Jerry sensed God speaking to him as he listened to the missionary speak of short term missions opportunities to a foreign land. But as he started to fill out the response card, inner voices flooded his mind, “Who do you think you are? They’re looking for mature, experienced Christians; not a spiritual baby like you. … Continue reading Deleting the Old Recordings of our Past

  Some time ago our worship team led the congregation in a very powerful song called “Your Grace Still Amazes Me”. It was one of those songs that stays in your mind long after you sing it. That’s what happened to my wife, Letty. She just couldn’t get the song out of her mind. On … Continue reading Seeing God-led Conspiracies

There are times, after a worship service, when people will come up to me and say things like: “That was awesome worship” or “Worship was really great today!” Such statements are flattering, but what do they mean? Usually it means a variety of things ranging from: “the music rocked!”, or “you sang my favorite song!” … Continue reading The Forgotten Side of Worship

1 Thessalonians 5:18 says to “give thanks always for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus.” Have you ever wondered what this means? Does this mean that I constantly need to say “thank you” to God?  Is God so insecure that He needs my “thank you” after He does something for me? Granted, … Continue reading Gratitude Changes Our Attitude

A glimpse at 24/7 worship in action. It was the most unlikely place and most unlikely time. It was a rushed morning, my electric razor broke in the middle of my shave, I was behind schedule, I got mad at my family, and I was stuck in traffic – in short, I lost all semblance … Continue reading Rush Hour Worship

In our discussions of worship we’ve learned that worship is more than a song. Worship is more than just what we do once a week in a congregational setting. Yesterday, we discussed the importance of having “Daily Altar Time”; a daily encounter with Jesus through prayer, Bible reading, journaling and other spiritual disciplines. But worship … Continue reading Jesus 24/7?

In the Old Testament times, the great saints marked their encounters with God by constructing an altar to Him. Abraham did this several times, as did Isaac and Jacob. Moses built God a tabernacle and David desired to build God a temple. These structures’ sole role was to be a place where the Presence of … Continue reading Personal Worship Time – Putting Our Lives on the Altar

In recent years we have seen a number of reality TV shows that demonstrate outward change: “Extreme Makeover”, “Ugly Duckling”, “Loser” to name a few. On these shows, we see a radical change in people and places: a house gets remodeled, a face gets rearranged, a body loses excess poundage. But have you noticed that … Continue reading Worship That Transforms

I love that song “Heart of Worship.” It really speaks to the crucial issue of what worship is all about. In this day and age of “consumer oriented music” our churches have been caught up with consumer oriented worship. Matt Redman’s song is a reminder that worship is: All about Jesus, not about us; and … Continue reading Worshiping God is More Than a Song; But How Much More?

Last week the winds cleared away the smog and clouds from the sky. As I looked to the mountains, my breath was literally taken away. Although I have looked at these mountains many times, I never really saw what now was obvious to me: the clear definitions of the canyons, ridges, and vegetation. The green … Continue reading The Attitude of Wonderment