Just home from CFC where we played all 3 services. It has been a while since we have played any gigs and so it was good to get back into it. It was the perfect opportunity to air some of the songs again, in fact our 5 song set tonight had 4 of the new tunes incorporated. It seemed to go well throughout all 3 services. The morning set was quite reflective with songs such as: We Bow Down, Lord of All the Earth, Faithful One and Rescuer. 3rd service was a bit louder and we played the new version of 'Noise' which actually might be called 'Victorious' now along with 'Walls' which we haven't played in ages. Both these tunes are sounding good - I particularly like our arrangement of Noise/Victorious and was encouraged to find that people joined in the clapping bit and gave a big round of applause at the end!
'Rescuer' has had a number of mentions on my blog but here I go again! I am struck by the fact that every time we have played this song and particularly today someone has come forward with a word of encouragement for the church or Johnny has felt led to challenge people on something. It is amazing to see how God is using this song already. I was led to thank God in the midlle of tonights set because if this is as much as God ever does with the song then it's been fantastic - but of course we want to see it reach the corners of the earth to bless, strengthen, release and encourage as many as possible.
I got a few comments after the services about 'Lord of All the Earth' which is arranged within a minor tonality but moves to the major late in the song which helps lift the whole feeling of the song. It's a real ministry song i.e. people seem to get the hang of it but want to sit back and soak it in. I love the space this creates in a worship set and I particularly love the depth of worship that these words seem to draw from us. I also love our arrangement; drums - delicious, bass - nutritious, elec guitar - sweet, vocals - tasty, keys -mmmmmmmm!
If you were at any of the services and feel you have some constructive feedback then please post a comment. If you are praying for the band please let us know that too as it would be a great encouragement to us at the moment.
Sunday, 27 May 2007
Monday, 21 May 2007
Worship Talk (Sunday 20th May)
Worship
Worship –Honour to a supernatural being. The body of practices and traditions that correspond theology. To bow down: to kiss towards.
Definitions:
Life with God – Jose Cummings
Communicating with God - giving praise and adoration to Him. It is communion with God. – Jen Soloway
Worship is an offering. It is not really about what God can do for me but so much more... just a giving of myself because He is worthy and so much bigger than I am. An offering and an exercise because my flesh will fight what I know I ought to do and that which gives me the greatest pleasure on this earth. My visual image during worship is usually lying prostrate or kneeling with my head to the floor... Sarah Ortloff
A heart for those who don’t have – David Hamilton
Worship is the act of thanking God. That’s it at its most simple. It's not for us even though we benefit from it. Its like when you give someone a gift but you take the pleasure in the giving. God receives worship from us but we receive the buzz from giving. Neil Young
It's like the widow's mite - you come before God with nothing
really to bring but you give Him all you've got and in doing so you feel His delight, His love, mercy, peace, forgiveness, acceptance, etc which
brings you more to your knees before Him.. Shirley Rogers
From Old to New.
The focus of worship has shifted from a physical temple to Jesus.
Jesus is unique and central to Christian worship; He is the High Priest (Hebrews 3:1, 4:14), the ultimate and complete sacrificial lamb (Hebrews 9:14, 26; John 1:29), and the true temple (John 2:21, 1 Corinthians 6:19). Through his sacrificial death on the cross, the barrier (sin) to coming face to face with God is taken away and we are able to enjoy a relationship with God.
Why do we worship?
1. He deserves our worship. We recognize His superiority to us, for His great acts as a creator God and as a redeemer.
2. He requires our worship. We are described as a ‘royal priesthood’ (1 Peter 2:9) whose calling is to ‘declare the praises of God’. Worship is a requirement therefore we do it irrespective of how we feel.
3. He enables our worship. Because of Christ’s sacrifice, God accepts our worship and even delights in it. Worship is for God’s pleasure.
Romans 12:1
“Therefore, I urge you brothers, in view of God’s mercy, to offer your bodies as living sacrifices, holy and pleasing to God – this is your spiritual act of worship”.
Not merely ritual worship but the involvement of heart, mind and will.
