Blog Archives - IRONSTRIKES

Longing for God

7/31/2018

O God, you are my God, earnestly I seek you; my soul thirsts for you, my body longs for you, in a dry and weary land where there is no water. Psalm 63:1

When a young child is separated from her parents, she will protest their absence. She will experience sadness, anxiety, anger and a longing for her parents to return. These intense emotions are not a sign of her failure as a child. Her protest is a clear sign of how important her parents are to her, of how much she misses them, of how much she loves them. At certain developmental stages, it is a sign of emotional health for a child to protest separation. At certain ages a healthy child will protest, will be angry, will be afraid, and will long for the parents return.

If one or both of our parents was in some way absent from our lives during our formative years, it will be easy for us to imagine that God will leave us as well. We may experience silence and distance. And we may find ourselves longing for God.

Just as it is good for a child to protest the absence of a parent, it is good for us to protest when we subjectively experience God's absence. It is good to give voice to our longing for God. It is good to write or pray or talk about our deep need for God's presence and love. We can call out to God. We can protest God's absence.

O God, do not be silent.
Do not be distant.
I miss you when you seem so far away.
I long for you to be close.
I long to know that you care about me.
I long for you, God.
Nothing can replace you.
No one can be God but you.
Do not be silent.
Do not be distant.
Come. Speak.
I need you.

Amen.

Copyright Dale and Juanita Ryan
National Association for Christian Recovery

The Peace of God

7/30/2018

And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.

Sometimes it feels like our hearts are breaking.

And sometimes we worry that we will lose our minds.

Both our hearts and our minds need protection.

When we let go of the defenses that have protected us for so long, and we allow ourselves to be honest and vulnerable, it sometimes feels like we will 'come apart'. In these moments can find courage in God's promise of protection. God's peace can guard our breaking hearts and our troubled minds.

Notice that God's guardianship of our heart and mind is 'in Christ Jesus'. It is in Jesus that we see most clearly that God is 'for' us. God can be trusted to guard us because God cares about us. It is in Jesus that we see most clearly that God understands the dangers to our hearts and minds. God can be trusted to guard us because God knows from personal experience the dangers we face. It is in Jesus that we see most clearly God's power. God can be trusted to guard our hearts and minds because God has the resources to do what needs to be done.

The peace of God is not a 'blissed out' euphoria that helps us minimize or ignore our problems. God's peace does not participate in denial. This peace is not another Novocain, another 'fix' to alter our mood. It is the gentle guard that protects us so that we can face reality. It is the security that comes from knowing that God pays attention, that we are not forgotten, that God is with us, that we are loved.

Guard my breaking heart today, Lord.
Guard my troubled mind.
Let your peace do its work in me, Lord.
because I am in danger and I need your protection.
Guard me with your peace today.
Guard my heart and mind.

Amen.

Copyright Dale and Juanita Ryan
National Association for Christian Recovery

A Message for Preachers

7/29/2018

The most pitiable man who walks the earth is a preacher who is blind in one eye and deaf in one ear, and short in one leg. And I don’t mean physical blindness or physical deafness, or physical deformity. But some preachers are so blind they can’t see that God’s remedy for the unsaved of earth is the new birth, and God’s remedy for His believing children is the baptism with the Holy Ghost and fire that cleans up the believer and puts an eternal “go through” in him until men and devils and difficulties will have no effect on his life’s work.

Some preachers are so deaf that they cannot hear the heart cry of the hungry and starving world around them, and have no time for the deeper and richer experiences that God has provided for His children. In most cases these same men have one short leg, and it seems to be next to impossible for them to get out among the needy and the poor, to pray for them and to encourage them in the battles of life. And even if some of these needy ones get to church, often the “doctor” has nothing to offer them.

The devil is at work to break up homes and to break hearts and to destroy the lives of the people of our day. The slaughter is something fierce! What will God require at the hand of a preacher with one blind eye and one deaf ear and one short leg at the great judgment bar of God? Preachers, we must wake up and fly for our lives! In the days in which we are living, a preacher ought to have his eyes open to the great needs of the people around about him, and he ought to keep his ears open to the heart-cry of the multitude. He ought to be ready to go and pray and love and sympathize with the hungry hearts, day or night, anywhere in the city.

I sat in a five hundred thousand dollar church and listened to a preacher take the most of his time explaining what a great German scientist had discovered in a single grain of sand. The crowd went to sleep and left him to discourse on the sand. The poor people did not get anything that was worth their time. They were going to church where their hungry hearts were not fed, and where they did not get one encouragement to help them in the battles of life.

