Create in Me a Heart of Genuine Worship

Worship…that word means different things to different people.

Ole Mr. Webster says that “Worship is the feeling or expression of reverence and adoration for a deity”.
And yes, I would agree worship can be an outward expression of our love for the Father. It should come to that! But the question lies…What do you personally consider worship?

I remember as a child watching a lady in our church raise her hands every time a certain song was played and she would just bawl. At that time, I was afraid of her (I was 4) she was different. (Granted she pinched my cheeks every time I got close, which could have been the reason for my fear). But it was an odd thing for me to see for some reason. In an entire church of “Christians” there was this one lady who would go all kinds of crazy at random moments. The truth I would grow to understand….she had a heart and desire to experience God in her own way, with no worries of another thinking she was insane. The rest of us could have used a bit of that reverence and accountability. 

Over the past few months, I have been experiencing a “shift” in my walk with the Father. And in a wonderful way. It’s no secret that I deal with medical issues and a new diagnosis caught me off guard. But in it all I felt peace, His presence, and I had overwhelming Joy! God was allowing me to have another opportunity to Praise and Worship Him through another struggle. You see, the struggle is only a tiny portion of the story (His Story). He ordained my days and allowed this not for my destruction but for His glory. I knew I was to make sure that he received what I was called to give. 

Sometimes, I think we as Christians ignore our calling.  While everyone has a different plan, we have the same purpose. We are called to serve, share, and glorify God for who He is.
While facing another little giant in my life I began to feel more conviction regarding what I allowed or ignored. When I truly sought Him, He gave me the clarity to see Him. (Draw near to God, and he will draw near to you-James 4:8).

I would get what I call “spirit checks” (discernment) more often in situations I might not have seen before. I began to funnel my actions/words more carefully knowing that I had failed miserably to do so lately. I asked God to provide me with a genuine heart of worship. 

It didn’t come immediately. I had to allow the hardened build up to be broken away. Feelings of resentment, frustration, and plain anger had seeped into the cracks and filled the void where my praise should have been. It is so easy to allow this to happen. It’s a very slow fade! 

As a member of our praise team I am fully aware that how I worship can affect those around me and I wanted to ensure I was genuine and not just being routine. Its sometimes easy to focus on the physical v/s the spiritual when you sing. In my case, sometimes my injuries make themselves known or the technical aspects of performing can be pushed in the forefront of my mind. To ensure that I didn’t allow the “stuff” to cloud my view of The Father, I begin my time in prayer. From the time I arrive, to the moment we step off the stage for the day, I am in constant conversation w/the Father. 

I don’t share this to say, “Look at me and what a good Christian I am”. I share this because I am a broken child of the King who needs correction on a daily basis!

I drag the weekly junk into church wit me on Sunday morning just like everyone else! We are all hit with difficulties (work, finances, health, and other people). It tears us down and we bring what’s left of us to church. In my case that’s not a lot left to give! 

I understood that my personal temperament (one who is a straight shooter/calls it like she sees it) would need to have a clean slate before I stood and sang. I would need to ensure that my focus wasn’t on the ones around me, the music, the struggles or even the people in front of me. That it was on the ONE who blessed me with the ability to sing. So…I pray. I pray that God would remove any ounce of “self” I have left in me, that he would remove my focus on the physical struggles and point me to Him. Since I began to do this I have experienced Him in a way I can’t describe. Worship became more personal than ever before and it was genuine and ALL for Him. 

You may not always see my hands being raised (sometimes physically its difficult).  While that is our typical expectation of outward praise, our inward approach to worship matters the most! When my heart is truly on the One who created me to serve, worship is being given! When your heart is completely engulfed in His presence something begins to change. Your outward expressions clearly show your intent. You begin to stand alone in His presence (no matter how many others are around).

You can worship in your mundane moments, your ugly moments and those of despair. Your heart can be healed in the most difficult of situations. You were bought for a price and are priceless in his sight! How awesome to know that we have such worth!

If you are finding yourself dragging the “junk” of the week/world around with you and feel that despair is the only form of emotion you can bring to the surface take heart in knowing that God is already fighting your battles. He’s already ahead of your situation.  He’s aware and in control. 
Casting Crowns perform a song called “Oh my Soul”. Its lyrics speak so clearly when times seem rough and worship seems impossible…


Oh, my soul
Oh, how you worry
Oh, how you're weary, from fearing you lost control
This was the one thing, you didn't see coming
And no one would blame you, though
If you cried in private
If you tried to hide it away, so no one knows
No one will see, if you stop believing

Oh, my soul
You are not alone
There's a place where fear has to face the God you know
One more day, He will make a way
Let Him show you how, you can lay this down
'Cause you're not alone

Here and now
You can be honest
I won't try to promise that someday it all works out
'Cause this is the valley
And even now, He is breathing on your dry bones
And there will be dancing
There will be beauty where beauty was ash and stone
This much I know

Oh, my soul
You are not alone
There's a place where fear has to face the God you know
One more day, He will make a way
Let Him show you how, you can lay this down

I'm not strong enough, I can't take anymore
(You can lay it down, you can lay it down)
And my shipwrecked faith will never get me to shore
(You can lay it down, you can lay it down)
Can He find me here
Can He keep me from going under

My sweet brother’s and sister’s in Christ. If you take anything away from today’s blog know that You are not alone. You are loved and created for a purpose. One that requires genuine and personal worship. Take today's struggle and give Him the glory! I will be right alongside of you doing the same.

