This One Thing I Do…

(Phil 3:12-16)

I know that we live in the information age so I thought I would try and new form of blogging today. Read Phil 3: 12-16 between now and Thursday and bring a Bible to practice. Check out the Video http://youtu.be/3SDXrIxD95E and come ready to discuss the power of focus this Thursday!

Worship & Giving

On my way in to the church this morning I was pondering what to Blog about. I have always believed that the situations at hand make for the best discussion. I think that it is because it makes the discussion more real to life, it also helps me as a Christian to work out my faith, and it also assumes that other’s are working through similar thoughts and issues which I have found is true most of the time.

Since we are in a series involving Financial Fitness, I thought this would make for a great discussion this week in how much giving is a part of Worship. I think that everyone would agree that giving is a part of worship. Where we will find ourselves at different places will revolve around how much we think giving is a part or how important of a roll it plays? Does how we organize our finances affect other areas of worship? Should we give based on New Testament or Old Testament concept? What impact does giving have on my ability as a Worship Leader?

This week please ponder that these questions. Pray about them, talk about them with family, and even google the topics and see what others have shared about these issues. As you ponder I have some scriptures that will help you wrap your heart and mind around the issue. 2 Corinthians 9:7; Genesis 28:22; Matthew 23:23; Malachi 3:6-12. There are many other scriptures that involve this topic, but these are a few to get the discussion started.

Pastor Larry

Nothing New to Say…

Sometimes as creative people we feel we have to be creative all the time. However, at times we would be better off to be reminded of things that we think we already know. This week when I was thinking about what to blog, nothing would come to mind. But as I thought more about the upcoming ORBC DREAM Conference I started to think about all the wisdom that God has gifted our worship ministry with. Then my mind drifted back to a BLOG I did in November.

I think instead of looking at something new this week, I would like to go over something that we all need to be reminded of as we approach this upcoming conference. Here is the BLOG that I am referring to http://orbcworship.blogspot.com/2011/11/3-phases-to-ministry.html.

Take a quick look at it and on THUR I would like you to come knowing how it applies to you within your worship ministry. I think that realization will help us prepare for this year as well as for the upcoming conference.

Pastor Larry

Who Should You Focus on In Your Ministry?

As a Pastor who serves at a larger church, I often get the question: How can you begin to serve everyone that is in your ministry area? It is a valid question. After all as your ministry grows there comes a point in time where it is not possible to minister to everyone at a one on one level. So, how do you handle that situation? Well, I think that Jesus left us an excellent example. In essence His life has touched most of the world; a much larger crowd that I can hope to impact. But the principle that He used is sound. Jesus focused His time with those who took initiative!

What I love about this principle is that He chose not to necessary invest in the most talented. He chose the people that were not considered the most talented, intelligent, or wealthy (A far cry from our country today). He allowed in many ways those who had initiative to approach Him. It is the principle of investing in Heart over Ability. We see this principle lived out for both extroverts and introverts. Two examples I want to lift before you this week are Peter and Andrew.

They were brothers, so they came from similar backgrounds and circumstances. But what I love is that they are opposite personalities and yet both showed great heart and initiative. If you know anything about Peter (Brash, Outspoken, Confident…), then it is easy to understand his natural ability to take initiative and lead. But it is harder to see it with Andrew. To see it just read John 1:41 and John 6:1 -13. In the first passage we see that Andrew is the one who brings Peter to Christ. Talk about a leader that took initiative! In the second we see the apostles unsure how to feed all the people, but Andrew is the one that says in vs. 8 that he has a boy with some bread and fish. Andrew new that if he brought whatever he had to Jesus that Jesus could make it great.

So, as a leader who do I want to invest in. I want to invest in people like Andrew and Peter. People who take the initiative to solve problems and lead people into a deeper experience of who Jesus is have a large impact on the world around them. I learned along time ago that if you use talent as your sole measurement for investment that you will see very little growth in your ministry. Why? Because, God values heart over talent. When and where you find both, it is even better.