I have known preachers to get an opportunity of almost a lifetime to preach a great sermon on doctrine, and instead they beat and peeled and scaled and blistered. The crowd would leave sad and really disgusted. The preacher would then make his boast that he knew he would never have another chance at that bunch of backsliders and hypocrites. And sure enough, that was his last opportunity. He lost it forever. Isn’t it strange that a preacher of the gospel will get himself into that kind of a condition mentally and spiritually, until he feels that he is especially called to “take the hide off,” as he calls it, and then as the fine crowd of people walk away sad and disappointed, the preacher feels that he has really fixed the situation? And I judge he has.

A preacher must beware of being “hot,” or “sour,” or “conceited.” These are about the most poisonous diseases he can take into his system. As a rule, when a preacher tells you that he wants something “hot,” the poor fellow has been warming by some other fellow’s fire for at least ten years. Because he is sour, he thinks he is hot, and when he tells you he wants something hot and at the same time something radical, usually he has been rabid for years, and he thinks he is radical. He is under a delusion, for sour and rabid do not mean radical and hot.

What a difference! A man is better off spiritually if he is cold in his heart and sweet in his life, than he is if he is hot in his heart and sour in his life. If he is cold, it takes very little grace to warm him up, but if he is hot and sour, it will take a cyclone of grace to keep him out of the scrap pile. One of the most beautiful things about our Nazarene boys up and down the land is that they are so busy following the Lamb, that they have no time to ride the goat. While they are not lodge fighters, thank the Lord, they are not goat riders!

Years and years ago I got my eyes opened. No preacher shall ever ride a goat with my saddle. The preacher who rides the goat will have to ride bareback as far as I am concerned. When a preacher is too big to be little, then he is too little to be big, and his next station is the scrap pile. My, my, but the junk that I have seen up and down these United States in the past fifty years. What a pity! When a preacher has wisdom enough to be wise and humility enough to be humble and grace enough to be a saint, that will make him a hero, and, if need be, a martyr, too.

When a preacher or a professor robs himself of a divine Creator and thus robs himself of a divine creation, making himself only an evolved animal, he is almost as intelligent as the gentleman who went to town to go into the dairy business and the only live stock he had was a team of mules. You will see at a glance that this herd of animals has never registered very high with any of the creamery associations of this country, from the fact that a mule is not built in the order to produce cream.

A worldly preacher preaches on evolution on Sunday and his worldly members go to the dog show on Monday. The members are trying to keep up with their pastor, and they are showing him that they believe that blood runs thicker than water.

I was in a city a few years ago, where a famous preacher outlined his Sunday night sermons for six weeks in advance, and placed the subjects on the church bulletin board at the door, so the passers-by might see what they had to enjoy in the future.

Here were the subjects as they appeared:

- The Great Benefits to Be Derived from the Carnegie Library.
- Will the Future Woman Marry?
- Hoofs and Horns.
- Five Cents Worth of Beef Liver.
- Love, Courtship and Marriage.
- One Feather from the Tail of the Dog that Flew at the Tramp.

At the end of the year I found that the above church was so dead that the famous preacher preached the funeral from the subject, “We Were so Well-born Once that We Don’t Need to Be Born Again.” And then the preacher went to his next appointment. It took a faithful pastor two years to resurrect that church and to keep it from going to the scrap pile

Robinson, Reuben A. (Bud). The Collected Works of 'Uncle Bud' Robinson (Kindle Locations 4570-4617). Jawbone Digital. Kindle Edition.

The Dignity to Give and Receive

7/28/2018

"Nobody is so poor that he/she has nothing to give, and nobody is so rich that he/she has nothing to receive." These words by Pope John-Paul II, offer a powerful direction for all who want to work for peace. No peace is thinkable as long as the world remains divided into two groups: those who give and those who receive. Real human dignity is found in giving as well as receiving. This is true not only for individuals but for nations, cultures, and religious communities as well.

A true vision of peace sees a continuous mutuality between giving and receiving. Let's never give anything without asking ourselves what we are receiving from those to whom we give, and let's never receive anything without asking what we have to give to those from whom we receive.

"As surely as the Lord lives," she replied, "I don't have any bread --- only a handful of flour in a jar and a little oil in a jug. I am gathering a few sticks to take home and make a meal for myself and my son, that we may eat it --- and die." Elijah said to her, "Don't be afraid. Go home and do as you have said. But first make a small cake of bread for me from what you have and bring it to me, and then make something for yourself and your son. For this is what the Lord, the God of Israel, says: 'The jar of flour will not be used up and the jug of oil will not run dry until the day the Lord gives rain on the land.' " So she went away and did as Elijah had told her. So there was food every day for Elijah and for the woman and her family. For the jar of flour was not used up and the jug of oil did not run dry, in keeping with the word of the Lord spoken by Elijah. - I Kings 17: 12 - 15 (NIV)

This post was written by Henri Nouwen.
You can find his site here: henrinouwen.org

More Than

7/27/2018

“No, in all things we are more than conquerors through Him who loved us” (Romans 8:37, NIV).