1. In View of God’s Mercy – Our Response.
I guess we are only able to offer ourselves to God because of His mercy and as we do He works His mercy in us. Our worship comes as a response – it is not initiated by us. As a worship leader if I choose songs which reveal who God is and what He has done, then people respond! Revelation & Response. Jesus died a sacrificial death for us on a cross so that we could experience mercy. This is an obvious observation and simple truth from scripture and yet this is what our faith is based on. I certainly don’t live a consistent life in the light of this truth. We should consider this great act of mercy when we worship.
“Our worship of Jesus is always a response to who He is, or rather how we perceive Him to be. If he is somewhat small in our hearts and minds, our response may remain minimal, mechanical and even miserly. But as we see Him more and more for who He really is, realizing what He has done for us, then pouring out our lives and resources will be our joyful response and our heart’s desire”.
Nigel Morris
2. How can worship be integrated into our daily lives? A Challenge re. Words
To each other - Words
“Do not let any unwholesome talk come out of your mouths, but only what is helpful for building others up according to their needs, that is may benefit those who listen.” Ephesians 4:29
“For out of the overflow of the heart the mouth speaks” Matthew 12:34
We are all experienced enough and wise enough to know that our words can have an extremely positive and encouraging affect on people or a devastating and harmful affect. As a school teacher I am constantly aware of everything I say. I have made mistakes already and have had to make a few apologies as I realise that the insecurities and difficulties I have pain and struggles in my life as the result of harsh words, sarcastic comments (you always wonder if there was truth in the comments whether they are a joke or not). We can all probably think of an occasion in our lives when someone has said something negative and maybe even to this day we still think about it. We must also consider the words and promises we make before God.
To God
“Guard your steps when you go to the house of God. Go near to listen rather than to offer the sacrifice of fools, who do not know that they do wrong. Do not be quick with your mouth, do not be hasty in your heart to utter anything before God. God is in heaven and you are on earth, so let your words be few…….When you make a vow to God, do not delay in fulfilling it. He has no pleasure in fools; fulfill your vow. It is better not to vow than to make a vow and not fulfull it. Do not let your mouth lead you into sin.” Ecclesiastes 5 : 1 - 6
Reflection over the words we have spoken to others, asking God for forgiveness and the consideration of apologies.
(30 secs)
Prayer
Father – the tongue is a small part of our body and yet it makes great boasts. It corrupts our whole person and we are unable to tame it in our own strength. Lord, with our tongue we praise you, and with it we curse men. Father forgive us. Lord, help us forgive those who have tresspassed against us. We offer the harmful words that have been spoken against us, to you and say that these words will not set the course of our lives but rather the words you have spoken over us. God, help us. Thank you for your mercy. Amen.
3. Have we forgotten the other side of the coin?
Justice
We must always have the poor in mind as we bring worship to God. In fact, caring for the poor is our worship. If we look at Jesus’ mission here on earth as prophecied through Isaiah then we see that he set the prisoners free, released the captives, took notice of the outcasts and so he tells us that we have been anointed to preach good news to the poor and ensure that they are treated with justice, equality and love. I know of a church in England who have a black bin outside the front door so that as people arrive they can leave food parcels, clothes etc for the poor. This says something positive about the church but I would go one step further and challenge us to do more than that. To engage with the poor ourselves.
Read – Isaiah 58 (True Fasting)
We dare not bring our worship (in this case on a sunday morning) if we have not cared for the poor. It is wasted and God does not hear our songs. We have got to re-think our view of God. He cannot have our social ruthlessness, he finds this nauseating. Vs 9- 12 are an expression of the principle ‘the measure you give will be the measure you get. God cares about this stuff and so we can’t manipulate him to move in our lives and in our church if we don’t carry out his work in obedience and humility. We need to look further at Isaiah – Chapter 61 to see the mission of Jesus on earth and in turn our mission as worshippers and followers of Jesus.
Read Isaiah 61 (The Year of the Lord’s Favour)
This is another song which fits as a sequel to the earlier song we have just read. These actions were of course fulfilled by Jesus on earth (The Beatitudes (Matthew 5). These verses are challenging and can overwhelm us with missions that we feel unprepared or unequipped for but we should consider verses 3 – 4 which mention the slow maturing and patient reconstruction implied in the metaphors ‘oaks’ and ‘rebuilding the ruined cities’. This is a process which we give ourselves to daily. In order for us to carry out this work as our worship to God we need our pride humbled and our power harnessed at the beginning of each new day.
