Growth: Uncertain belief still counts as knowledge…

Just some random rantings about worship…

As much as I would like to improve worship in its physical changes, and organizational methodology, I have always known worship is about the heart.

I once ran a “praise night” of the old school back in the day called “Worship Resolution”. It was meant for worship as a means to keep our vows to worship God properly forever. I used the passage “How can I repay the lord for all his goodness to me?… I will fulfill my vows to the lord in the presence of all his people.” (Psalm 116:12, 14). I’ve realized more and more that this passage (while it is still a great passage from the Bible) was miused in my context. I did not use verse 13 because I didn’t understand it’s implication.

“I will lift the cup of salvation and call on the name of the Lord” (v.13).

I missed that passage and I and I am so grateful that God has graciously shown me what I missed. I am more convicted than ever that our worship needs to always be in rememberance of Jesus. We need to remember to call on the name of the Lord.

Furthermore…

As much as I am very much for the improvement and the excellence of our worship services in execution and musical training, I think that is a distant second from the main goal of worship: The Glorifying of God. At my church, I admit I am very much interested in this newer term “mutli-sensory” worship, but I am also quite concerned with our understanding of worship in this day and age.

On one hand, in my parents generation, there was a huge need to uphold tradition and denominational loyalty. Our methods of “doing church” was to uphold what we have “always done” and even though we did what was biblical, our “passing down” of this knowledge to the next generation has been sketchy at best. I think more and more, this next generation needs a new kind of teaching of worship. Not one that is based on a kind of classroom lecture. Not one that is based on tradition for the sake of keeping to cultural norms… but one that is more closely aligned to what Jesus modeled for us. How Jesus taught us to worship God.

I’ve been sharing to many people as of late that I feel the church needs to be an area of “counter-culture” and to re-think its methodology in engaging the congregation.

We need to teach that church is not the building, not the weekend service. Church is wherever the disciples of Jesus gather. We need to teach that Christ is the not just a “catch phrase” for a better life, but THE sustenance of it. I can tell you right now, if people are not yearning to Love God and Love our neighbors as oneself…

Questions NEED to be asked.

All I can do, and want to do at the moment is share what God is putting in my heart, speak the truth in love, walk with those who God is giving me opportunity to, help people use their gifts of music for the Lord to be their most excellent, pray pray pray.

Lord, give me a purpose that is beyond my own wanting, and help me share with others the mission that you have called us to in faith, love and hope.