We live in a world that consistently feeds us “less than” messages: if you don’t vote this way you are “less than,” if you don’t wear these clothes or drive this car you are “less than,” and if you don’t go to this church you are “less than.” People that seek to make us feel “less than”—like we don’t measure up to their ideals of acceptability—are often either trying to sell us something or are trying to make themselves feel better.

We can take heart that, in a world so bent on making us feel “less than,” we have a Savior who seeks to make us “more than”: more than conquerors, more than what we could ever imagine!

Jesus changes the definitions of things like success, acceptability, and holiness. His measurements are not like the world’s measurements. His goals are not to shame us or belittle us; His goals are to (in Jesus’ own words) lead us into “life . . . more abundantly” (John 10:10, KJV).

Dark times will come, as will times of difficulty, loss, and grief. These are part of the human story. However, the difference we have is that we can bear witness to the ultimate faithfulness of the Living God who, through Christ, has spoken the last word: a word of redemption, hope, and life.

Today, may we find ways to remind ourselves and others that we are “more than conquerors through Him who loved us” (Romans 8:37, NIV). This may not always be evident in material gain or easy experiences, but it will come through the peace that passes all understanding that is the inheritance to all who are in Christ.

Prayer:
Look with pity, O heavenly Father, upon the people in this
land who live with injustice, terror, disease, and death as
their constant companions. Have mercy upon us. Help us to
eliminate our cruelty to these our neighbors. Strengthen those
who spend their lives establishing equal protection of the law
and equal opportunities for all. And grant that every one of
us may enjoy a fair portion of the riches of this land; through
Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen. (from The Book of Common Prayer)

This post was written by Charles W. Christian the managing editor of Holiness Today. You can find the original post here: holinesstoday.org/more-than

New or Different?

7/26/2018

6 Then the spirit of the LORD will possess you, and you will be in a prophetic frenzy along with them and be turned into a different person. 7 Now when these signs meet you, do whatever you see fit to do, for God is with you. 8 And you shall go down to Gilgal ahead of me; then I will come down to you to present burnt offerings and offer sacrifices of well-being. Seven days you shall wait, until I come to you and show you what you shall do.” I Sam 10:6-8

Observation:

Something unusual, or even strange seemed to have happened to Saul after he was anointed. He was sent off by Samuel to meet up with a group of prophets. They were actually a band of men who worshipped God, but also studied law and were a voice for civic responsibility among the people. They had just spent time in worship of God and were filled with the Spirit. As Saul joined in, he too became overcome.

This incident is a bit of a foreshadowing of the appearance of Christ and the promise of the Holy Spirit. At the same time, we begin to see the difference. This is temporary and, we know that Saul does not remain engaged with the Spirit. We do, however, see what the presence of the Spirit promises. The Spirit-filled person of God is led by the Spirit, even in the ordinary tasks of the day. The inspiration for action comes from the presence of the Spirit.

The major difference that we see here is that Saul was to become a different man, and this language is not the same as that of the New Testament. In the New Testament the presence of the Holy Spirit points to newness of life. Rebirth through the Spirit as one of God’s children makes all things new. Saul experienced the Spirit and became different, but only for a short period of time.

Application:

Holiness results in newness.

Playing around with the Spirit of God results in differentness.

Going to church, standing up and singing songs and praising the Lord, but going out the door without a transformational encounter with the Holy Spirit may simply result in differentness. The prophets were in a frenzy because they’d been singing songs and having a great time in worship of God, but none of them, including Saul, had experienced newness. There’s a huge difference between outward frenzy and ecstatic praise, and transformation into the image and likeness of Christ.

True holiness is the result of a life-changing encounter with God through the Holy Spirit. It’s not temporary and it shouldn’t wear off. Instead, this holiness continually draws us into a deeper relationship with our Lord, ever transforming us into his image. We become more like Christ in our actions and reactions.

We are constantly called into a deeper walk with Jesus Christ. Hit and miss experiences with the Spirit in a worship service will not result in the fruit of the Spirit in our lives. Instead of frenzy, what we need is quiet listening and waiting upon the Lord. Time must be spent in study of the word and soaking before the Lord in prayer. Then the Spirit comes upon us as a still small voice, leading, guiding, and forming us to become more like Jesus.

Prayer:

Lord, I don’t want to be different, I want to live in newness. Amen.

This post was written by Rev Carla Sandburg. You can find her original post here: reflectingtheimage.blogspot.com/2018/06/different-or-new.html

Nine Reasons Why People Aren't Singing in Church

7/25/2018

Worship leaders around the world are sadly changing their church’s worship (often unintentionally) into a spectator event, and people are not singing any more.

Before discussing our present situation, let’s look back into history. Prior to the Reformation, worship was largely done for the people. The music was performed by professional musicians and sung in an unfamiliar language (Latin). The Reformation gave worship back to the people, including congregational singing which employed simple, attainable tunes with solid, scriptural lyrics in the language of the people. Worship once again became participatory.