Bringing it to a close. Back to Romans 12:1
If we refer back to the to Romans 12, we are to bring ourselves as a sacrifice – ‘holy and pleasing’ i.e without sin. We are often guilty of raising ‘holy’ hands to God when in fact our hands are unholy and unclean. Our songs declare one thing and lives live out another. There is no integrity. If we read David’s words in Psalm 20 – verses 3-4 reads:
“Who may ascend the hill of the Lord? Who may stand in his holy place? He who has clean hands and a pure heart, who does not lift up his soul to an idol”. Psalm 20: 3-4
Worship –Honour to a supernatural being. The body of practices and traditions that correspond theology. To bow down: to kiss towards.
Definitions:
Life with God – Jose Cummings
Communicating with God - giving praise and adoration to Him. It is communion with God. – Jen Soloway
Worship is an offering. It is not really about what God can do for me but so much more... just a giving of myself because He is worthy and so much bigger than I am. An offering and an exercise because my flesh will fight what I know I ought to do and that which gives me the greatest pleasure on this earth. My visual image during worship is usually lying prostrate or kneeling with my head to the floor... Sarah Ortloff
A heart for those who don’t have – David Hamilton
Worship is the act of thanking God. That’s it at its most simple. It's not for us even though we benefit from it. Its like when you give someone a gift but you take the pleasure in the giving. God receives worship from us but we receive the buzz from giving. Neil Young
It's like the widow's mite - you come before God with nothing
really to bring but you give Him all you've got and in doing so you feel His delight, His love, mercy, peace, forgiveness, acceptance, etc which
brings you more to your knees before Him.. Shirley Rogers
From Old to New.
The focus of worship has shifted from a physical temple to Jesus.
Jesus is unique and central to Christian worship; He is the High Priest (Hebrews 3:1, 4:14), the ultimate and complete sacrificial lamb (Hebrews 9:14, 26; John 1:29), and the true temple (John 2:21, 1 Corinthians 6:19). Through his sacrificial death on the cross, the barrier (sin) to coming face to face with God is taken away and we are able to enjoy a relationship with God.
Why do we worship?
1. He deserves our worship. We recognize His superiority to us, for His great acts as a creator God and as a redeemer.
2. He requires our worship. We are described as a ‘royal priesthood’ (1 Peter 2:9) whose calling is to ‘declare the praises of God’. Worship is a requirement therefore we do it irrespective of how we feel.
3. He enables our worship. Because of Christ’s sacrifice, God accepts our worship and even delights in it. Worship is for God’s pleasure.
Romans 12:1
“Therefore, I urge you brothers, in view of God’s mercy, to offer your bodies as living sacrifices, holy and pleasing to God – this is your spiritual act of worship”.
Not merely ritual worship but the involvement of heart, mind and will.
1. In View of God’s Mercy – Our Response.
I guess we are only able to offer ourselves to God because of His mercy and as we do He works His mercy in us. Our worship comes as a response – it is not initiated by us. As a worship leader if I choose songs which reveal who God is and what He has done, then people respond! Revelation & Response. Jesus died a sacrificial death for us on a cross so that we could experience mercy. This is an obvious observation and simple truth from scripture and yet this is what our faith is based on. I certainly don’t live a consistent life in the light of this truth. We should consider this great act of mercy when we worship.
“Our worship of Jesus is always a response to who He is, or rather how we perceive Him to be. If he is somewhat small in our hearts and minds, our response may remain minimal, mechanical and even miserly. But as we see Him more and more for who He really is, realizing what He has done for us, then pouring out our lives and resources will be our joyful response and our heart’s desire”.
Nigel Morris
2. How can worship be integrated into our daily lives? A Challenge re. Words
To each other - Words
“Do not let any unwholesome talk come out of your mouths, but only what is helpful for building others up according to their needs, that is may benefit those who listen.” Ephesians 4:29
“For out of the overflow of the heart the mouth speaks” Matthew 12:34
We are all experienced enough and wise enough to know that our words can have an extremely positive and encouraging affect on people or a devastating and harmful affect. As a school teacher I am constantly aware of everything I say. I have made mistakes already and have had to make a few apologies as I realise that the insecurities and difficulties I have pain and struggles in my life as the result of harsh words, sarcastic comments (you always wonder if there was truth in the comments whether they are a joke or not). We can all probably think of an occasion in our lives when someone has said something negative and maybe even to this day we still think about it. We must also consider the words and promises we make before God.