Jessica

Let It Be...

Have you ever just stopped everything you were doing to sit in awe of God? Just think: the God whose hands keep the planets from smashing together wants to hold our hand every day... wow.

I know many of you know the verse Psalm 46:10, "be still and know...". Well I like the beginning of that verse even better. In the AMPC version, it says "Let be and be still..."

So many times it is easy to "give" something to God, but we are still holding on to it. I know I've found myself doing that a lot lately. It is so hard to completely walk away, but sometimes that is what God is telling us to do.

I know, I get it. I've been clinging to my struggles for a while. But the moment I was finally able to say "God, I'm letting this be. I'm not only being still and waiting for You, but I'm letting this be." That was when I was able to truly open my heart to worship. When we hang on to these things it clouds our minds and the devil is allowed to steal our heart of worship. But when we let be... God can show us amazing things!

I encourage each of you to just let be! Be still and make yourself available to God. I promise He never disappoints!

~Blessings,

Savannah

It's Okay

"It's okay".  That's a phrase I seem to use a lot around here on the first Wednesday night of each month.  See, on the first Wednesday night of each month, the praise team/band and worship choir lead in worship during our service.  On the other Wednesday nights throughout the month, we don't do anything.  Our goal is that the "First Wednesday Service" will be a special time of worship that people can look forward to throughout the month.  

So, that's the goal.  Unfortunately, we keep having issues during our First Wednesday Services.  For the most part they aren't major, just annoying.  Like last night, an innocent mistake was made and we lost our click track for one song (the band plays with it to help keep us all together).  And in the process to fix it, we had some loud "static" sounds come through the speakers.  Last month we struggled with some rhythm issues.  The month before that, I completely forgot the lyrics on a verse.  I just blanked on them.

Now, I'm sure there are some reasons that these issues continue to flare-up.  The biggest of which is probably our lack of a significant sound check on First Wednesday Nights.  On Sunday mornings we sound check for 25-30 minutes and run over each song in it's entirety.  On First Wednesday Nights we sound check for about 2 minutes and basically run over intros and transitions.  Unfortunately, that's all the time we have.  

And when there is an issue, everyone comes up to me afterward all upset.  Sometimes they are apologizing for their part in the issue.  Sometimes they are just upset that things didn't go as well as we hoped for.  But here's what I tell everyone:  it's okay.  Don't get me wrong.  I HATE it when things don't go well.  Part of my job is putting people in positions where they can succeed and do well.  And on First Wednesdays, that's hard.  

But ultimately, whether or not our worship is "successful" is not determined by how smoothly everything goes or our lack of issues.  Our worship is determined by the condition of our hearts and the sincerity of our praise.  And if those 2 things are right, then even the biggest issues won't hinder our worship.

So, we'll keep working towards getting all of these issues handled, but until we do, if you show up one First Wednesday Night and things don't go perfectly:

It's okay.

Worship Big!

Brad

Concert Highlights

This past Sunday morning our worship team had the honor of doing a worship concert for all 3 morning services.  It was a tremendous time of worship and I truly believe that people experienced Jesus and the hope that He has called us to (Ephesians 1:18).  I want to thank everyone who participated (the Praise Team/Band, the Worship Choir, and all of the A/V Team).  Everyone did an OUTSTANDING job!

To watch the entire concert go to:  http://subsplash.com/mpbc/v/d7fmjlx

Or to see some highlights from the concert, click on the video below:

Worship Big!

Brad

What Rehearsals Have Been Missing

It's really easy to go into a weekly rehearsal with blinders on.  In my situation, I'll do something different each week and sometimes even play 2 or 3 different instruments as well as sing in a single night of rehearsals. And I'm not even the only team member who does this. I can't necessarily speak for anyone else, but I'm often just looking to get through the night on Wednesdays come rehearsal time.  However, there was recently an element added to our rehearsals that's beginning to open me up to something else.  Worship within rehearsal.

It seems like a simple thought, doesn't it?  Worship while you rehearse.  But, when your night of rehearsals and practices are jam-packed full of teams of people, instruments, singing and transitions, sometimes it gets easy to push worship to the side.  That's the ugly truth.  Rehearsals should be about more.  I've talked about this before regarding personal practice and preparation time, but this should also carry over to our rehearsals.