The evolution of the printed hymnal brought with it an explosion of congregational singing and the church’s love for singing increased.

With the advent of new video technologies, churches began to project the lyrics of their songs on a screen, and the number of songs at a churches disposal increased exponentially.

At first, this advance in technology led to more robust congregational singing, but soon, a shift in worship leadership began to move the congregation back to pre-Reformation pew potatoes (spectators).

What has occurred could be summed up as the re-professionalization of church music and the loss of a key goal of worship leading – enabling the people to sing their praises to God. Simply put, we are breeding a culture of spectators in our churches, changing what should be a participative worship environment to a concert event. Worship is moving to its pre-Reformation mess.

I see nine reasons congregations aren’t singing anymore:

They don’t know the songs. With the release of new songs weekly and the increased birthing of locally-written songs, worship leaders are providing a steady diet of the latest, greatest worship songs. Indeed, we should be singing new songs, but too high a rate of new song inclusion in worship can kill our participation rate and turn the congregation into spectators. I see this all the time. I advocate doing no more than one new song in a worship service, and then repeating the song on and off for several weeks until it becomes known by the congregation. People worship best with songs they know, so we need to teach and reinforce the new expressions of worship. (more)
We are singing songs not suitable for congregational singing. There are lots of great, new worship songs today, but in the vast pool of new songs, many are not suitable for congregational singing by virtue of their rhythms (too difficult for the average singer) or too wide of a range (consider the average singer—not the vocal superstar on stage).
We are singing in keys too high for the average singer. The people we are leading in worship generally have a limited range and do not have a high range. When we pitch songs in keys that are too high, the congregation will stop singing, tire out, and eventually quit, becoming spectators. Remember that our responsibility is to enable the congregation to sing their praises, not to showcase our great platform voices by pitching songs in our power ranges. The basic range of the average singer is an octave and a fourth from A to D (more).
The congregation can’t hear people around them singing. If our music is too loud for people to hear each other singing, it is too loud. Conversely, if the music is too quiet, generally, the congregation will fail to sing out with power. Find the right balance—strong, but not over-bearing.
We have created worship services which are spectator events, building a performance environment. I am a strong advocate of setting a great environment for worship including lighting, visuals, inclusion of the arts, and much more. However when our environments take things to a level that calls undue attention to those on stage or distracts from our worship of God, we have gone too far. Excellence – yes. Highly professional performance – no.
The congregation feels they are not expected to sing. As worship leaders, we often get so involved in our professional production of worship that we fail to be authentic, invite the congregation into the journey of worship, and then do all we can to facilitate that experience in singing familiar songs, new songs introduced properly, and all sung in the proper congregational range.
We fail to have a common body of hymnody. With the availability of so many new songs, we often become disjointed in our worship planning, pulling songs from so many sources without reinforcing the songs and helping the congregation to take them on as a regular expression of their worship. In the old days, the hymnal was that repository. Today, we need to create song lists to use in planning our times of worship. (more)
Worship leaders ad lib too much. Keep the melody clear and strong. The congregation is made up of sheep with limited ranges and limited musical ability. When we stray from the melody to ad lib, the sheep try to follow us and end up frustrated and quit singing. Some ad lib is nice and can enhance worship, but don’t let it lead your sheep astray.
Worship leaders are not connecting with the congregation. We often get caught up in our world of amazing music production and lose sight of our purpose of helping the congregation to voice their worship. Let them know you expect them to sing. Quote the Bible to promote their expressions of worship. Stay alert to how well the congregation is tracking with you and alter course as needed.

Once worship leaders regain the vision of enabling the congregation to be participants in the journey of corporate worship, I believe we can return worship to the people once again.

This post was written by Kenny Lamm. For the original post, go to: http://blog.ncbaptist.org/renewingworship/2014/06/11/nine-reasons-people-arent-singing-in-worship/

How Individualism is Killing Worship

7/24/2018

So you’re sitting in church, happy for the break. You’ve just stood for 20 minutes straight while the praise band played, “I could sing of your love forever.” It felt like forever, you think to yourself.

But thankfully, the church needs money. So the worship leader prays for the offering, and finally says those blessed words, “You may be seated.”

Out come the offering plates. And the musicians begin to play an offertory song.

You know what happens next.

Before the band gets to the first chorus, he stands up.

You know the guy. He sits about three rows back from the stage. The moment the music starts to play he’s out of his seat, hands waving in the air, head swept back, swaying to the music in rapturous praise. I call him “Mr. First-On-His-Feet.”

Of course, once Mr. FOHF leaps to his feet, we all feel obligated to stand with him. He’s the reason we no longer sing while seated. Mr. FOHF is our role model — that enthusiastic worshipper we’re all supposed to be.