To God
“Guard your steps when you go to the house of God. Go near to listen rather than to offer the sacrifice of fools, who do not know that they do wrong. Do not be quick with your mouth, do not be hasty in your heart to utter anything before God. God is in heaven and you are on earth, so let your words be few…….When you make a vow to God, do not delay in fulfilling it. He has no pleasure in fools; fulfill your vow. It is better not to vow than to make a vow and not fulfull it. Do not let your mouth lead you into sin.” Ecclesiastes 5 : 1 - 6
Reflection over the words we have spoken to others, asking God for forgiveness and the consideration of apologies.
(30 secs)
Prayer
Father – the tongue is a small part of our body and yet it makes great boasts. It corrupts our whole person and we are unable to tame it in our own strength. Lord, with our tongue we praise you, and with it we curse men. Father forgive us. Lord, help us forgive those who have tresspassed against us. We offer the harmful words that have been spoken against us, to you and say that these words will not set the course of our lives but rather the words you have spoken over us. God, help us. Thank you for your mercy. Amen.
3. Have we forgotten the other side of the coin?
Justice
We must always have the poor in mind as we bring worship to God. In fact, caring for the poor is our worship. If we look at Jesus’ mission here on earth as prophecied through Isaiah then we see that he set the prisoners free, released the captives, took notice of the outcasts and so he tells us that we have been anointed to preach good news to the poor and ensure that they are treated with justice, equality and love. I know of a church in England who have a black bin outside the front door so that as people arrive they can leave food parcels, clothes etc for the poor. This says something positive about the church but I would go one step further and challenge us to do more than that. To engage with the poor ourselves.
Read – Isaiah 58 (True Fasting)
We dare not bring our worship (in this case on a sunday morning) if we have not cared for the poor. It is wasted and God does not hear our songs. We have got to re-think our view of God. He cannot have our social ruthlessness, he finds this nauseating. Vs 9- 12 are an expression of the principle ‘the measure you give will be the measure you get. God cares about this stuff and so we can’t manipulate him to move in our lives and in our church if we don’t carry out his work in obedience and humility. We need to look further at Isaiah – Chapter 61 to see the mission of Jesus on earth and in turn our mission as worshippers and followers of Jesus.
Read Isaiah 61 (The Year of the Lord’s Favour)
This is another song which fits as a sequel to the earlier song we have just read. These actions were of course fulfilled by Jesus on earth (The Beatitudes (Matthew 5). These verses are challenging and can overwhelm us with missions that we feel unprepared or unequipped for but we should consider verses 3 – 4 which mention the slow maturing and patient reconstruction implied in the metaphors ‘oaks’ and ‘rebuilding the ruined cities’. This is a process which we give ourselves to daily. In order for us to carry out this work as our worship to God we need our pride humbled and our power harnessed at the beginning of each new day.
Bringing it to a close. Back to Romans 12:1
If we refer back to the to Romans 12, we are to bring ourselves as a sacrifice – ‘holy and pleasing’ i.e without sin. We are often guilty of raising ‘holy’ hands to God when in fact our hands are unholy and unclean. Our songs declare one thing and lives live out another. There is no integrity. If we read David’s words in Psalm 20 – verses 3-4 reads:
“Who may ascend the hill of the Lord? Who may stand in his holy place? He who has clean hands and a pure heart, who does not lift up his soul to an idol”. Psalm 20: 3-4
Monday, 14 May 2007
Made To Worship
"Then Job arose, tore his robe, and shaved his head; and he fell to the ground and worshiped. And he said:
“Naked I came from my mother’s womb,
And naked shall I return there.
The Lord gave, and the Lord has taken away;
Blessed be the name of the Lord.”
In all this Job did not sin nor charge God with wrong".
