In the late 1930’s and early 1940’s as war was breaking out in Europe, there were many American’s who desired to remain neutral.  Although concerned for the suffering of our allies, World War One had caused the bulk of our country to become weary of war.  Within the country we were still in recovery from the Great Depression.  We certainly had our own problems without taking on another overseas conflict.  We would watch from a far with concern.  We would help Great Britain by FDR’s Lend Lease program.  But that’s it…let’s not get involved.

Isolationism.  That was our mindset.  What happens over there, as concerning as it may be, will not effect us over here.  Not until the Japanese attacked Pearl Harbor did that change.  And boy did it change!  The rest is history…

Recently I’ve been troubled by the Western Church’s isolationism toward Israel.  What happens over there, even though we are concerned, certainly won’t effect us over here.  Right?

I believe we are seeing a gradual shift in politics and world sentiment that will set up prophetic events…potentially in our lifetime. 

As the world becomes more and more anti-Israel, we will begin to see obvious signs of God’s supernatural intervention and protection of His covenant people.  So what do we do?

Pray for the peace of Jerusalem!
“May they be secure who love you!
Peace be within your walls
and security within your towers!”
For my brothers and companions’ sake
I will say, “Peace be within you!”
For the sake of the house of the Lord our God,
I will seek your good.  Psalm 122:6-9

As you watch the news…as you see the rockets firing…as you hear & see the hatred – pray for the peace of Jerusalem.  If it were not for God’s covenant people, we as gentiles would not know salvation – for salvation flows through her veins to us.  Remember what Jesus said in John 4:22 – “You worship what you do not know; we worship what we know, for salvation is from the Jews”.  Not FOR the Jews but FROM – “springs” from or “through”.

So…where is the Church?  Why is she silent?

This past spring, my son and I visited Haiti for the first time.  Jake is 14 years old and I knew this would be a powerful moment in his spiritual growth.  One day our team visited a village surrounding a Voodoo temple.  As we walked into the village I quickly felt oppression in my spirit and could see it in the eyes of the people.  Although we were not there long, Jake picked up on it.  He become very disturbed, pleaded with me to leave…NOW!  Once we got back on the bus we had a great teachable moment.

I shared with him as I do with you now: evil rarely shows it’s hand.  It has the ability to cloak itself and most often can only be discerned through the Spirit.

It disguises itself in robes of light and takes on the look of righteousness.  And that is the darkest, ugliest and most disturbing of all.  For it’s true purpose is to attack the church and tear her apart from within – limb by limb.  This evil turns us against one another through gossip, backbiting, slander, and all around grumbling and fighting in the church.  All the while causing us to forget WHO we are and WHAT we are called to be.

As God’s prophetic timetable ticks towards midnight – the church is fighting, bickering or just too self consumed to notice.  And evil, the same we openly felt in the voodoo temple, now concealed – lulls the sleeping giant into an isolationism of our own making.  That same evil that longs to destroy God’s covenant people of Israel has it’s eye on the Church.

Brother’s and Sisters, it’s time we wake up and start acting like the Body of Christ…the one for which our Lord gave His life.

So I encourage you to be aware and keep your eyes open to what our Hebrew brothers and sisters are enduring – and pray for the peace of Jerusalem.  Let’s not be isolationists – but help carry this burden and fulfill our scriptural command.  Talk about it in your families and be aware that the prophetic time table is ticking…faster and faster every day, month and year.  Be aware that we may see God’s hand in this lifetime. Then – turn your heart towards Jesus, the Author and Finisher of our Faith!  All these things must be fulfilled – and then you will see the Son of Man coming in the clouds.

Even so – come quickly Lord Jesus!

Recently I’ve been watching the mega snow catastrophe in Atlanta.  No one saw it coming.  No one that is, except the National Weather Service, which issued the proper warning in plenty of time to avert a crisis.  But instead, the city went about it’s normal functions choosing to ignore the impossible was not only possible but probable.  In the end, the prophets of weather were ignored; their voice too familiar and the sounding alarm meaningless.  Until it was too late!  Paul tells us in Ephesians 4:

“And he gave the apostles, the prophets, the evangelists, the shepherds and teachers^, to equip the saints for the work of ministry, for building up the body of Christ,until we all attain to the unity of the faith and of the knowledge of the Son of God, to mature manhood,to the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ, so that we may no longer be children, tossed to and fro by the waves and carried about by every wind of doctrine, by human cunning, by craftiness in deceitful schemes”.