Pastor Brad recently started changing the way we do choir practices and I think it works great and people respond really well.  We'll open up by working on parts for new songs as normal, but then we'll go into a group prayer time, then into an acoustic worship set of the songs for the upcoming Sunday.  Do you know what I appreciate most about this time?  The fact that people worship.  We aren't in front of a congregation, under lights or on a stage but people still worship.  That's what I would love to see in our Praise Team rehearsals.  Until recently, I've never thought about the fact that it is indeed okay to worship at rehearsal. Going even further than that, I'll say we should be worshiping at rehearsal.  Isn't worship the point?  If you're a singer and you're good with raising your hands on a Sunday morning, then why isn't that level of worship happening at rehearsal?  Of course this is a time to work on parts and transitions, but aren't we still singing the same songs?  Aren't we still rehearsing for the same reason?  I'm even talking to myself here.

I feel that a stronger sense of worship within rehearsals could not only bring a tighter unity within our worship teams but even give what we're doing on Wednesday nights a stronger meaning and purpose.  Any chance that we have to worship should not be passed up, and you know what?  Worship is fun.  Upbeat songs are just more fun to sing when you lift your hands and enjoy yourself.  Intimate songs are more personal and fulfilling when you mean and feel what you're singing.  Get into the songs you sing and play.  Don't miss another opportunity to worship...even at rehearsal.

Peace,

Justin

Why is "Worship Music" a thing?

That question bothered me for a long time, and even caused me to ditch Christian music altogether for a few years. My inability to provide a satisfactory answer caused me to question the purpose of what I got up on stage and did every Sunday. When I ultimately lost faith in Christian music and dropped out of the Worship Arts program at Liberty University, I wasn't sure I'd ever play worship music again.
    
My problem was that I just couldn't prove to myself that Christian music is worthwhile. I felt like the worship music industry spends a whole lot of time and money, and doesn't have much to show for it. It seemed to me that we desperately chase after contemporary relevance while rarely achieving anything more than unoriginality that sounds like a generic caricature of last year's pop music. I felt like we were stealing genuine musical styles from genuine musical genres, and repurposing them as neat, little carrying packages for Christian ideology. I kept asking myself why Christian music doesn't have its own sound instead of poorly copying everyone else's. Why is Christian music on the back-end of the music world instead of its cutting edge? We purport to have the answer to all the world's problems, and a personal relationship with the creator of the universe. You'd think our music would be its own type of original, beautiful expression; perhaps even the greatest music in the world.
    
And then I realized that it is.
    
Worship music is truly great music, and truly phenomenal art. Not only is it beautiful, but it is perhaps the greatest art that has ever been created in human history because it isn't only a raw, auditory expression of human experience; it is the raw, auditory expression of humans connecting with their creator. Every type of music expresses a different type of human experience in a unique way. For example, the style and lyrics of bluegrass music express the culture and history of Appalachia. The rock and roll of the 60's and 70's were the life and soul of social change, and expressed a fiery spirit of freedom in a way that nothing else ever has. Christian music is also powerful expression; just in a different way:
    
In its purest form, worship music is the actual experience of worshiping and praising the living God.
    
The answer to the question that bothered me for so long is really that simple. Praise and worship music channels worship; that's its purpose. It is music that is intended to facilitate experience, not just express it. In other words, worship music is an art form that transcends its medium, and is thereby one of the most uniquely gorgeous types of art that has ever existed! What I'm saying is that worship music isn't about music at all! It doesn't matter how good worship music sounds, or whether or not it has its own unique style. Worship music has nothing to do with music! In its truest form, worship music is the expression/facilitation of worship. Its channeling of worship makes it an incredibly powerful and pure form of expression. When we worry about how good it sounds, or concern ourselves with whether or not it achieves contemporary relevance, we not only completely miss the point of worship music, but also stifle its unique beauty. Worship music is not beautiful because of how it sounds. It is beautiful because of what it is: (hint, hint: it's in the name) WORSHIP! That's all it is, all it has ever been, and all it ever can be. It took me so long to fully realize that. At its core, worship music is the beautiful adoration of our loving savior Jesus Christ. Let's appreciate it as such!

Coleman

King of My Heart

There is a lot of great worship music out there right now.  So much so, that I can't keep up with all of it.  I have people come up to me or email me all the time saying, "You guys should do this song".  And in all honesty, most of the time I haven't even heard the song before.  Like I said, it's hard to keep up with all of the new worship music out there.  Well, with this week's post, I want to be the person to introduce you to a song that you might not have heard before.  Or at the very least, maybe not this particular version.  

The song is "King of My Heart" by Bethel Worship. There's a version of this song that is played on Christian radio by the group Kutless.  It's good, but there's just something about a song being arranged for church worship.  It's like the song "Revelation Song".  Most people know the Phillips, Craig and Dean version that is played on Christian radio.  It's good, but in my opinion, it's nowhere near as powerful as the Gateway Worship version with Kari Jobe leading.  

So, here's Bethel's version of the song.  Enjoy!

Worship Big!

Brad