Slowly the rest of the congregation rises “as they feel led,” emerging like popcorn kernels in a skillet, a few at first, but eventually reaching critical mass. By the end of the song about three-quarters of the assembled worshippers are standing, while the rest remain seated. About a quarter are singing – the rest are merely spectating. About 10% are on their smartphones.

We’ve gathered together – to do our own thing.

Church wasn’t always like this.

In the church of my youth we did everything together. We sang together. Read in unison together. Sat and stood together. Took communion together.

We were given a little flyer when we walked in – an “order of worship” that told us exactly what would happen, and in what order. We did as we were told.

No one dared to break from the group and do their own thing.

But in the late 20th century a new focus on personal expression began to take hold in the church.

It started with the Asuza Street Revival in 1906. Pentecostalism encouraged individuals to express themselves within the confines of corporate worship. Ecstatic, individual expressions became the hallmark of Spirit-led worship.

Thus a new idea bloomed – that God touches us individually in worship, and we are free to respond as the Spirit leads.

Today’s hippest churches no longer distribute a order of worship. Although their services are timed down to the minute, the congregation is unaware that there’s even a plan. The worship service seems to start organically. The feeling is informal. The pastor and singers no longer tell us what to do – they simply bring the body of Christ together to respond to Him as individuals.

Now, how has this new understanding of worship affected men? There are a number of positives:

Worship is often a bit less predictable than it used to be.
Services feel less “stuffy” and “religious.” They appear to be less human-driven and more God-driven (although in many cases this is largely an illusion).
Empty ritual and meaningless traditions have been replaced with heartfelt and relevant expressions of faith.
Worship originates more from the crowd than it does from the stage.

But every positive change has unexpected consequences. And as the focus has shifted to individual expression in worship, I fear we may have lost as much or more than we’ve gained:

If church is dozens of people all doing their own thing, how are we modeling teamwork? Pastors will tell you it’s getting harder and harder to find volunteers. As churchgoers experience God individually they may be less likely to serve him corporately.
Modern services are less militant and more intimate. The old worship placed us in a platoon, marching in unison into battle. God is no longer a General in front of us; he’s a friend sitting beside us.
The more we individualize the worship experience, the more people will individualize their theology. Today’s believers know the Bible – but feel free to ignore its teachings. Could our meet-God-individually culture be contributing to this rebelliousness?
Very expressive worshippers can distract us from God. They sometimes call attention to themselves, short-circuiting the transcendent aspects of worship.
And here’s the big one: Individualism may eventually kill corporate worship altogether. If the focus of worship is “God and me” then why go to church at all?

I’m not saying that Mr. First-On-His-Feet is killing Christianity. But my heart slumps every time I see him rise. I used to think this was due to laziness on my part (or sore feet).

But now I realize that I’m longing for the church of my youth, and the sense of teamwork and unity it once fostered.

I’m in charge of my life 167 hours a week, but in church I want to be under authority. I want the pleasure that comes from giving up my willfulness and submitting to God through the leaders he has chosen. For one hour a week I don’t want to make the decisions – I want to be told what to do. I want to be a part of a larger whole, all moving in unison toward the single goal of glorifying God with our minds, bodies and spirits.

I’m not advocating a cold, rote worship in which we’re all automatons, blindly standing and sitting as directed. As with everything in life, balance is the key. How do we model unity while still giving individuals the freedom to worship as they feel led? My generation has thrown off the shackles of old time religion, but at what cost?

Personal autonomy is the god of our age. We’re pro-choice, pro-rights, do-your-own thing people. We are in charge and we make our own decisions. How sad that this mentality is now infiltrating our houses of worship.

This post was written by David Morrow. For the original post, go to: http://churchformen.com/church-culture/is-individualism-killing-worship/#sthash.2J7gpPsH.dpuf

Worship Problems

7/23/2018

Allow me to begin by saying that I am a musician. I have played music since I was 13 years old. I have played around the world in Christian bands and worship services for over 30 years. I was part of one of the first Christian rock bands in the 70’s. I know what it means to play in church services, both traditional and contemporary. I have written and produced music for radio and television for almost 20 years. I was even the producer of a recording used in the sound track of the hit movie The Bucket List.

So let it be clear: I am not against music or musicians when it comes to the Christian experience. Quite the contrary; music can be a powerful part of the worship experience. But, I believe we have some big problems when it comes to music in many churches today.

PROBLEM #1: We have defined singing as worship.

Look up the word worship and you will find definitions like this:

            to show devotion or reverence; adore or venerate; to have intense love or admiration for; to offer prayers; etc…

Interesting that there is no mention of music. Oh, don’t get me wrong. One can surely use music to adore or show reverence, but one does not need music to do that. In other words: Singing is not, in and of itself, worship.