It’s important to understand, prophets of the Old Testament who summoned the Nation of Israel back to God are alive and well in today’s church; calling the church back to Biblical obedience and Spirit filled living.  They sound the warning…the alarm of coming persecution.  God will deal with dissension and disunity in His Church.  And trust me, it won’t be pretty!

It would be easy to think the prophets would call out this sinful and lost culture.  We assume the darkest and most depraved world in which will live would be the target.  We would be very wrong.  The Spirit has given the prophets for the church…for that is where the darkest most vile, reprehensible and sickening sin festers.  Clothed, all the while, in garments of light.  It is by far the most dangerous and destructive.  And be warned…it will be the target of God’s justice and wrath.

Throughout the scriptures, God purges and cleans His people through the vehicle of persecution.  He reveals His sheep and scatters the goats.  It’s Jesus who prunes and cast aside all that does not bear fruit:

“I am the true vine, and my Father is the vinedresser.  Every branch in me that does not bear fruit he takes away, and every branch that does bear fruit he prunes, that it may bear more fruit.  Already you are clean because of the word that I have spoken to you.  Abide in me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit by itself, unless it abides in the vine, neither can you, unless you abide in me.  I am the vine; you are the branches. Whoever abides in me and I in him, he it is that bears much fruit, for apart from me you can do nothing.  If anyone does not abide in me he is thrown away like a branch and withers; and the branches are gathered, thrown into the fire, and burned.”  John 15

Today’s western church is amassed in self spiritual pride and heresy.  She is garnished with hypocrites who think nothing of chasing fame, wealth, and sexual immorality.  But even more dangerous, are those who clothe themselves as spiritual giants.  Hidden is their true nature of condemnation and divisiveness.  They bring disunity to the Body and manufacture gossip with great talent and amazing deceit.  They cloak their poisonous gossip in spiritual banter with appearances of wisdom and concern. They turn on their leaders and Pastors with pious spirituality; all the while in direct and resolute defiance of God’s Word. They are tried and true Pharisees.  They are vipers!  Paul warns us in Titus 3:

“Remind them to be submissive to rulers and authorities, to be obedient, to be ready for every good work, to speak evil of no one, to avoid quarreling, to be gentle, and to show perfect courtesy toward all people. For we ourselves were once foolish, disobedient, led astray, slaves to various passions and pleasures, passing our days in malice and envy, hated by others and hating one another. But when the goodness and loving kindness of God our Savior appeared, he saved us, not because of works done by us in righteousness, but according to his own mercy, by the washing of regeneration and renewal of the Holy Spirit, whom he poured out on us richly through Jesus Christ our Savior, so that being justified by his grace we might become heirs according to the hope of eternal life. The saying is trustworthy, and I want you to insist on these things, so that those who have believed in God may be careful to devote themselves to good works. These things are excellent and profitable for people. But avoid foolish controversies, genealogies, dissensions, and quarrels about the law, for they are unprofitable and worthless.  As for a person who stirs up division, after warning him once and then twice, have nothing more to do with him, knowing that such a person is warped and sinful; he is self-condemned.”

There is a storm gathering.  But this storm is heaven sent for the purging and cleansing of His Church.  It’s time we stop discarding the warning of His prophets and begin to return to full obedience of His Word and wrap ourselves in the joy and love of His Spirit.  The dead branches will be cut and discarded.  And when it happens rejoice!  For new growth will follow.

Stay tuned for the next posting as we explore the signs and symptoms of the pharisees among us.  We’ll explore 5 Biblical signs of a pharisee within the church and the prophets who call their bluff.

