"Thanks for leading us into God’s presence”, is a comment I’ve received throughout the years as a worship leader. It sounds good at first, and resonates with certain experiences we have during corporate worship. Upon closer reflection however, the description of corporate worship as “entering into God’s presence", or "his throne room” makes too much... Continue Reading →
Part 1 HEREPart 2 HERE Is There Anything Good in Fear? We are interesting creatures. The habits we often cultivate in our lives drive us nuts and lead to burnout, yet somehow they're also comfortable because they're familiar. We don't know of any other way to act or live unless we are shown another way.... Continue Reading →
All the American rhythms of life we're used to are now drastically different or gone altogether for the time being. The sports cycle, the news cycle, the shopping cycle, not least the daily 9-5 cycle. All of these rhythms are habit forming, and thus soul-forming rituals (read about how habits shape identity here). Our calendars... Continue Reading →
To buy the book click here For a post related to this topic click here Chapter 1 Chapter 1 Summary: What we do is not only (or even mostly) fueled by what we know, but by what we love and desire. Whatever we love we worship. What we worship is evidenced by how we habitually... Continue Reading →
Matthew Westerholm helpfully condenses some of John Calvin's thoughts on singing and prayer. You can read it here... First, singing our prayers helps us unite our gathered church. Second, singing our prayers helps focus our wandering thoughts. Third, singing helps inflame our withering affections. Fourth, singing our prayers helps us engage our entire bodies.
Five years ago, our son Silas was born on Christmas Eve. A few days after we went home, we thought he had a temperature and maybe an infection, which could be serious in a newborn, so we went to the children's hospital. The ER doc thought he was ok, but just dehydrated. However, the hospital... Continue Reading →
Why do this? By posting the liturgy of the week I hope to help our congregation understand why we do what we do. I shared this information with the worship leaders each week for a while, but I realized that this is not secret information! My prayer is that it aids in the making and... Continue Reading →
[A liturgy is simply an order of service that tells a story that forms and shapes us as we interact with it. CLICK HERE for an explanation on why we use the word "liturgy", why we do more than just sing, and how this is a corporate discipline that shapes us] CLICK HERE for the... Continue Reading →
Do we need things to help us worship? We may not say that we do, but do we act like it? In our hearts, do we believe we need certain things like specific instrumentation, arranging, or styles to aid us in worship? Here’s the biblical reality: everyone in our congregation and on our worship teams... Continue Reading →
No, this is not a 30 day miracle meal plan that is guaranteed to drop you 50 pounds or your money back. We do, however, need to be aware of the diet that our souls experience through musical worship. It’s easy to see how a steady diet of accurately and powerfully applied preaching can nourish... Continue Reading →
For Part 1 click HERE. So, if God's holiness necessitates his closeness to us instead of his distance, what does that mean for us? If God's commitment to his own glory drives him to purify ungodly sinners, how does that affect our response to him? Here are a few thoughts... We come boldly to the throne of... Continue Reading →
Much has been made of the seraphim’s cry in Isaiah 6 of “Holy, Holy, Holy” is the LORD of Hosts, his glory fills the whole earth”. This is the only time in the Old Testament where a attribute of God is uttered three times over. Repetition is a Hebrew way of over-emphasizing or making something... Continue Reading →
Paul Tripp explains the dangers of idolatry in a talk at a worship conference a few years ago, and I found it quite compelling. You can listen to the whole thing here. He starts out with this phrase..."The danger of idolatry is never more present than in moments of supposed worship." Dang. Let that sink in... Continue Reading →
0:00-26:36 Biblical references for the Spirit's work 26:36-34:10 Characteristics of Spirit-Led worship 34:10-49:31 Reflection on our ministry 49:31-1:09:00 Discussion questions followed by funny video. (sorry I screwed up the power point slide for this section!) Here is the link to the slides I used. This past week we discussed the role of the Holy Spirit in... Continue Reading →
Here's the link to the pdf handout Here's the link to the video. This past Saturday the worship teams of HBC, GPBC, and Grace Bible Church of Pompton Plains had a great time discussing the nature of worship, the pitfalls of idolatry, and how to apply what we learned practically on stage. We broke down the following... Continue Reading →
Here is a condensed outline of elements for planning a service I gleaned from Bob Kauflin's workshop on service planning. I try to keep these in mind no matter what the order or theme is for any given Sunday. I don't necessarily think each of these elements needs to have it's own specific place (like... Continue Reading →
I have the privilege of leading in corporate worship almost every week, and I know how easy it is to forget what we're there for and what we're supposed to be pointing to. We can get lost in the shuffle of arrangements, keys, transitions, and intros that we forget that these are all means to... Continue Reading →
Why Benedictions? What exactly is a benediction? A benediction is a short, concise blessing from scripture that can be a challenge, an assurance, a promise, or principle to live by. It can also pronounce protection, comfort, abundance, or some other word of assurance. It represents a joyful call to unity, faith, patience in trial, and faithful practice for the church based on... Continue Reading →
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Exploring a life of worship in light of the resurrection
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Exploring a life of worship in light of the resurrection
Exploring a life of worship in light of the resurrection
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