Many churches today have wonderful music, great bands, singers, lights and effects, video screens and the like. Many consider THAT to be worship. Well, it may be a part of worship, but one does not need a Christian version of American Idol on a stage to engage in worship. I’ll go even further: Just because one engages in a Christian version of a rock-star stage show, clapping and waving, it does not mean they are worshiping. Lots of fans of rock, blues, punk, rap, etc., listen to their favorite bands, sing along, wave, jump and scream, but are not “worshiping”; they are just having a good time. (I dare say there is little difference, sadly, between many church “worship” services and a standard rock or country concert.)

Not only have many churches re-defined worship to be a full band on stage with lights and effects, they assume that only such an expression is true worship. Remove the band and singers from many of these church services and people would scream bloody murder that the church is no longer worshiping. Sadly, remove the prayer, offering, sermon or communion and only have singing, people would shout to high heaven about what a great worship service it was! Schedule an evening of just singing and we call it a “Worship Night”. Many have defined singing as “worship”, when it should only be considered a part of the overall worship experience.

Has anyone ever noticed that no place in the Gospels does it ever record that Jesus and his disciples rocked back and forth, raised their hands and sang at the top of their lungs for 30, 40, 60 minutes or more? In fact, there is only one record of them singing at all. They sang ONE hymn and moved on. I think that lots of Christians today would not have liked going to a church where Jesus and his disciples gathered. They would have bitterly complained saying, “They do not worship!” Really??

And while the New Testament does refer to psalms, hymns and spiritual songs as part of the worship expression and we read in Acts how Paul and Silas sang out at midnight from their prison cells, does anybody really believe they “worshiped” like we do today—band playing, pretty girls jumping around, lights flashing as bass and drums rocked the house? Seriously??

Look, I’m not against modern expressions of praise. Just don’t make it the definition of worship. Historically, churches referred to the musical part of the service as “singing hymns” or “song services”. They did not, however, define “worship” solely as singing. That is a relatively new phenomenon.

Problem #2: We have elevated the status of the “Worship Leader”.

Not only have churches re-defined singing as “worship”, many have raised the participants of music to a level equal to the level of the elders of the church or the pastorate. Our worship leaders have become the de facto “priests of worship” in our gatherings. And while I appreciate a great singer or musician, there is no mention in the New Testament of “worship leader” along with the five-fold ministry gifts that God gave the church.

Worship “leaders”, singers and musicians are told that they are something special, anointed servants, true vessels of the presence of God, leading others before the throne of God, and as the high priests of worship, must conduct themselves in just the right way so that God can “move” through the congregation. But this is utter nonsense. They have created an Old Testament model akin to the priests of the temple or of Moses raising his hands to bring victory (remember, if Moses’ hands fell down, the army was defeated) or a model of Sampson who, if his hair was not just right, could not experience the power of God.

The truth is, however, that people can worship God, I don’t care WHO the worship “leader” is or how spiritual or unspiritual the band is. My ability to adore Jesus has little to no connection to how “holy” or “un-holy” the musicians are. We don’t live in the Old Testament where the “vessel” was everything—the connecting point for people to experience God. We live in the NEW Testament where every believer has direct access to God and does not need a “priest of worship” to make that possible.

And the stories I could tell of the so-called “powerful”, “anointed”, “spirit lead” worship leaders who wowed and amazed thousands, only to discover later that these “priests of worship” were: fornicating (gay or heterosexual versions – let’s “include” everyone), committing adultery, faking cancer, gambling, getting divorced, or hooked on porn—the WHOLE time they were wowing the masses! How is that possible? Because God connects with his people and his people connect with him, no matter who the so-called worship “leader” is. But upon seeing this empirical evidence, do the spiritual leaders of these churches come to the logical conclusion that there is nothing uniquely holy about singers, musicians and worship “leaders”? Sadly, no.

In my church, musicians are on the stage for one reason: They can sing or they can play—period. They are not pastors, apostles, prophets, evangelists or teachers—they are musicians. They hold no special status like that of an elder or deacon. Quite frankly, their spiritual status is of little matter and in some cases, not required at all. We don’t put the musicians on our platform through a spiritual filter anymore than we would ask that of the construction workers who built the building.    We do not hire a construction worker based on the condition of his heart, but on the status of his skill. So it is with our musicians.

Now granted, if you get some highly skilled singer off the street to lead your song service, it may be rather awkward since he/she would not know the culture, the songs, the temperament of the church, or even how to begin to honor God in a church service. It is always ideal and preferable to have a committed believer lead the music; one who understands who God is and what it is we are trying to do. But at the end of the day they are up there for one overwhelming reason: They have musical skill.