It’s easy for us to enter the Christmas season and go on autopilot.  The holiday season is so driven by traditions (which are not a bad thing)…and typically the busy gets busier and the opportunity to worship is lost.  The focus of Emmanuel becomes us.  He is here for us…to walk with us…to give us hope.  Us, me and I.  He can quickly become our means to an end for our comfort and needs.  Don’t get me wrong, all of this is true…but we must resist the temptation to become the center of Christmas.  Emmanuel – GOD with US.  <

O Come O Come Emmanuel and ransom captive Israel.  That mourns in lonely exile here until the Son of God appears.  Rejoice, Rejoice Emmanuel.  Shall come to thee O Israel

Allow me to offer a higher view.  The very nature of God is seen in this amazing transcendent act of love.  The unseen has now become visible and we can focus on what had been so hard to see and understand.  All the while knowing – we’ll never really see and understand fully while we inhabit these jars of clay.  For me, the thing that really captures the nature of Emmanuel are two magnificent moments in the scripture that absolutely blow me away…so much so it brings me to my knees every time I dare read them:

Long ago, at many times and in many ways, God spoke to our fathers by the prophets, but in these last days he has spoken to us by his Son, whom he appointed the heir of all things, through whom also he created the world. He is the radiance of the glory of God and the exact imprint of his nature, and he upholds the universe by the word of his power. After making purification for sins, he sat down at the right hand of the Majesty on high, having become as much superior to angels as the name he has inherited is more excellent than theirs.  Hebrews 1

Have this mind among yourselves, which is yours in Christ Jesus, who, though he was in the form of God, did not count equality with God a thing to be grasped, but emptied himself, by taking the form of a servant, being born in the likeness of men. And being found in human form, he humbled himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross. Therefore God has highly exalted him and bestowed on him the name that is above every name, so that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.  Philippians 2

He is The Radiant Glory of God!  The Word tells us that heaven will have no light – for the light will be the Lamb of Glory!  Somehow we just dim in comparison.  This Christmas, let’s worship Him for who He is…not for what we get out of it!  Then the priorities will right themselves and you’ll find a dose of worship that really gives you hope!
Come and Worship Christ the newborn KING!

Over the past year I’ve had a growing chorus of conversations with worship pastors, senior pastors, church staff and lay leaders regarding a troubling trend in our houses of worship.  It has many leaders scratching their heads and wondering how to communicate truth which is unwanted and hard to hear.  It’s not a trend relegated to one church or gathering, but seems to be consistent – especially within the notorious Bible-Belt!  It’s born out of apathy and idolatry.  It’s fed by leaders who’ve fostered it into epidemic status by withholding God’s call to obedience before sacrifice.  Those Pastors who’ve courageously addressed it have found a kinship and brotherhood with the prophets of the Old Testament: despised outcast, the black sheep of the church.

Nevertheless, this Sunday our houses of worship will have smatterings of stoic, gloomy, detached “followers of Jesus” who with their arms crossed offer little to no sign of life.  They will sit & stand, write their checks to God, and keep their eyes focused forward.  Their Bibles with them although there is no recognition of it’s power to transform.  They’ll take inventory of things for which they disapprove bearing up arms for later discussion with those who share their misery.  For some with the spiritual gift of discernment and prophecy, it smells of death and deceit.

We’ve redefined worship and invested in a false image of church, and now worship no longer meets our desires, wishes and preferences. 

If you pass among them and are not one of them – the chill of bitterness and divisiveness is alarming.  They are quick to take a pompous stand on principle and tell the rest of the world why it’s bound for a fiery hell.  They will boycott, stomp and shout righteous indignation while devoid of any fruits of the spirit (Galatians 5:16-25).  They’ve forgotten we’re all broken and destitute were it not for the grace of God.

Is it any wonder that our churches are dying while our society has rejected this definition of Christianity?  Is this really what God had in mind for the Church?

How far and how deep have we fallen from truth.  When did we ever fall for the lie that this gathering of ragamuffins and sojourners is a celebration of personal desires and wants!  When did we lose our song?  How did we lose our way?

Church leadership will debate the Sunday worship experience – attempting to balance familiar hymns against the new and innovative.  Enormous amounts of time will be spent in extra Biblical exploits with a desire to entice these people to participate.  Blogs will be written arguing the need for more familiarity while others for more innovation to ensure the future.  All the while we play to fleshly desires and feed the baby more sweetened milk…hoping to make him fat and happy.

