenched" and your worship will cause God to raise His eyebrows in question.
God bless you
Pastor Shane
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