Of course an argument can be made that a church doesn’t want people on the platform who do not reflect the values of their church. I think that is fair and is certainly within the prerogative of the leadership of that church. I suppose I would not want someone who is coming in, after snorting cocaine, leading the congregation in a rather spirited version of “Amazing Grace”. But that still does not change the fact that the spiritual or “heart” status of the musician has anything to do with how people worship God. Again, our singers and musicians are up there because they can sing or play—period, not because they have some unique Old Testament version of an “anointing”.

I remember being back stage at a big Christian music event before our band went on. The lead singer of the next band, some 20-something-year-old chick, was back stage whining, complaining and being quite ugly. But as soon as she stepped on to the stage…WOW!! She was amazing! I’ll never forget it. Was she experiencing some version of a spiritual anointing? No. She was just really talented and knew how to sell a song. She was highly skilled.

Speaking of skill… A lot of musicians and singers would find their ministries to be far more effective if they worked more on their musical skills rather than their “anointing” or state of heart. Choirs would be more effective if they spent more time rehearsing and less time in their own mini “Singers Bible Study”. Not that state of heart or Bible study is not important, because itis important—for every believer, whether they sing on stage or change diapers in the nursery. Always strive for a pure heart, but good grief, if you’re going to play or sing on the platform: Work on your skills!!

I tell you that if Celine Dion showed up at any Evangelical church this Sunday and sang “Amazing Grace”, the place would glow with wonder and amazement and people would worship and touch God—and I’m not sure she is even a professing Christian. Her TALENT would lift people’s hearts and minds. True worship would happen because God’s people would connect with God—it has never been, nor will it ever be, about the spiritual status of the singer or the players.

And consider this: Many (if not most) of the musicians you hear on Christian recordings are not believers in Jesus at all. Some of them, frankly, are quite accomplished heathens and pagans (I know—I’ve met them). You think when you hear that big string section on your favorite worship CD that they are all committed followers of Christ? Hardly. Yet you worship and praise God when you hear these recordings. Why? Because its not about the musicians—it’s about you and God.

I also do not refer to what our singers and musicians do as “worship”. It is not. It is a part of the worship experience, but it is not, in and of itself, worship. It is we, who gather in Christ’s name, who worship—as we pray, as we hear God’s word, as we give, as we take communion, as we serve and as we sing.

Problem #3: Singing has become the new “penance”.

I am stunned at how many people consider themselves committed Christians primarily because they come to church and sing.

They don’t give any money.

They don’t serve in any meaningful way.

They don’t pray.

They don’t study the Bible. (Anyone noticed the rise of Biblical illiteracy among professing Christians today?)

They divorce their spouses for unbiblical reasons.

They are up to their eyeballs in sexual sin.

Yet they consider themselves committed Christians. Why? Because they sing in church. The emotional vetting they experience during singing has taken the place of sorrow, confession, repentance and restitution. I can’t help but think of the words of Jesus when he said, “Not everyone who says [or I’m sure: sings] Lord, Lord, will get into the kingdom of heaven”.

Problem #4: It turns away men.

We have a “man” problem in the church today. Christianity has become the only major religion that appeals more to women then to men.

Islam doesn’t have that problem.

Judaism doesn’t have that problem.

Buddhism doesn’t have that problem.

Even the most extreme versions of Islam have men lining up at the door—and they have to blow themselves to bits! We have a hard time getting a guy to sit down for an hour! Why? The great emphasis on “emotive expression”, particularly in singing, turns men off.  And where in the New Testament do we see men singing for extended periods of time anyway?? Sorry, it’s not there.

This is a generality, but it is generally true: Men don’t like to sing. Get over it. Oh, they would happily belt out several rounds of “99 Bottles of Beer on the Wall” with a bunch of other guys, but join in emotive, soul revealing ballads? Sorry. Oh, they would happily do what Jesus and his disciples did—sing ONE hymn and move on. But that is not what we ask of them today. We ask that they stand and sway and sing at the top of their voices like pre-pubescent girls at a Justin Bieber concert.

Have you noticed that a lot of guys come to church late intentionally?  They want to limit their exposure to the thirty-minute (plus) songfest. Add the fact that the keys of the songs seem to be getting higher and higher, as though written for an Ethiopian eunuch, and you can begin to see why so many men just stand and stare during the song portion of the church service or attempt to avoid it altogether.

One of the reasons our church inGreen Bay, Wisconsin, can get 1,000 men to show up for a men’s conference (something churches many times our size don’t seem to be able to do) is because we clearly advertise: No hand holding. No crying. No SINGING.

“You don’t worship!?!”

Oh, we worship at our men’s conferences—we just don’t sing. Remember, singing is only a form of worship. It is not, in and of itself, worship. If we would begin to limit the “emotive” requirements imposed by so many churches, we would start to have greater success reaching men for the kingdom of God.