Should we not look deeper and harder through the lens of indisputable truth?  And the hard truth is this: our hearts are cold.  The Sunday morning worship experience in our gatherings we call “church” has little do with content, style or personalities.  Sadly, the dilemma lies much further and deeper into the spiritual fiber of the western church congregation.

You cannot revive the dead when they don’t know their dead.  And you certainly can’t do it in 1 hour plus on Sunday mornings.

I’ve traveled to parts of the world where redemption can’t be bought and life in Christ is fresh and new.  I’ve stood with believers who have very little other than Jesus.  The glint in the eyes and the passion in the soul will not be quenched.  Before breaking out in song there is no debate on style – only a song.  New, familiar, old or contemporary is not the issue.  Jesus is the issue – salvation the remarkable – grace the unthinkable and worship the inevitable.

Without exception – the heart passionate to know, love and pursue Jesus WILL WORSHIP!

The weekend gathering has less to do with us and so much more to do with a remarkable community of worship based on grace.

A congregation who enters with a song invested in hours of private worship will not be silenced…not by content, style, personalities or preferences.

But let’s take it one step further:

True worship has an obvious prelude and a remarkable lingering. 

The prelude is a song within that is burrowing it’s way out.  It’s a song of joy, praise, love, and gratitude; or authentic brokenness, surrender and repentance.  The lingering is after effect – the continuation empowered by the Spirit; deeper than musical appreciation or emotional high.  It’s found in self sacrificial service surrounded by gentleness, self control, peace, patience, love, kindness and goodness.  Without these Biblical preludes & lingerings…you have a forged and artificial worship.

So – what to do?  That is the question posed so often and I believe finds it’s answer not in complexity but simplicity.  Let me suggest the following – based on God’s Word:

1. Authority – God’s Word is the first and final authority.  Don’t allow any other cultural persuasion to influence you or those you lead!  Teach it unashamedly and allow it’s power to do the work of obedience.
2. Lead – Speak truth on the authority of God’s Word with courage.  You will face adversity from the cultural pharisees within your church.  Stand strong and go in the power of His Spirit…with wisdom and correction.
3. Pray – The power of prayer is undeniable yet untapped!  His house is to be a house of prayer first and foremost.
4. Model – Be a picture of Biblical expressive worship and lead others to embrace it!
5. Repent – cultivate an atmosphere of redemption and forgiveness.  Allow grace to remind the Church she is a broken but beloved bride.
6. Prelude – teach and encourage private worship as a prelude to church gatherings.  Bring your worship with you!
7. Lingerings – confirm the authenticity of worship by testing your fruits and the fruits of those who follow you.

The symptoms are evident and the prognosis is certain death.  The superficial conversations of preference and style based on personalities are killing our churches and silencing our voice of influence.  We no longer look nor behave as God’s beloved bride.

Until we see it as God sees it and call it what it is…our churches will continue to be nothing more than grand palaces of self worship and self gratification.  And the transformational power of the gospel will lie dormant in a world that is desperate for the real deal.

The wonder of worship is found in simplicity.  The subject itself is not difficult or confusing.  The Bible is clear and the commands are apparent – from beginning to end God has defined what’s acceptable to him and life changing for us.

The problem for today’s church – we’ve lost the admiration and reverence for God’s Word; and with it…we no longer marvel in bewilderment at the thought that God would grace us with Himself.

In order to rethink worship – we must first come to terms with the fraudulent nature of the worship we practice.  I don’t intend to take us on a theological journey…which is available with just a google of the word.  But instead, let’s whet our appetite with a taste of the real.  We do know that worship is far more than a song, more than a destination or time.  Worship is more than a contribution of our favorite songs, videos, lighting, moods and feels to create an atmosphere that tends to our preferences.

Our places of worship are not “Super Targets” of the faith…built big and fascinating in order to enchant our senses, gratify our desires and convince ourselves we’ve payed our weekly homage to God.