This week as we prepare for worship, ask yourself some critical questions. “When I see a problem in the worship ministry do I first complain or do I think about how I can be a part of making it better? When I think of my next step in worship ministry, am I waiting on someone to approach me or am I brining my gifts to the leadership and saying here is what I can do here is what I can offer? Help me to see how Jesus can get greater fame with my gifts.”

Can’t wait to see you THUR for our devotion time.

Pastor Larry

Jesus’ Worship vs. Mine

At its most basic level discipleship is being a follower of a person, philosophy, or organization. Based on that definition, we all are a disciples of something or someone. If you are a professing Christian, we are to be a follower of Christ. Based on Romans 8: 28-30 our goal is to be made into His image. Because I lead a worship arts ministry, I found myself this morning asking the question: What did Jesus’ Worship look like? If we are to be His disciple, then I think having an understanding of what His worship looked liked both publically and privately would better help us to follow after Him and to become more like Him.

The ironic thing is that I cannot find much written on the topic. I admit that I have not done an exhaustive search and that the Cowboys poor performance last night distracted me from giving the topic its needed focus (LOL). But in the cursory glance that I have afforded the topic there are some generalizations that have appeared that I would like to give some consideration to and share with you.

It is apparent to me that the Bible records more about Jesus private worship than His public worship. Over and over again we see Jesus withdrawing for private worship through prayer. I am reading through the Gospel of Luke at the moment in my devotional time and just in that book there are several accounts of His private worship through prayer (Luke 4:42, Luke 5:16, Luke 6:12, Luke 9:18). What stands out to me is that there is little recorded about Christ’s public worship.

While there may be more, there are two passages that came to mind immediately for me: John 4: 1-26 (the woman at the well) and Mark 14:26 (singing after the last supper). During my devotion with the Worship Ministry this Monday morning we really dug into this idea and I was struck by the comparison between Jesus private and public worship.

There were things about Christ’s private and public worship that were the same. His prayers had the same focus (the mission) and He worshipped for the most part among the people and their typical surroundings. However, there were also differences in His private and public worship. He drew personal strength from His private worship while His public worship tired Him at times. One obvious difference that really caught my attention was that He was more intimate in private than in public.

A few week’s ago I shared that Worship at its heart is expressed love to God. With that definition a curious and interesting analogy occurred to me this morning: marriage. Within a marriage there are certain acts of affection that are appropriate in public and others that are not. But at the two extremes of this analogy there are truths to be discovered regarding the integrity of our own worship.

If a person is intimate with their spouse in private but not in public, their spouse will begin to become concerned that their love is not genuine and that they are embarrassed to express their affection. However, there are certain intimacies that are only meant only for our spouse in private. Those more intimate affections add value and a deeper connection to the very personal relationship with our spouse. I think these same principles are transferable to our public and private worship. How many times have you been a situation where you saw an affectionate couple in public and you thought “get a room”! There are also times when you see a husband and wife that you know and they hug, hold hands, or kiss and you think how sweet and endearing their public act of affection is was.

My relationship with Christ drives me to want to be more intimate with Him in private leading me to share a greater portion of who I am in that quite place. Where I allow only Him to know the deepest parts of me and want to know Him more deeply. There is also something to be said for me being genuine in my public worship of Him and showing affection that is appropriate and does not make others feel awkward. I do not want to have a lack of integrity in either my public worship or my private worship. But I must confess that at times I lack one or the other.

Take some time this week to consider if you lack genuineness in either your public or private worship. Allow God to expose your lack of integrity. Then share with those that you lead with how you want to improve your private worship. Consider what is appropriate, but be genuine. Then give consideration as to how being more intimate in private with God will affect your public worship and affection for Him; how your example may affect or encourage those around you to be more genuine and real in their worship?

