another rant on worship

Eight and half years ago my friend Stephen died in a car crash. At his memorial service my friend John Mark played a song that has, in the years since, become a bit of a phenomenon in the worship scene. It's gone pretty far afield, spread by Jesus Culture and David Crowder.

Most people have never heard the final verse of the song which goes like this:

"I thought about you the day Stephen died

and you met me between my breaking.

I know that I still love you God

Despite the agony.

People they want to tell me you're cruel

But if Stephen could sing he'd say it's not true

Cause you're good."

I've never thought of this song as a worship song, despite singing it in countless worship services in various places around the world. Until last night.

Last night I was at a 24-7 Ireland gathering here in Belfast and the first song sung was "How He Loves." I was thinking about that final verse as we were singing and suddenly it hit me. What was it the people of Israel sang when they dedicated the Temple and the glory of the Lord filled it so that the priests couldn't even stand to minister?

"He is good and his steadfast love endures forever."

I think there are very few, if any, things which touch the Lord's heart more than holding onto the fact that he is good and that he loves us when all the circumstances around seem to say the opposite. That is real and true worship.

lenten season

This year for Lent I am making a commitment. Instead of my normal daily routine of praying while I shower and reading my Bible while I eat breakfast I am going to increase the intentionality of how I spend time with the Lord and how I start my day. I'm going to begin each day with half an hour of prayer, worship, and reflection. I like this idea a lot. It involves a certain amount of sacrifice; sleep is something I love and crave and loosing even half an hour of it in the morning is a sacrifice for me. It also involves adding something to my life instead of merely taking something away. My hope is that this forms a habit which will continue after Easter. And it is realistic and doable, leaving no excuses.

As a part of this I will be using 24-7 Prayer's Prayer Spaces for Lent video podcast and readings. I find that a bit of structure when beginning something is always a good thing, as I move forward in this (after Easter) I can give myself increased freedom in what this time looks like.

For now I'm off to make an appropriate playlist. I'm excited about the journey!

PS (a couple hours later) making 30 minute playlists with worship songs proved challenging, it only takes a few to fill the time as most are longer than your average song. In the end I have 10 new playlists falling either under Loudly: Behold, Blaze, Caught, and Rend or Quietly: Beautiful, Closer, Holy, Open, Presence, and Surrender. Should have plenty of options to meet a variety of morning moods!

the second part of a little rant

In my first rant on worship I steered away from comparing the kind of praise and worship I was used to at MorningStar and the kind of worship I have experienced elsewhere. I still want to avoid comparisons of the, “this is better than that” variety. But I do want to talk about something I miss about worshiping at MorningStar.

I miss the waiting. In my (probably limited) experience with “pop worship” I miss the stillness. The lingering. I often feel that there are too many words, too much of one song following right after another. Not enough of being still. Waiting to see/hear what the Lord wants to do or sing or hear.

Why is it that often you would be hard pressed to tell the difference between a worship service and a pop concert? One song follows swiftly on the heels of another with barely a pause. A song is set in a verse, chorus, verse, bridge, chorus pattern with little sensitivity to what the Holy Spirit may be doing in the room, in the hearts of the people. (I realize that I’m coming across a bit harshly right now. I don’t mean to imply that I think most worship leaders are not sensitive to the Spirit. But often things are moving along so swiftly I wonder if we have even given him room to speak.)

When the Psalms resound not only with the cacophony of praise but also with such statements as, “Be still and know that I am God,” “The Lord is in his holy temple, let all the earth keep silent before him,” and “I have calmed and quieted my soul,” why are we so afraid to just be still, silent, and surrendered as a congregation?

When the Temple was dedicated in Jerusalem, and the Ark of the Covenant was placed inside, we are only told of the Priests and Levites singing one song, and a simple one at that: “For he is good, for his steadfast love endures forever.” Why then do we feel we need to compose complicated and catchy tunes for our services?

There have been many times when I’ve just wanted to shout out, “Wait! Don’t move on yet, something is stirring. Give the Lord a chance to speak.” Or when I’ve begun to feel a deep connection only to have to fight to hold onto it as corporately we’re now moving on to the collection song. I don’t want to be harsh and judgmental. I just feel so sad that we’re missing out on something vital.

Let the musicians linger on that chord progression just a bit longer. Perhaps the background singer has a prophetic song that’s going to speak to a place in someone’s heart that needs healing. Maybe the Lord is speaking something to the drummer, showing him a bit of His heartbeat. It could be that a member of the congregation is being given a prophetic dance. Or that the Pastor has a word of healing for the lady who just slipped in the back row. Perhaps there’s a simple song that the Lord wants us to sing to Him together, a song to help us express our love for Him. Maybe, just maybe, the Lord wants to show up and take over the service and completely wreck our hearts for him forever. Maybe, but we’ll never know if we rush on to the next song without pausing for a while.

(Also, I think we could use more waiting on our worship albums. Make it conducive for people to worship in their homes or driving in their cars instead of just entertaining them with our catchy tunes to sing along with. But maybe that’s just me.)

i feel like having a little rant

Rant may not be the exactly right word. I just have these thoughts rolling around that I want to get out. Thoughts about praise and worship.

I think I have a very specific and, in the wider Christian world, unique view on what worship is and what it looks/sounds/feels like. This view is very definitely the influence of years of teaching from Don Potter, Ray Hughes, and Suzy Yaraei and experiencing worship led by them and others at MorningStar where I went to church for nine years.