Every week, worship pastors extend their creative reach in an attempt to find new and innovative ways to convince the church to at least think about God, much less worship Him.  These men and women strain to find just the right elements, just the right moments with just the right balance of new and old, edgy and current.  All the while knowing a segment of these congregants will find fault, will criticize and will demonstrate to a sinful world that the greatest sin is actually being committed in the Church.  This Sunday there will be many a congregation who will pass through doors under which is written – “Ichabod”…the glory has departed.

Christians don’t tell lies they just go to church and sing them. – A.W Tozer

But it doesn’t have to be so!  The journey of worship begins with understanding and releasing.  Henry Ward Beecher said it well: “I never knew how to worship until I knew how to love.” 

Worship in it’s purest form is an expression of love; not a brotherly love, or benevolent love…but a Godly agape love that consumes and ravages our will and our desires.

The worship God desires and commands has a starting point.  Think of it as a point of origin – a first step or prerequisite.  Without it you will never, ever arrive.  Without it you will be lost and eventually accept the counterfeit as real.

God must speak to us before we have any liberty to speak to him. He must disclose to us who he is before we can offer him what we are in acceptable worship. The worship of God is always a response to the Word of God. Scripture wonderfully directs and enriches our worship.  John Stott

God is found in solitude and quietness.  The wonder of God is rediscovered in stillness.  The first step of worship is found in recapturing the wonder of His Word.  If you desire to embrace truth – then try these simple steps:

1. Prioritize retreat!  Find a way to daily discover His Word and commit to it.  Develop spiritual discipline and guard it well – knowing the water of your life will become polluted without refreshing at the spring.
2. Choose obedience!  Don’t just read God’s Word but instead view it as life.  It’s not a book of rules and regulations but a novel of grace and soul with incredible power and supernatural authority.  Don’t be a hearer but a doer.
3. 24 hour rules!  I was taught I needed a daily quiet time – which is not a biblical truth.  Instead – the daily journey of worship is found in the little things and the every day moments.  We are called to be awash with God in all moments of every day in every situation.  God is not bound to a 15 minute devotional.  Redeem the throw away moments of your life.
4. Recapture Margin!  We are way too busy and have convinced ourselves it’s normal, good and the American way.  And now we’re passing it to future generations.  Get off the merry go round and cultivate tender moments of stillness and silence before the Lord by adding the value of margin.  Allow yourself some headroom and see what you discover about yourself and the ones you love.
5. Listen!  We do a whole lot of talking…don’t we?  In fact, this world never shuts up.  To fall in love with Jesus and discover a deep worship of Him – you must tune your ears to His voice.  Not only does He speak through His Word – He whispers to your soul.  A worshiper of Jesus knows His voice and follows.  Stillness will re-tune and re-acclimate you to His closeness.

Every journey has a start.  Every book a new chapter.  Every day a new dawn.  And without a deep falling in love with God you will never find the destination of worship.  Once you’re consumed with Him and passionate for nothing less – a whole new universe of wonder is revealed.

But alas, the choice is yours…and the cost is great!  Quite simple really…and yet so missed.  Place your hand on the door and push.  I bet you’ll never go back again.

As the parent of a savvy brand new teenager – I have come, quite by accident, to the knowledge that my understanding of words is lacking.  Through the force of time and culture, words that once meant one thing have now been reborn to mean another.  And you better stay with the times or you’ll be “So 2008“.

Vocabulary is a vital part of understanding.  When I use a word like awful – do I really mean wonderful, delightful and amazing?  Or by saying this dollar is a counterfeit do I really mean a perfect copy?  Or if I call someone nice, do I really mean they’re ignorant & unaware?

Culture has a way of changing meaning and time reinforces these changes by eliminating any recall of what once was.  The mistakes of past generations can be repeated so easily when we forget and lose connection with truth.  And truth is the ultimate goal.