This level of worship is a challenge to me. These verses have been very real to me over the past 7 or 8 years but I hadn't paid much attention the the final verse. Job lost everything - the four corners of the house came in and took his whole family and all that he had and yet he did not sin i.e. he didn't wrongly blame God for all the pain in his life. Job seems to have grasped God's sovereignty and accepted it regardless of the level of pain he was experiencing.
Job's perspective comes into line with Jesus' words as recorded in Luke 12:15 - our lives don't depend on the abundance of things we have, we will end up in a sorry mess they do. Over the past number of weeks I have had one over-riding thought throughout the day -'Life is but a breath'. I can't get this out of my head!!!!!! I am struck by the temporary nature of life and how this is my one opportunity to worship. I can't just expect to have time to fix my gaze, I need to re-align myself now and ensure that worship is integrated into my daily life.
What can I do to bring a purer form of worship through the painful times? How can I bring genuine worship before a God who I really don't understand? I am struck by the fact that worship is so much bigger and greater and deeper than I can even begin to articulate or comprehend. Something happens between my spirit and God that I have no control of. I am led to worship from a depth that is beyond choice. We often talk about choosing to worship but we have been Made to Worship.
“Naked I came from my mother’s womb,
And naked shall I return there.
The Lord gave, and the Lord has taken away;
Blessed be the name of the Lord.”
In all this Job did not sin nor charge God with wrong".
This level of worship is a challenge to me. These verses have been very real to me over the past 7 or 8 years but I hadn't paid much attention the the final verse. Job lost everything - the four corners of the house came in and took his whole family and all that he had and yet he did not sin i.e. he didn't wrongly blame God for all the pain in his life. Job seems to have grasped God's sovereignty and accepted it regardless of the level of pain he was experiencing.
Job's perspective comes into line with Jesus' words as recorded in Luke 12:15 - our lives don't depend on the abundance of things we have, we will end up in a sorry mess they do. Over the past number of weeks I have had one over-riding thought throughout the day -'Life is but a breath'. I can't get this out of my head!!!!!! I am struck by the temporary nature of life and how this is my one opportunity to worship. I can't just expect to have time to fix my gaze, I need to re-align myself now and ensure that worship is integrated into my daily life.
What can I do to bring a purer form of worship through the painful times? How can I bring genuine worship before a God who I really don't understand? I am struck by the fact that worship is so much bigger and greater and deeper than I can even begin to articulate or comprehend. Something happens between my spirit and God that I have no control of. I am led to worship from a depth that is beyond choice. We often talk about choosing to worship but we have been Made to Worship.
Friday, 11 May 2007
Chris Tomlin & Band avec Johnny Parks & Band
As many of you know we are recording an album in August. Just to make things a little more hectic and fun we are supporting Chris Tomlin at the Odyssey on Wednesday 15th August @ 8pm. Tickets are available at www.ticketmater.ie so please come and support us. We would LOVE to let you hear the new songs. We are also playing the following night in Stoke-on-Trent if you are fanatical enough to come with us!
Friday, 4 May 2007
'In This World You Will Have Trouble"
I suppose this is not a post directly devoted to worship and it's theology or practicalities but as a worshipper this is simply an account of my experience of the past 2 weeks.
As many of you will know almost 2 weeks ago we woke to the devastating news that Nik's sister Lindsay (age 23) had passed away. We have been praying and praying for Lindsay in her battle against cancer. On Monday of this week we again woke to an early phonecall informing us that a friend (age 22) of my husband's had died after a fall in Russia. In school on Wednesday our singing teacher was asking for the next day off as she was involved in the funeral of a 3 yr old who drowned whilst on holiday in Spain. I spoke to a close colleague on the phone on Wednesday who informed me of a teacher who had lost her 3 month old baby girl.
My reaction - confusion.
As many of you will know almost 2 weeks ago we woke to the devastating news that Nik's sister Lindsay (age 23) had passed away. We have been praying and praying for Lindsay in her battle against cancer. On Monday of this week we again woke to an early phonecall informing us that a friend (age 22) of my husband's had died after a fall in Russia. In school on Wednesday our singing teacher was asking for the next day off as she was involved in the funeral of a 3 yr old who drowned whilst on holiday in Spain. I spoke to a close colleague on the phone on Wednesday who informed me of a teacher who had lost her 3 month old baby girl.
My reaction - confusion.
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