Feel free to leave your ideas, questions, or comments on this blog or the ORBC Worship facebook so that we all can all grow and learn together.

Real Worship?

What helps someone worship God in a genuine way? Is it tied to form, a place, or a philosophy? Many people are confused about worship and I think it is because those of us that have the opportunity to lead confuse them. We place our focus many times on the task ahead of us based on our weekend responsibilities and in so doing we focus our folks on the urgent and not the ultimate.

No matter where you look in the Bible Worship always involves an offering of something to God that comes from the heart. In the book of Romans Paul gives a very succinct definition. “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.” (Rom 12:1 [NIV]) If we are honest with ourselves all of us from time to time are too self-absorbed to surrender our wants, desires, and dreams to God in worship. Our week is full of our agenda, our job, and our hobbies.

Rick Warren in Purpose Driven Life says that there are three barriers that typically keep us from this kind of worship: Trusting God, A Lack of Self Awareness, and a Lack of Surrender. At different times as a person and as a leader I have found all three of these barriers to be real in my life and my ministry.

What barriers listed above have been hardest for you? If you are a leader have you shared those barriers with those that you lead? How did you overcome and push through to a place where you offered all of who you are to God as a genuine act of worship (ROM 12:1)?

If you are in ORBC Worship/Arts ministry please meditate, memorize, and talk about the above passage with those you are doing life with. I think that it could make for a great devotion this week. Those that were able to make Monday morning really had allot of insight and wisdom on this topic. Let’s continue the discussion this week at practice and even into the weekend!

Getting Lit (Matthew 5:14-16)

The more I bike ride the more flat tires I get. I am learning that this is just part of the deal and the good news is that I am getting better at changing them while loosing my real spare tire (LOL). You see I keep a spare tube and CO2 cartridge in a small bag under my seat. Even with this precaution my wife is concerned that I will break down in the wrong area of town and be in danger.

A few weeks ago that happened. I broke down in one of the roughest neighborhoods in Salisbury on a street known for, well for the sake of this blog, darkness. I began changing my tire and two different people stopped and asked if I needed help or a ride to a local bike shop. I thanked them and assured them I was OK and changed my tire and got where I needed to go.

This week I had another flat, but this time is was just a couple of miles from my house in the small town we live near. This town has three churches within a quarter mile of where I broke down. However, not one person stopped to ask if I needed help and many cars went by that morning. I changed my tire and rode into work but the whole way there was talking to God about the stark difference in these two experiences.

In Matthew 5: 14-16 Jesus said “You are the light of the world. A city set on a hill cannot be hidden. Nor do people light a lamp and put it under a basket, but on a stand, and it gives light to all in the house. In the same way, let your light shine before others, so that they may see your good works and give glory to your Father who is in heaven.” (ESV)

It made me think about our churches and how they were designed by our Lord to be beacons of light in a dark word, but how we sometimes easily hide that light under the basket of our selfish desire to create churches that are museums as opposed to hospitals for the sick. Many churches rarely leave their property (our basket) and enter into their community (our houses) to carry the light of Christ into the darkness of this world. We even ironically have called our churches “houses of worship”, but in reality they are a baskets many times for our holy huddle of four and no more.

In the early church people were excited about Christ’s light inside them; Christ had radically changed them and saved them from eternal darkness and the darkness of this world (John 10:10). They went into their communities and loved, lived, and let Christ’s light shine and people were drawn like a moth to a flame (John 12: 32).

I know the church I am serving at now is trying to do be a light and we are working within our local communities to serve and allow Christ’s light to shine into the darkness around us. However, we are also always looking for better ways to be obedient in taking Christ’s light to the hurting and needful. While I could share my thoughts on how we are doing this, I would rather created a dialogue and hear from you. So, I have two questions: What can we do in our local churches to take Christ’s light into our communities better and why have the churches in America in general been so reluctant to go into their communities?

As a side, when you see me on the side of the road with my next flat will you stop and ask if I need a ride?