For followers of Jesus Christ, truth and meaning are securely preserved in the Bible.  Unfortunately, time and culture have redefined our vocabulary and replaced a new meaning to words that have critical importance in our understanding of God and His purposes for us.  Without a deep understanding of these words we lose the wonder and power of influence they can have on our lives.  Allow me to show you:

• Church – modern meaning: A building where you go to attend a worship service or the group of people who regularly attend worship at the same place under the same leaders.  Biblical meaning: The one, united body of Christ-followers, called out of the world and the regional and local expressions of that one body.
• Faith – modern meaning: Agreeing intellectually that something is real or exists.  Biblical meaning: Belief that rises to the level of increasing trust in a promise or person (beliefs that you lean or put your weight down on).
• Salvation – modern meaning: Accepting Jesus into your heart to avoid hell and go to heaven after you die.  Biblical meaning: God’s rescue plan to save people and all of creation from sin and death to himself.

Adding to the list, allow me to offer one word that has been so diluted and corrupted that we have now accepted a new meaning that has destructive consequences!  That word – WORSHIP

Within the modern church, worship is now defined as songs, music, media; that moment of time before the teaching/preaching begins.  We applaud soloist and soak in our favorite songs – or we endure the forever long song service that doesn’t meet our preferences.  We’ve redesigned worship to be about us and for us.

And allow me to be very clear: we have so polluted and reduced this word and concept of worship that it has defiled our sanctuaries and corrupted our theology!

Our redefining of God’s word and meaning of worship will not be excused and has robbed us of the higher and magnificent scriptural meaning.  Worship is a great gift, created by, defined by, and empowered by God.  The wealth of this offering can transform our lives and bring God’s transcendent presence to even the smallest of moments – transforming the menial daily tasks to holy and divine.  The natural road we walk becomes hallowed ground when we understand God’s definition and purpose of worship.

Our worship: sound, lights, choirs, guitars, bands, orchestras, soloists, big, bold, quiet, moving.  Phrases such as: “loved that song”, “that was beautiful”, “that was long”, “do I have to stand(?)”, “I can’t see the screens”, “that’s too loud”, “I loved it”.

God’s worship: glory, honor, reverence, sing, shout, applaud, kneel, sacrifice, live, pray continuously, give, come, draw near.

Over the next several weeks – I hope you’ll join me as we reclaim the definition of worship.  We’ll take a look at the empowering of the Holy Spirit and the vital role of private worship.  We’ll see how worship is indeed God’s offering of power that once raised the dead and healed the sick.  So stay tuned as we journey over the next six weeks to encounter God in a new way and repeal the counterfeit worship in our lives and churches.

Suppose you were to sit back and recall your most meaningful worship experiences.  Where would it be?  With whom would it be?  How did it come and under what circumstances did it arrive.  Understand, I’m not talking about your average experience here.  I’m thinking a way out there God moment.  A Holy ambush that left you weak in the knees and stuttering for words.  Speechless.  Confounded.  Beautifully torn to pieces.

When was that for you?  How was it for you?

A holy visitation is not something we soon forget, nor is it something we want to see slip away.  Rarely does it come at predictable contrived moments and rarely does it come in groups.  When we’re awash in a God moment, it rarely precedes our emotions, but instead leaves our emotions running to catch up…like a spirit-filled tsunami.  It’s a heart racing wide eyed stoppage of the time continuum when Yahweh taps you on the shoulder.

Once the tide has subsided and you begin to collect yourself…a new supernatural peace transforms everything.  You just know everything will be OK.  True worship brings true peace.  It’s a type of peace the word “peace” doesn’t adequately define or describe.  Calm, cool and collected.  Tranquillity Base – the eagle has landed!

Jesus told us it was coming: “Peace I leave with you; my peace I give to you. Not as the world gives do I give to you.” (John 14:27)

This past week I had a chance to do something I love…go snorkeling in the Cayman Islands.  It’s a dastardly deed…that must be done.  As I was enjoying my last dive off a reef – a little school of fish called Sergeant Major were checking me out.  Beautiful and colorful reef fish, I swam on, my attention diverted to other fish and sights below.  After a period of time I began to notice one little Sergeant Major swimming with me.  And my little new found friend did so for the entire snorkel.  He never left my side.  Although I couldn’t always see him…he was there all the same.  All the way to the end.