When I left MS and Charlotte to head to England I knew that experiencing worship in this new place was going to be a lot different to what I was used to. And I want to say from the very beginning that I have experienced the presence of the Lord just as strongly in the back room of a pub with an acoustic guitar and no sound equipment as I have in an auditorium of people and a full band with state of the art equipment.

I just feel like the word worship is used too frequently, in too flippant a manner, and also in a limiting way. If you go back to the Hebrew and dig into the seven Hebrew words for praise you will very quickly see that there are only one or two that refer to singing and only a couple more that refer to music. Most of the words have to do with a physical act of expression. Not to mention the Greek word for worship implies a relationship like that of a slave to master. The act of a dog licking its master's hand.

You've probably heard a lot of this before. We're told in the Psalms to bring the Lord a sacrifice of praise. I just wonder how much of a sacrifice it really is to get dressed in our pretty clothes, go to a meeting with all our friends, and sing songs that make us feel good.

There's also something really powerful about offering the Lord something that is uniquely you. Something that no one else in the world can offer him. Why is it that so many "worship" songs and leaders sound exactly alike? Each of us is created as a unique individual with something to bring to the Lord and to the body of Christ that no one else can bring. I believe, and believe it passionately, that our worship should reflect this.

A few weeks ago I was listening to a worship album that is 10 years old. (This, in fact, is what stirred the thoughts that led to this post.) Ten years ago this album was ground breaking, fresh, revolutionary. And somehow, 10 years later, it still is. I believe that is because the artists wrote songs that spoke directly from their heart. The music is a reflection of their individuality. The passion they have for the Lord and for his church is obvious. (That album is Enter the Worship Circle by 100 Portraits and Waterdeep.)

Worship should be a response, the deepest parts of us call out to the deepest part of God. Singing a song which is a prayer for the Lord to bless us is not worship. I'm not saying there isn't a place for songs like this. Songs that ask the Lord to fill us with his Spirit and courage to go out and minister to the lost and hurting world are very powerful. They are intercessory prayers. But they are not worship. Songs that reaffirm the Lord's love for his church are also very powerful. But again, this is not worship.

Worship is about acknowledging the awesome worthiness of the all powerful God who created the universe and every living thing in it. Worship is about realizing that in comparison man is dust and of no account. The reason that we have any worth at all is because this God, this majestic, beautiful, powerful God loves us and values us. And that is what worship is about. Not about making us feel better about ourselves. Not about calling the church to action. Simply about realizing who God is and giving him his rightful place in our lives.

Now I think praise and worship are two different things. Praise is about expressing our love and thankfulness to the Lord. Blessing him and honoring him for who he is and what he has done for us. Praise is about verbalizing (though maybe in paint or dance, not always in words) how we feel towards God. It is often God's response to this praise that leads us into worship. That deep place of (inner) silence where we (at least begin to) truly know him.

There's a lot more I could say. I've just really skimmed over the surface of this vast subject. (I haven't said anything about living a life of worship, being a living sacrifice.) But maybe this will help still my thoughts about this a little bit. I hope you don't mind.

revelation

I have, very slowly but still surely, been reviewing Transit and all that I learned. Today I was going through my notes from God's Story for the last term and was reminded how much I loved Revelation.

When I think about the book of Revelation I think about worship. I think that this is where we find more images of true worship than anywhere else in the Bible. This is also the book that gives us more insight into why we worship. Here is where we find not only descriptions of God and all of his glory and power, here is where we find out the end of the story. We here what is in store for us at the end of all things. And let me just say that it is going to be worth it!

Here are a few highlights from Revelation:

*The four Animals were winged, each with 6 wings. They were all eyes, seeing around and within. And they chanted night and day, never taking a break: Holy, holy, holy is God our Master, Sovereign-Strong, The Was, The Is, The Coming.

*Then I heard every creature in Heaven and earth, in underworld and sea, join in, all voices in all places, singing: To the One on the Throne! To the Lamb! The blessing, the honor, the glory, the strength, for age after age after age. The four animals called out, "Oh, yes!" The Elders fell to their knees and worshipped.

*These are those who come from the great tribulation, and they've washed their robes, scrubbed them clean in the blood of the Lamb. That's why they're standing before God's Throne. They serve him day and night in his Temple. The One on the Throne will shepherd them, will lead them to spring waters of Life. And God will wipe every last tear from their eyes.

*Then I heard the sound of massed choirs, the sound of a mighty cataract, the sound of strong thunder: Hallelujah! The Master reigns, our God, the Sovereign-Strong! Let us celebrate, let us rejoice, let us give him the glory!

*I heard a voice thunder from the Throne: "Look! Look! God has moved into the neighborhood, making his home with men and women! They're his people, he's their God. He'll wipe every tear from their eyes. Death is gone for good - tears gone, crying gone, pain gone - all the first order of things gone." The Enthroned continued, "Look! I'm making all things new."

*His servants will offer God service - worshipping, they'll look on his face, their foreheads mirroring God. Never again will there be any night. No one will need lamplight or sunlight. The shining of God, the Master, is all the light anyone needs. And they will rule with him age after age after age.

*Yes, I'm on my way! I'll be there soon!

*Yes! Come, Master Jesus!