Conclusion

Moses lifted up a serpent in the wilderness. If anyone was bitten by a snake, they only had to look to the serpent of bronze that Moses lifted up and they would be healed. Cool miracle, right? You would think the people would have celebrated the miracle and worship God, wouldn’t you? But no, they took the serpent of bronze and started to worship it as a god instead.

Throughout the centuries, people of faith have been tempted to get their eyes off of God and focus on things that don’t really matter—like worshiping a bronze snake.

I fear we have made too much of the music part of our expression. Musicians are not spiritual just because they can sing or play. Singing can not take the place of true repentance and commitment to God, and men do not have to act like excited “Bieber fans” in order to worship God.

I love music. I always have and I always will. Singing is great. It is Biblical. It has its place. Just don’t make it into something that it is not.

This post was written by Mark Gungor who is the lead Pastor of Celebration Church, a multi-site church with 5 campuses, based in Green Bay, WI. He is also the author of the best-selling “Laugh Your Way to a Better Marriage”.

For the original post, go to: http://www.laughyourway.com/blog/attention-all-worship-leaders-musicians-and-singers/

Uncle Buddy: The Living Law of Moses

7/22/2018

Moses, the Hebrew baby boy, born in a mud hut in Egypt, was the son of a little mother who, at the time of Moses’ birth, was a slave. The devil saw in that baby something which so enraged him that he took possession of Pharaoh, causing him to lay a plot whereby the baby would be drowned. But God was not pleased with Pharaoh’s plan, so He got busy and laid a plan Himself. God made Pharaoh take that baby boy, Moses, and feed, clothe and educate him. He made him teach that boy all of the wisdom of the Egyptians.

After forty years of schooling, God sent Moses to the backside of the mountains and deserts to herd four-legged sheep for his father-in-law. After forty years herding the sheep of his wife’s father, Moses met God at a burning bush. After that day and until his death, Moses herded two-legged sheep for his heavenly Father. After spending forty years in the sheep herding business, Moses was sent by God back to old Pharaoh’s country. Here God had another plan all made. He had Moses drown that old king. Then God had Moses write the laws, not only for the Egyptians, but, if you please, sir, a collection of laws that was to be the foundation of all the laws ever to be written by mortal man in any age of the world.

The laws of Moses are for every nation and kindred and tongue and people, and the best proof on earth that the laws of Moses were inspired is the fact that every atheist and agnostic and skeptic and infidel who has ever lived since the laws of Moses were written has hated them with a perfect hatred. They all have said, “Down with the laws of Moses and up with our laws.” But I am glad to say that their laws died in the same generation in which they themselves lived. Yet, after thirty-five hundred years of hard and bitter attacks on Moses’ laws, the laws are still God’s standard by which a lost world is governed. When Jesus came on the scene and met the devil in the three greatest battles ever fought, He knocked the devil out three times with the laws of Moses.

Some years back, right in the nation where I have been preaching the gospel of Christ for sixty-one years, a great American infidel arose and came to the front challenging the laws of Moses. For twenty-five years this brilliant gentleman went up and down the country like a roaring lion, seeking whom he might devour. From the people he collected five hundred dollars a night so he could show them the mistakes and blunders of Moses. That was after Moses had been in heaven for thirty-five hundred years. And, thank the Lord for this one fact, that after that infidel gentleman had been dead for only twenty-five years, no man could go up and down the nation and collect off of the people even fifteen cents a night to lecture about the mistakes he made. This shows the greatness of Moses.

You can’t really make a comparison between Moses and the infidel gentleman. They simply won’t compare. It is like comparing the Atlantic Ocean to the little pond in your barnyard. In your pond are raised mosquitoes, while in the Atlantic Ocean whales are raised. No comparison there, men. You just have to smile and give in. The laws of Moses are as unmovable as the Rocky Mountains — they have come to stay. The laws of the skeptic are like molehills that can be moved any day in the week or can be plowed under and never heard tell of again. Thank God for something that abides!

St. Paul, referring to Moses and the prophets, said, “All scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness, that the man of God may be perfect, throughly furnished unto all good works.” For all this we say, “Amen,” and “Glory to Jesus,” for we have something to stand on which the unbelievers can’t shake.

If every American citizen were to live according to the laws of Moses, we would have empty jails and the banks would be as safe open as they now are when they are locked and bolted and guarded. Here in our country, one-half of the people are making iron safes to keep their money in, while the other half are sitting up at night to see how to blow them open. It is man against man and gun against gun. The jails are full, and it makes no difference how heinous a crime a man commits, there is always a lawyer who will defend him and plead for him as though he were pleading for the life of the best citizen in the nation. And nine times out of ten the laws that we have made in our countries are defeated and fail to accomplish the good for which they were intended. Help us, Lord!

Robinson, Reuben A. (Bud). The Collected Works of 'Uncle Bud' Robinson (Kindle Locations 4537-4569). Jawbone Digital. Kindle Edition.