Then BOOM…it happened.  My heart began to race and God caught me off guard.  That crazy little fish…became an instrument of God’s glory – and left me breathless, thankful and teary eyed.

And in that moment, He reminded me of something I had forgotten:

“And behold I am with you ALWAYS, even to the end of the age”.

The peace of God is a piece of Jesus.  Worship refines our sight and senses to the spiritual and re-tunes our heaven bound spirit.  Then, a glimpse over our shoulder leaves us astounded to see Jesus right there…to the very end.

He is always with us.  We have never been nor will we ever be…alone!

Several years ago, while on a trip out west, Lisa and I visited a church well known for their worship.  We went with anticipation of a great experience.

We were impressed by the facilities including the general look and feel of the campus.  The worship center had great lighting and impressive staging.  The overall visual experience was well done, even before the first note was played.  But none of this could distract us from the strange feel in the room.  The people were milling around, subdued and almost lethargic.  No sense of anticipation or expectation that God just might show up and bless His people.

Then…the music started.  Immediately – the place came to life with incredible expressions of praise.  The band was amazing and the atmosphere electric.  Until…they stopped.  And just as suddenly as it had come, it was gone.  Snuffed out, things had returned to an empty manufactured feel.  God taught me a lesson that day I’ll never forget.

As worship leaders – we can never lead people where we ourselves do not go.  And – our private worship will be made public…never the other way around.  If our worship is motivated by the song…then it’s not the worship God seeks.  If we feel the spirit rise within us only when the band gets cranked or the lights begin to burn, then we’ve settled for fools gold and found another god for our idol worship.

While speaking to the woman at the well in John 4, Jesus says the true worshipers will worship in TRUTH & in SPIRIT.  If we are not motivated by His truth (His Word) and filled with His Spirit (Holy Spirit), then we simply don’t understand the kind of worship God seeks.  And that kind of worship is found first and foremost in a quiet and reflective time with God.  Relationships are cultivated one on one…there is no substitute. Spurgeon said this about the matter of a private worship, “Why is it that some are often in the place of worship and yet they are not holy? It is because they neglect their closets. They love the wheat, but they do not grind it; they would have the corn but they will not go forth into the field to gather it; the fruit hangs on the tree but they will not pluck it; and the water flows at their feet but they’ll not stoop to drink it.”

As musicians, it’s easy to develop a deep love of the song.  Sometimes we say it’s the truth in the song, but mostly if we were honest, we just love music.  Music is the language we speak and the eternal language that goes to the deepest darkest crevices of our hearts.  But this great gift of song can never compare nor compete with the depths of knowing and loving the truth of God and the filling of His Spirit.  I grow weary of meetings with other worship leaders and hearing over and over about the latest greatest song when a zeal for God and testimony of His power is so evidently missing.  Our passions must be anchored in the truth of God and the power of His presence…then the songs will take on new meaning and power.  Way too often the passion for Him is missing; replaced with the business of doing worship and doing “church”.

So let’s change that.  Let’s make a choice to be committed private worshipers who become powerful public worship leaders.  Let’s speak of the wonders of God first and motivate others to grow in truth.  Let’s journey to that place of deep longing to see a move of God.  Let’s become real!

This weekend, allow a song birthed in a sacred moment with God to be the first from your lips Sunday morning.  Allow it to be born deep within you, motivated by a unquenchable fire to know and follow Jesus…no matter the cost.  Then and only then…when you step up to the mic, put on your guitar, your choir robe – you will sense the filling of His Spirit and the sweet unmistakeable presence of The One you have already come to know so well.

Statistics tell us we’re losing the battle.  The hard truth is this: a generation of teens and twenty-somethings who’ve grown up in the church are now leaving for greener pastures.  And those greener pastures really have more to do with practical atheism and a plurality of thoughts and philosophies related to God, faith and religion.  We’re losing them and losing them in record numbers.

In the meantime, our traditional congregations grow older and plush with a stoic determination for all things comfortable yet irrelevant.  Just today, while attempting to shop with my wife, I found myself in a conversation with an older yet wise couple so deeply troubled at the drab of some churches and the lack of life and youth.

But I have good news…there is hope.  There are churches who have rounded the corner and found ways to engage the culture while holding to Biblical non-negotiable.  They do it in creative ways that stretch the bounds of comfort for those who’ve been seated in pews longest.  And, amazingly enough, they’re seeing this generation return and engage at a very high level.  And if you look closely enough…there’s something strangely Biblical about what they do.  There seems to be an empowering of the Holy Spirit in ways these churches have never seen.

So allow me to sound the alarm!  We can never make our traditions holy and mistake them for the purity of the Gospel.  If we make our comfort and preferences the center of our worship experiences…then we’ve succumbed to a spiritual narcissism.  So let me make this very clear – God will not be among the proud, the bitter, or the “set in their ways”.  News flash: it isn’t about you!  If that’s hard to swallow, try a little New Testament reading…maybe start with James?

This weekend we’ll be expecting a great move of God during D-Now @ Concord.  We’re investing in the future expecting to see students experience a mighty visitation of God.  I’m praying they catch a fire that will spread to the Church.  I’m praying that fire will remind so many of a time when their faith was new and passion was their language.  I’m praying parents will remember the call to live this faith daily…powerfully.  I’m praying when this fire catches hold, students will stand along adults with hands raised high.  I’m praying for shouting, stomping, jumping and praising that pours into the streets and shakes the foundations.  I’m praying a revival starts!

It’s time we rethink what we do…and lead with strong and passionate hearts for all things Jesus!  Let’s give up on anything and everything that divides us and hold to all that unites.  Let’s embrace change that hurts.  Let’s speak a relevant language and see the church become a place where all generations can worship at the feet of Jesus!

Lord…may it be so!

Fear can cripple.  Fear can immobilize.  Fear can destroy.

Fear can rob you of the life you were intended to live and blind you from the invitation to live it.  Fear can zap and drain just like the first step I take into the mall (unless there’s an Apple store…of course).  It’s poison to our soul and grounds the spirit that was meant to soar.  And know this – it’s greatest thievery: fear will roadblock your worship and silence your praise.

Fear in itself is a choice.  When I was a kid, it was that which lurks in the dark.  As a teenager, it was rejection.  As an adult, it’s losing control (my family, my health, my home, my savings).  As circumstances of life change, we foresee an impending turn of events that leaves us penniless, homeless and lost at sea.  It could happen, ya know?  When offered the chance to stand for what’s right, we’re passive…for it might bring rejection.  It could happen, ya know?

It’s Mary cowering before Gabriel.  It’s the Hebrews cowering before the giants.  It’s Moses’ stuttering and David hiding in a cave.  It’s all through the Bible and nothing has really changed since.

We’re a fear mongering crew and given the right opportunity we hit the trail…Jack!

We lack courage!  We lack bravery!  We lack the steadfastness and stability of a warrior who stands his ground and never retreats – never gives up.  Overwhelming circumstances only make him stronger.

If looking for a dose of real courage, try these steps:

• Look in: Grasp a real understanding of who you are.  The Bible calls you royalty.  You’ve been given a suit of armor and a sword to do battle. (Ephesians 6)

• Look up: Be strong and courageous for the Lord is with you.  Your strength is not your own nor is it found in you.  If you are filled with the Spirit, wisdom is your guide.  Then and only then will courage lead you in the right direction and not be empowered by ego or spiritual immaturity.

• Look out: See your life, your surroundings through a Biblical perspective.  What do you have to lose? “Whoever would save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for my sake will find it.  For what will it profit a man if he gains the whole world and forfeits his soul?” Luke 16:25 & 26

The Bible tells us that we have a battle around us and within us.  We have a formidable enemy who lays traps of fear at every junction of every day.  Yet, the Bible also gives a name of the one we follow: The Lion of Judah.  He is strong, fierce in battle and courageous.

If you’re tired of living an empty life of fear and anxiety…then try a dose of courage.   Stand tall, firm and immoveable.

Tomlin captured it well:

I know Who goes before me

I know Who stands behind

The God of angel armies is always on my side

The One who reigns forever

He is a Friend of mine

The God of angel armies Is always by my side